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Steve Ignorant

Discussion in 'Music, punk scene & subcultures' started by ungovernable, Oct 3, 2009.

  1. JOE01

    JOE01 Active Member Forum Member


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    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    Yeah it was fucking scandolous, it did inspire me to think fuck just reading the posts, I'll get an account, this is serious shit

    Almost 20 years ago when I first discovered Crass (would have been less than 10 yrs old when they split), like Conflict they could do no wrong. I've seen wave after wave of 18 year old punks who feel the same, ironically they hold onto every word Crass/Conflict say like a loyalist at one of Ian Paisley's sermons. Now I don't know Crass personally but certain members of that band came over as control freak bullies who've forgotten all their 'anarcho' principles. I mean I've viewed the Steve Ignorant 'concerts' with the utmost of cynicism. I don’t really want to go there, except to say even my late introduction to anarcho punk in the early to mid 1990's, well everything seemed so genuine back then compared to now. First anarcho gig I went to was oi polloi in Glasgow in 1992 and remember fuck all about it, wasn't interested was dragged along, though I have gone onto quite like a lot of Oi Polloi's stuff. The first 'proper' anarcho gig I attended was Conflict at the 10 days of Anarchy in London in 1994, DIRT supported them and it was most amusing to see the venue clear when Citizen Fish were given the headline. To my mind Conflict were fucking amazing that night and I still remember it being one of the best punk gigs I ever went to. As I recall it was about 5 or 6 quid to get in, was supposed to be at the Astoria but seemingly the cops had put a stop to it and it was in a squated ex music venue in Kings Cross. I could just be old and looking back at what were 'the days' but I swear it all seemed to be so much more genuine back then. Maybe it's the ten years of Tony Blair that just made people that little bit more downright fucking selfish I don't know???

    I'm glad someone's raised the issue that they think $23 is too much for a gig of the ex front man of Crass and I basically agree wholeheartedly if the words that once seemed so great to many of us were to be believed. I am disappointed by the way it's largely gone. I found that book 'the day the country died' to be pretty contrived for a start, a retailing around the same price as tickets for your man steve ignorant, there are certain inaccuracies and omissions in the book I didn’t like, a platform for a nationalist right wing racist is given, and it reads much more like a rock music book than really giving any depth to the ‘politics’ of anarcho punk. On one hand yes it’s good that anarcho punk got some recognition alongside all the mainstream punk crap, but was that what it was ever supposed to be about? I didn't really think it was.
    I haven't seen any of Steve's big reunion gigs and doubt I will. One thing Steve could do to right his wrongs is to actually play some DIY shows like they were meant to be. Play some benefit gigs? take a stand against the gentrifictaion of the UK live music scene? (and I imagine increasingly the international as well).Rightly or wrongly conflict get a lot of flack for 'selling out', but at least conflict on top of their over-priced gigs have done squat gigs, they let everyone in free to one of their gigs at corporate Islington academy a few years back fair play to that. Whatever Colin's faults are he's been known to give stacks of his Mortarhate back cat away to groups I've been around like Hunt Sabs. Don’t see Southern records going to dish out a stash to groups fighting the Tory cuts or some other worthwhile groups. Fat fucking chance, I read a lot of that document, got the genreal gist and Southern came over as not much different to any other corporate record company to be totally honest.


    Everything Crass apparently stood for has been watered down, diluted from its original ethos and made to look as farcical as its worse critics like that prick Garry Bushel said back in the day- very fucking sadly. There was an article bigging up crass in the guardian recently, and it kind of pissed me off. The way it was written like Clasper's book suggests anarcho punk was defined by one or two bands and ended in 1984, apart from the big reunions that cost £20 to get into and be policed by Showsec. Well a small minority of us kept it alive in a much smaller form in the 1990's and the 2000's we did FUCK LOADS of benefit gigs kept it DIY and naively had mega respect for Crass as an inspiration. Can’t say I have much respect for most Crass members now, that Pete bloke seems genuinely alright from reading that document, as did Joy and Andy, but am not impressed by the way things have turned out. Maybe we all become what we hate in the end eh Crass, ‘they said that we were trash’ so we went and proved it?

    Oh one final word I won't be buying any crass reissues, I hardly play any of their records these days, they don't feature on my mp3 player but I might well have to play that bootleg Peel session on vinyl I have out of principle now. It's very fucking ironic this whole crass thing, I mean John Lydon doing a butter advert was bad enough but this shit doesn't smell a million miles different to my mind. Loads of people are excusing all sorts of shit and I think even Profane existence said regarding the review of Steve's gig in 2007 at Shepherds Bush something along the lines of 'at the end of the day its about the music'. This is the sad impression I am getting that for the majority anarcho punk is just about music ffs :ecouteurs:
     
  2. punkmar77

    punkmar77 Experienced Member Uploader Experienced member


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    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    Summed up perfectly JOE01, I stayed up all night till about 7:30 am, one night after playing our last show, reading the 130 or so remaining documents, and came away with an identical impression. There are valuable lessons in there for all punks, and musicians in general. Good on Pete for fighting the good fight and attempting to stand up for whatever Crass stood for once upon a time.
     
  3. JOE01

    JOE01 Active Member Forum Member


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    Feb 6, 2011
     
    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?


    There are more documents? oh no where? :lmao:

    Sad thing is this won't have much impact on young and old punks treating Crass like the fucking pope, it did turn me off and made a few notes in my head of what to avoid in the future etc concerning my own back cat/songs I have been a part of and such like
    To be fair at some point I think Steve and Crass members have only been encouraged to be greedy by others in the 'punk scene' most of whom haven't made any genuine contribution to genuine political/anarcho commentary and more importantly ACTION

    cheers mate
     
  4. aciddeath

    aciddeath Member Forum Member


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    Feb 7, 2011
     
    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    this is my first post to the board

    CRASS
    2011
    :lmao:
     
  5. Ivanovich

    Ivanovich Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    I'm not so sure they really meant it back then, neither, though for sure, they did inspire a lot of people that really did mean it. How's that line go, "the frankenstein monster you created has turned against you, now you're hated." $23 for a gig, oh my, wonder if that will buy enough beer to drown the guilt. 'Ere Stevie, do you owe us all a living? Course you fucking do!
     
  6. Bostedclog

    Bostedclog Member New Member


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    Aug 31, 2010
     
    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    I really dont think hes gonna make much out of this if anything at all.I went to see him in Manchester in England .I think my ticket was about £15 which is about the same amount as $23.The gig was superb.i imagine that there are only going to be a few hundred people at the US gigs,what with all the expense of travel and equipment to say hes making shit loads of money out of a handful of gigs is just ridiculous.
     
  7. punkmar77

    punkmar77 Experienced Member Uploader Experienced member


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    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    Steve Ignorant Interview from Februaury 2011


    Part I

    [video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiDxyvF_Reg[/video]


    Part II

    [video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiDxyvF_Reg[/video]


    Part III

    [video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMVWjnXgQWc[/video]


    Part IV

    [video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0K-2d3aXsu4[/video]
     
  8. JOE01

    JOE01 Active Member Forum Member


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    Feb 6, 2011
     
    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    These videos are quite interesting and so are parts of his book I read at a mates house at the w-end- very surprisingly and parts of it are incredibly funny which reminds me why I liked Crass in the first place. I ain't gunna say I fully agree with Steve now BUT speaking from experience some people involved in putting on 'DIY' gigs use it as an opportunity to exploit you....

    I'm not going to see Steve Ignorant his note perfect version of Crass songs does even less for me than the fairly high ticket costs.

    I think Steve should become a politician he is good at making unattractive ideas like commercialising crass sound reasonable.

    Fuck it though its not that important really, I'm sure a lot of people really love his new gigs and a lot of people blatantly don't

    have I changed my mind about previous comments? well yes and no I guess!
     
  9. punkmar77

    punkmar77 Experienced Member Uploader Experienced member


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    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    Agreed again, I definitely am not as disgusted as I was with him, specially after reading all the correspondence, but it still does not sit well...
     
  10. JOE01

    JOE01 Active Member Forum Member


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    Feb 6, 2011
     
    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    That's probably the thing Punkmar 77. in Steve's book he does point out when DIY works it really works and when it doesn't its fucking horrible. I am sure Steve could have done his gigs a bit more DIY and still been satisfied, he's done the big gigs now and is going to round it all off with another stint at Shepherds Bush, would it really do him no harm to play a bunch of DIY gigs to round it all off?????
     
  11. AlexanderS

    AlexanderS New Member New Member


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    Mar 2, 2011
     
    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    OK I actually made an account for this post usually i just browse around these forums just because of the interesting and uniqueness stuff , But this thread and the people slandering Steve is pretty fucking ridiculous and actually pissed me off. You fuckheads knew something about anything you would know first of Steve isn't trying to make money because he couldn't profit off his fame in the 80's if you knew anything (like I stated before) you would know that crass was actually approached by multiple big record companies and denied them all because they were against selling out not because and I quote retard #1 "he want to make money out of his fame because he couldn't profit of his celebrity during the 80's" -ungovernable, Why don't you read a bit more and self educate yourself before you go around slandering everyone.

    Durring Steve Ignorants music career; Crass, Schwartznegger, and stratford mercenaries you should know it was all DIY and that they only made enough money to cover expenses for like food and water. The band sometimes didnt even have places to say so kinda hard to be a sell out when your sleeping an abandon warehouse. Now enough about that I just needed to say that just to give support to my next "block of text". That is!!!! here it comes...

    Steve ignorant was born in 1957 and its now 2011 witch means hes??? Yes, 54 If I was 54 and spent a huge portion of my life sleeping on floors and not knowing when my next meals so I could spark some hope in the lives of people living in this globalized war torn place we call earth So I could see why the tickets are 25 dollars also that's nothing compared to what i bet some of your true anarchist bands charge to see like LOL "the casualties" Anarchy for sale!

    I could rant about this more with supporting details and evidence but I don't feel like slapping on my teachers outfit to educate some ignorant one sided fucks

    Wealth is a Ghetto -Crass
     
  12. Ivanovich

    Ivanovich Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    Yeah, well it's easy being DIY when you got a mate that owns a 24 track studio and distribution company, aint it. Joy Division / New Order, same deal, they made more money by not signing to major label too. Nowhere to stay? AFAIK, Dial House was there long before the band formed, rented then bought. They full of shit, and that based on personal experience dealing with them, not just some shit I read on internet.
     
  13. punkmar77

    punkmar77 Experienced Member Uploader Experienced member


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    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    Oh wow Alexander I guess you told us, and way to back up your arguments with facts....who gives a fuck how old he is? So according to you he can do no wrong and is always above criticism? Haha give me a fucking break, anarchism is also about always questioning everything on a constant basis. Oh and bringing up the Casualties in your half-assed rant is one of the weakest arguing points I have ever seen on this forum.... :lmao:
     
  14. snookams

    snookams Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Feb 7, 2010
     
    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    even if steve and the "band" didn't want to sleep on a floor somewhere, i can name several venues they could play at and some houses they could stay at without charging 23 fucking dollars a head. plus he's playing at the fox...that's such a shitty venue.
     
  15. Caps

    Caps Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Nov 3, 2010
     
    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    AlexanderS, you are aware you pretty much contradict yourself? You seem to say that Steve has been 'DIY' all his life so it's okay to inflate prices for gigs now. There's a logic to it, but you can hardly support Steve for his integrity.

    Furthermore, saying that Steve Ignorant could not profit from his 'celebrity status' in the 80s is a fair comment. CRASS really became legends after they'd stopped producing music. So, in time, those involved in it could play gigs and make money off that status. Give it - ooooh, I don't know - 20 years or so. Makes sense to me.

    As for Steve's other projects being DIY, they might as well have been, they would not have made him a lot of money besides.

    Besides all this, veneration of a person is a bit of a strange attitude for an anarchist. Hence why most people on here critically assess individuals. And the criticisms of Steve Ignorant's money making projects and piss-over-legacy nostalgia trips go well beyond this forum.
     
  16. Ivanovich

    Ivanovich Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    I dunno about elsewhere but in UK there are plenty bands that play lot of benefit / free gigs and pay their own expenses, cos they actually believe in what they doing. If you really do need anarcho 'heroes' to worship, you could do a lot better than Steve Ignorant and co.
     
  17. Bones Booking

    Bones Booking Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Nov 16, 2010
     
    Steve Ignorant Presents:Crass Songs 1977-1984 @ The Glasshouse

    [​IMG]
     
  18. ungovernable

    ungovernable Autonome Staff Member Uploader Admin Team Experienced member


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    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    Wow you're a fucking retarded moron, first stop telling me to educate myself i already know everything you mentionned. It's funny how the first part of your message pretend crass never made any money and bla bla bla, and then in the second part you say he has to make money to get food... What a fucking joke.... Even the casualties are charging less than $25 per show, maybe you should educate yourself..... You're talking about DIY well this tour is organized by managers and businessmen, steve ignorant doesnt even have the control over it and cant even get the shows to be announced as steve ignorant and not as crass (he said it in his blog)

    Fucking idiot who worship the heroes of punk scene. Yes i used to appreciate steve ignorant and everything he did but the truth is that he's now in only for the money, just like crass who are re-releasing old records for 20 times the price they used to sell it. That's selling out, there's no other words.

    There are many bands like Oi Polloi who can still afford to sell records at low cost and do tours for less than $10 per ticket... They're old and they have to eat too... The only difference with Steve Ignorant is that Oi Polloi and those other bands are not in for the money.




    As for steve ignorant tour, it was reported:
    viewtopic.php?f=41&t=6406
     
  19. ungovernable

    ungovernable Autonome Staff Member Uploader Admin Team Experienced member


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    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    it's steve fucking ignorant, there's at least 500 persons at each gig willing to offer him a place to sleep for free.... if some underground unknown bands can find a place to squatt for free when they're in a foreign country, steve ignorant can also do it easily

    i never understood why steve ignorant should get a special treatement just because hes famous...
     
  20. Ansel

    Ansel Member Forum Member


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    Mar 16, 2011
     
    Re: Crass playing in California and charging $23?

    I'm new to the forums but I saw this thread and thought I'd post. I heard Crass (or steve ignorant) was playing a few months ago in California and planned on flying out to go with my cousin. Turns out I'm not financially stable enough to do so, but did see he was playing in Austin, Texas in the beginning of May. I got excited looking up dates to make sure it fit with my schedule, then watched a few videos of his tour, and they were all awful. It looks like just a big waste of time, for me at least. I'd say if your not getting a free ticket don't bother. I'd rather see Doom in June anyways :D
     
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