Punk It Up
Remembers a short, sharp era in New Zealand music history
Saturday evening, 1980, and six Lynfield College 15- and 16-year-old to take boys gather the bus into the outside CBD. Decanting the St James cinema, to walk up Queen they begin St. Their destination Cafe, an unlicensed is XS music venue on Airedale that serves as the St epicentre for Auckland’s rock scene. From punk Aotea Square’s shadows a group of youths emerge who begin crossing towards the schoolboys.
Queen St “KCS,” hisses one of the Lynfield lads, noticed those tailing having them, and he and quicken their step. his friends The schoolboys are punks — although Pakeha beyond a preference shop jackets and short(ish) for charity hard-pressed hair you would be to place them as such
Roskill and — from Blockhouse Mt King Bay, while the KCS are Cobras, a Polynesian from street gang hailing Ponsonby. The KCS who run towards the sprint into Airedale punks entrance St, rushing through shouting “KCS! XS’S swarm KCS!” This of bootboys, brings forth a hungry to ruck with
Are the schoolboys the KCS. safe? Not quite: the love a fight and, if bootboys they can’t find a skinhead to bash, KC or a fellow might decide to tear teens. Such was into the my introduction to
Saturday night an Auckland out. Thing is, I took this carnage in stride: was a constant, at violence school and on suburban in parties and at streets, burger bars. Because didn’t like someone someone else’s haircut or jacket way their eyes briefly or the thug met. Or, as one Mt said to me when Roskill I asked why he had I walked along hit me as Dominion Rd, “Cos
This was all a I felt like it.” very long time ago weekend of but,
February across the 19-20, I will get a relive my bruised chance to youth: Punk it Up, Auckland’s new a festival of and veteran punk its fifth event bands, at Galatos, is hosting never off Karangahape attended any previous Rd. I’ve there PIUS but I will be familiar imagine faces from decades surely less rowdy ago, now and more jowly. can enjoy the bands Hopefully we without fights breaking the dancefloor. Hopefully. out on Why, you may well ask, bother going nostalgic celebration to a of a scene soaked and racial tension? in violence Simple: Auckland’s punk scene
Exciting. My destiny was was brilliant. Inspiring. about the bands while shaped by wanting to write of other indie record labels Flying Nun and a host to set up due and publications were encouraged the musicians and to punk’s DIY ethos. Indeed, and promoters who writers and label owners go on to achieve radical evolved out of punk would acts of creativity. only by, well,
It was a golden time, marred police harassment and violence and racism and a golden time! drug abuse and… anyway, have occurred in three Auckland punk seems to in late-1976-early stages: the first bands formed and the third at the 1977, the second in 1978-79 bands included the start of the 1980s. Pioneering perfect Kiwi band name Suburban Reptiles (most
Masochists and the ever), The Scavengers, The women, one guy) Idle impossibly glamorous (four
Idols. migrated to Dunedin’s The Enemy soon awash with newly Auckland, finding the city
The Terrorways, Proud formed bands: Rooter,
Instigators, The Scum, The Primmers, The
(the first — only? — Gordon Bennetts, The Tigers many more formed and Maori punk band) and joined the game with performed. Christchurch who employed extreme The Gordons — art punks
(whose sole 45, volume — and The Androids classic).
Auckland Tonight, is a punk, that city’s Wellington struggled with
This High and Naked foremost new bands, Shoes experimental outfits (the Spots Dance, both being
Fran Walsh — yes, latter fronted by the beautiful early 80s Auckland’s No that Fran Walsh). By the
Tag, Wellington’s Flesh D-vice and Christchurch’s Desperate Measures played remorseless rock, hard music for hard youths.
The pioneers varied greatly: Suburban Reptiles had art school/remuera roots and, in Zero (Clare Elliot), the most striking frontwoman in Kiwi rock history. Mt Roskill’s The Masochists were led by Bones Hillman (Wayne Stevens), a brilliant bassist. The Scavengers and Rooter had, in Ronnie Recent (Brendan Gallagher) and Dean Martelli, two English youths who both experienced the dawn of London punk before their families emigrated (separately) to NZ. Chris Knox was at his most crazed fronting The Enemy (who would soon morph into Toy Love).
None of these bands sounded anything alike and many wrote remarkably strong songs. The Suburban Reptiles made NZ’S first punk record, Megaton, but it’s their stunning second effort, Saturday Night Stay at Home, that’s now heralded internationally as a punk classic: a copy recently sold for $1288 — the highest price ever paid for a Kiwi 45.
I was too young to experience these bands: when I started going to gigs in 1979 they had either split or migrated to Australia. I did purchase AK79 — the seminal album documenting the scene’s best bands 1ZM presenter Bryan Staff issued on his own label, Ripper Records — marvelling in its majesty. Simon Grigg, the visionary behind The Reptiles, then set up Propeller Records and issued great records by Spelling Mistakes, The Features, Blam Blam Blam and No Tag. All are now highly collectable.
By 1979, punk bands could command nationwide audiences and Toy Love scored a Top 10 hit with Don’t Ask Me. It couldn’t last: violence at gigs meant most venues stopped booking punk bands and Flying Nun’s gentler, more cerebral, lo-fi rock showed a new way forward. This noted, the Kiwi punk era was a remarkable epoch and I’m thankful I caught its latter days.
To preview Punk it Up I spoke to four participants in the original Auckland scene.
Simon Grigg (manager Suburban Reptiles, founder Propeller Records). “To be honest, it’s amazing that we had a punk scene, we were so cut off from the world. Initially, we were far less UK/
US derivative. In
1977 we effectively own ‘f*** you!’ look. invented 1979, I our was When I went astounded to Sydney in by the derivative of their look and sound. nature individual.” We were far more Dean Martelli
Rebel Truce (guitarist
— Rooter/terrorways, start of 1978 performing at PIU 5). “At
I was 16 and the caravan in living in
Ranui. I was my uncle’s and spending used to living lots of time in Essex like stepping in London back in time. — it was and, after the Then I joined (Auckland’s first rehearsal, Rooter first I was playing great. punk venue) Zwines It felt to me with them. scene like It was in its being part of the UK punk early days — very intense.” Zwines was the real deal, Sonya Waters performing (singer The
Instigators — at PIU 5): “We injustice, living wrote songs by in the Muldoon about the cops for era, getting having a party, busted We related to being music that on the dole. what was wrong was political and criticised Andrew with our society.”
Boak
“The scene (guitarist
No Tag, founder in Auckland PIU): time and there was very vibrant were a lot of at the we (No Tag) good venues. enough were just lucky I think that once songs to perform we had needing their live there punk rock was an audience older bands “fix”. With either moving most of the naturally inherited to Oz, or their disbanding, Simon Grigg: punters.” we “What did down barriers punk achieve?
— as it did It broke engineered worldwide an explosion — and
There were of new bands literally dozens and music. of new bands in the
Punk created an ecosystem of sorts and this is why there are people who remain willing to go see a bunch of bands.
1976-79 years. It revitalised a vital music gave us a new record industry, radio scene.” and the pivotal student five or six nights a Dean Martelli: “We played full-time job. People week; touring became my get straight into it. from the provinces would attracted a few losers Unfortunately, we always — luckily, our drummer who wanted to fight us boxer.” Gary Hunt was a good the perseverance of Andrew Boak: “I think through record labels, people — from punters, — creating and venues and rehearsal rooms is really one of the maintaining their own scene do things like Punk it Up. main reasons why I can of sorts and this is why Punk created an ecosystem willing to go see a there are people who remain bunch of bands.” heroin and the Simon Grigg: “It was Zwines, violence to punk and, tabloids that added the scene. It took years eventually, destroyed the Auckland kinda grew to extract that violence. but then Wellington, out of it in the early 1980s were cursed by it. Christchurch and the provinces NZ is such a heavy place.” Zwines, in the same Dean Martelli: “Below Babes — to get to building, was a disco called past Babes and, every Zwines you had to walk guys would want to jump time you did, 10 or 20 pre-gig and going up in you. We ended up meeting violent — I was surprised groups. The scene was was. That said, I’d been how much violence there an earring, so that beaten up in Essex for having wasn’t just in Auckland.” kind of brutal behaviour element of the scene was Sonya Waters: “A small me from going out to gigs violent but it didn’t stop I remember seeing and parties or playing music. some crazy guys who tried Jane Walker fighting off Toy was playing on stage in to accost her while she were just carried away Love — sometimes people with you.” and having fun grappling I reckon that there Andrew Boak: “First off, West Auckland pub with was more violence at a Saturday night than there a bad covers band on a also made it known to ever was at our gigs. We if the fights continued we our regular punters that — in early 1983 there were would stop playing gigs we did just that.” one too many fights and was a Zwines and Babes Dean Martelli: “There one year so Kerry combined Christmas party
— we always loved Buchanan and I went along to the toilet I found disco — and when I went big Polynesian guy myself confronted by this going to beat me up. announcing that he was to so I reasoned with There was nowhere to run wanted to fight me, and him, asked him why he that we weren’t so we came to an understanding no need for violence. I then different and there was dance’, and we did!” said ‘let’s go and have a signed OMC to his Post-punk, Simon Grigg reaped the rewards Huh! record label and thus the biggest-selling hit when How Bizarre became
Now owning the Ripper record ever made in NZ. he reissued AK79 as an Records masters, in 2019 celebrate the album’s 40th extended double LP to on a memoir of the era. anniversary. He is working to London in 1981, Dean Martelli returned
DJ, before resettling in where he became a hip-hop being reunited with his Auckland and subsequently on the cover of AK79 )in Flyte guitar (that appears
2019. several groups and Sonya Waters sings with
Ranges, an ambient album, releases The Sheltering joined The Swingers, in February. Bones Hillman playing sessions in then Midnight Oil, later Nashville. Dead Can Dance Brendan Gallagher formed a large international with Lisa Gerrard and won in an Irish castle. audience. He now resides
Francisco where he Andrew Boak lives in San local bands. Of the many plays in (and produces) in Kiwi punk, not all other individuals involved some away, cancer are still with us: drugs carried up far-right conspiracy others. A few even ended bandmates groan every idiots, ensuring their old on social media. Many time they post “the truth” even if only on occasions continue to make music, like PIU. of the As Boak remains the keeper the last word. of NZ punk “The consistency and longevity that falls apart or goes are because, for each band rehearsing in Grandma’s overseas, there’s 100 more ridding themselves of basement, plying their art, a bloody good time their teen angst, and having doing it.” press flame, he gets