VIVE LE ROCK! #65
2019 *****
Had to check out this issue with a neat shot of Steve Ignorant on the cover fronting Crass when he really was the voice of British discontent. This is Vive Le Rock's salute to the 40th anniversary of Anarcho punk and Crass records. But before we come to that there's some other neat stuff in here with a two page dissection of the Slits moody debut album 'Cut' released in '79. Highlighting the unique sound they created. It's a shame they never managed improve on it. Meanwhile the Mekons who penned the classic 'Where Were You' 45 in '78 then went on to do very little else, have now turned into something totally different playing Americana folk,Cajun music (yawn). There's a good interview with Pauline Murray who wooed audiences at last years successful Rebellion festival appearance with Penetration and later on her own. She talks Invisible girls here. Anarcho punk. you either love it or hate it I love it. There's a massive 12 page spread on Crass and Anarcho punk in general. Most of you have already heard the background stories or read the books on Crass, so there's not a lot new here. But what I didn't know was Steve Ignorant was on £8 quid a week at the height of Crass fame. Mind you it was only about 12p a pint in those days. Captain Sensible turned Vegan after he got groomed round the Crass kitchen table. Mr Ignorant left us with this very succinct quote "You can't really be a punk rocker anymore because everybody's a punk rocker". Yeah tell me about it. Conflict get interviewed and promise a new album in 2020. And finally The Subhumans Dick Lucas gives us a frank insight into how he manages fronting 3 bands and still pulls in an audience. You'd never have guessed Brit Pops stalwart Steve Lamacq was a punk fan would you? Here he looks back at UK82 punk and fanzines. There's an ntriguing history of Flipper who despite going through bass players like serial killers, have continued going for 40 years. However the best interview of the lot and most revealing was with Fat Mike from NOFX, who talks about death, drugs and danger. He's in the UK doing his coked up clown persona Cokie The Clown. Which features some hilarious true stories. We all know Mike's a shrewd Punk operator, coz by the time he was 27 his label had sold over 5 million records!. He puts it down to "I always think four or five moves ahead with everything i do, ever". But that astute persona must've had a hangover when he had his phone robbed while giving instructions to an old geezer in a London Chinese restaurant tee hee. We also had Peter Perrett of the Only Ones who looks shit, but still sounds great. And finally a neat gig review of Buzzcocks Royal Albert hall gig, which turned into a tribute for Pete Shelley. There's a load of other stuff in here too, but not really punk related. I got my copy off Ebay.
£5.25
VIVA LE ROCK

LIGHTS GO OUT #66

LUNCHTIME FOR THE WILD YOUTH #18

MAY 2019 *****

This one reminds me of That's Not Skanking from Manchester in its really neat and clinical layout (as in desktop publishing), no adventurous cut 'n' paste here. I only brought it coz the name reminded me of Channel 3's 'After The Lights Go Out' album from '83, and misguidedly thought it might be coming from the same kinda angle? But how wrong was I? This is a split with Lunchtime For The Wild Youth. So after knocking out 66 of these "punk zines" I thought it's gotta be worth a read, I was all geared up for 2 new publications to gloat about on here when.....Lights Go Out from Berkshire could almost come from anywhere. There's no local news or input? Even the absurd cover gave us no clues. But it was the editorial that sent shock waves through the Wolf's Lair when I read that its split is with "someone who loves indie music mainly through the nineties and so many bands i grew up listening to".... arrrgghh!!!! So I paid £1.50 for not one, but 2 indie inspired rags grrrrr. Forget the money, which ever way you look at it, it ain't looking good for a scummy punk cunt like me who can't stand 'indie'. What's even worse is, the main feature is nicked from the web and features an interview with Bracket. I have no qualms about the band, (who are quite poppy and infectious) it's the deed of doing it (permission or not) in a printed zine. Now thats what I call lazzzzy journalism. A page here or there maybe, but not the main 4 page article in a 12 page split! I think he should show his readers a little more respect. Oh well onwards and downwards. Sittingborne's ska punks The Long Game and a rock/grunge outfit from Manchester called Manalishi are the other 2 interviews. Which left not a lot to chew on punk wise. But I kid you not, worse was yet to come. The Record Store Day column really blew it, when our editor Mr T, admitted he was a massive Europe fan and had been for years. He even owns every record by em!!! Jeeeezzz!!! So this Europe obsessive with a penchant for Indie has been writing,reviewing and covering punk for 66 issues and counting. The moral of this review is, if your buying a punk zine or "a fun fanzine project which had some cool punk bands involved and would be a useful resource for the punk scene" you might get a nasty shock! And what exactly does 'fanzine project' really mean? A hobby, a pass time, somert to kill a few hours before we blast out the 'Final Countdown'? Will the last person to leave; turn out the lights.

£1.50

LIGHTS GO OUT

STREET DEED #3
Summer 2019 *****
This is one of the best looking zines I've seen in recent years. Not a glossy paper sheen in sight, nor a whiff of Microsoft in the mix, but what it don't make up for in slickness it absolutely explodes with artistic madness. This issue has a zest for life and a fucking eye catching display of zany humour, grotesque cartoon villainy and a typewriter frenzy thats gone right off the rails. It could've walked straight out the early 80's, but it's chaotic presentation is something you can't learn at "zine school" or any of those other sensible zine writers conventions the Uni pen pushers frequent. This is the real deal. It's inventive A4 Layout, reminds me of zines like Bugs N Drugs, but with a Defiant Pose attitude. This is pure unadulterated punk rock insanity on a page. And is created with a talent and an eye for detail that needs your patronage. There's just one major problem... it's written in Bulgarian. So along with other great European publications like Plastic Bomb (German) I ain't been able to read the fucker. It will inevitably only appeal to the local Bulgarian punk scene, because illiterate uncultured limey's like me can't read the lingo? However Kamen, it's enthusiastic 37 year old editor has included some English segments in issue #3 and more are promised for future Issues. Each issue takes years to materialise but it seems to get better each time and well worth the wait. I thought I had to review it knowing that Kamen had sent two previously, which got lost in the post. Street Deeds will bring you some of the best cartoons this side of Robert Crumb who is a major influence. We don't get no columns to bore you with, no recipes or poems to make you gag, just pure hardcore punk with some rock 'n' roll and a cast of outcasts coming at you fast from all angles as you turn the page. It's a melting pot of exploding text debris. If this was music it would be loud dangerous and totally uncompromising. When you look through this zine it's visually like walking through a punk rock lunatic asylum with hideous head balls jumping out at you from every page The layouts alone are brilliant even when maybe some of the bands featured aren't, but just in case I better tell you whose in it. We get Bulgarian punk vets Novi Tsventra, Tokyo's pogo punks The Erections lol, Defecto Humano, Aussie rockers Rose Tattoo, Astro Zombies from France, Dead Boys, Berlin's Sinister Kris Combo, plus Bruttl E Ignoranti from Milan and last but by no means least a profile on Robert Crumb who is sanctified in this zine and rightly so. Eclectic to say the least, but with a presentation this good it deserves a way wider audience. There's English translated  interviews with Astro Zombies and Italian skins Bruttl E Ignoranti and they get asked some neat questions so the attitude is bang on also.There's a lotta effort and style put into this 64 page publication. If you want a copy, are into punk or can speak Bulgarian, I suggest you check it out pronto! Kamen promises a Bulgarian punk scene report he offered to include on this site, so look forward to reading that in the near future.
Contact...
goranovkamen@yahoo.co.uk
KV. CHAIKA 29; "V" ; ET.3;AP.32
9000 VARNA
BULGARIA