Big Takeover
gonna put up some old bto pixxx
This is 195 Mare street, Hackney. Venue for BTOs 4 and 5.
Read a bit about its history, here. Sadly the hope for restoration on that page is out of date as it has long since been bought by a bank and is now empty aside from live in security that live not in the grand old functional and quite warm building but in freezing portakabins outside, ha. Thanks world!
Date: October 31st Venue: The Woodmill Bands: Straight Jacket Nation, Mob Rules, No Benefit: This was a benefit for HollabackLDN The Woodmill is a huge space for artist’s studios that kindly let me takeover one of their warehouses. The sound was echo-ey as all hell but the setting was super cool, SJN absolutely smashed it, Mob Rules sounded even more boomy thanks to the high ceilings, and there were some excellent Halloween costumes, too. This was No’s first show.
Date: October 9th
Venue: The Threshold centre
Bands: Coke Bust, Abolition, Hooghwater, Joshua’s Song (Abolition replaced Harbour)
Benefit: Having spend £100+ on PA hire for every BTO, I bit the bullet and bought a PA with the proceeds of the gig as a resource for London DIY promoters and events.
This was a gamble on the venue front, a community centre in the heart of Hackney usually used for Zumba classes. It paid off in that noone died and I projected a spliced selection of video fanzine shorts onto the walls between bands, but didn’t pay off in that there was a lot of general idiocy and non-cooperation on the part of fools refusing to stop standing outside and/or being entitled morons. As a result, the cops came but not til the end, this didn’t make it any less stressful though. Coke Bust were great, and RayRay was the ultimate driver hero.
Date: 31st August
Venue: the Ratstar
Bands: Urban Blight, Shitty Limits, The Hardway, Pettybone, Ripped to Shreds
Urban Blight were super awesome at this gig, it was another rammed one. Pettybone totally band of the night. We raised over £300 for No Borders.
Date: July 31st 2010
Venue: The Ratstar
Bands: Glam, Hygiene, Saturday’s Kids, The Lowest Form
Benefit: Spanish Anarchist prisoner support
This was a last minute one and the Ratstar squatters were very kind to let me move the gig from 195 Mare Street, which was awaiting the bailiffs sent by its ostensible owner, a Scottish Bank. Glam were amazing and The Lowest Form played their first ever gig at this show.
