The Anti Group

The Anti-Group Company, or T.A.G.C. are a side project of Clock DVA. Formed in the early 80's by Adi Newton (although the idea existed as early as 1978), T.A.G.C. (originally The Anti-Group) was conceived as an open-membership experimental multimedia collective, focused on audio, visual and textual research and production, as well as performance art and installations.

Scheduled
Saturday, 22 September 1984, "Grote Box", 01:45 - 02:45
Swapped timeslot with Tom Verlaine

Line up
Adi Newton – vocals, electronics; Paul Browse – saxophone; Bob Baker – engineer; David Heppenstall – keyboards, computer; Glynn Heppenstal – electronics; Dennis Dean – bass; Nick Saunderson – drums
John [Carruthers - P@ndora] left to join Siouxsie & the Banshees while Dean, Paul, Nick & Adi were joined by Bob Baker and the brothers Heppinstal working as the experimental collective The Anti Group. (http://www.out-2-lunch.co.uk/newbiog.php?rec=1)

Set list
01 The delivery pt. 1 (5:41)
02 The delivery pt. 2 (17:22)

Recording
I have a radio recording of tracks 01 and 02, 23'03. Get it here: (http://pretentiousblogtitle.blogspot.com/2006_03_01_archive.html)

Other info
The first non theoretical action devised by ATG was the Film "The delivery", a 16mm tryptych projection and soundtrack, and the Anti theatre performance "The Discussion" designed for five tape recorders and multi-video projection systems. These two works were first presented at the "Der Doelen" center in Rotterdam on Sat. Sep 22nd, 1985 [1984 - P@ndora]. "The delivery" has been exhibited at the "2nd Atonal festival" in "The Ballhaus Tiergarten" Berlin, Feb 18th 1985 where the soundtrack was recorded on a mobile 24 track system. This document was released as the recording "The delivery" on Atonal Records. (http://www.clockdva.com/audiophile.html)

Newton, Browse, Dennis and Sanderson played Pandora's 83 as part of Clock DVA.

Dennis and Sanderson played Pandora's 85 with the Jeffrey Lee Pierce Quartet. They are the only artists appearing at all three Pandora's Music Box editions.

The Gun Club

The Gun Club was a rock band from Los Angeles in the 1980s led by flamboyant singer/guitarist Jeffrey Lee Pierce. They injected punk rock with doses of blues and country music. Pierce's wailing vocals were an ideal delivery for his songs, which generally had a spooky, haunted quality. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_Club)

Scheduled
Saturday, 22 September 1984, "Grote Box", 22:30 - 23:30

Line up
Jeffrey Lee Pierce - guitars & vocals, solos on Bad America, Eternally is here, Gila monster, New Mexico and Give up the sun; Kid Congo Powers – guitar & all other solos; Patricia Morrison – bass; a drummer – drums (according to Andy Sztehlo: "Terry Graham. Who left the band midway through the European tour, leaving them well in it. I think it's called sarcasm, Jeffrey's comment that it." (http://www.limbos.org/gunclub/gunclubd.htm)

It was on this tour that Terry Graham disappeared in Paris. The story is that he was tired of Pierce's dictatorial attitude. Also, he wasn't seeing a financial return after having given four years of his life to the band. After playing Manchester, he had found that both a collection of video footage he had been taking of the band and the camera it was being recorded on had been stolen backstage. He had also discovered that the band had en-masse decided to move their base of operations over to London without telling him. It was a lousy position to be put in and was the last straw at the wrong moment. (http://www.furious.com/perfect/gunclub2.html)

Set list
01 The Spurs / Intro
02 Brother and sister
03 Sex beat
04 Bad Indian
05 Eternally is here
06 Bad America
07 Stranger in our town
08 Gila monster, New Mexico/Preachin' blues
09 Fire of love
10 Sleeping in blood city
11 Goodbye Johnny
12 Give up the sun
13 She's like heroin to me
Thanks to Magnix for providing the complete set list.

Recording
A complete audience recording exists. Tracks 05 - 08 and 10 - 12 have been officially released on Danse Kalinda Boom – Live in Pandora’s Box (originally in 1985, reissued on Flow Records, 2006). Note that all of the vinyl versions and most of the CD issues list an incorrect date: 3 September 1983. The Gun Club was supposed to play Pandora's 83 but was cancelled at the last moment.



Tracks 04 - 09 and 13, were all released on the vinyl bootleg Moonlight Motel (Superb Productions, 1985), taken from a radio broadcast.



I recently found reference to a bootleg 7" single without picture sleeve or label information which was supposedly released. It features Bad Indian on one side and Fire of Love on the other, both tracks recorded at Pandora's 84. Get an mp3 rip of it here: http://symphonyofghosts.blogspot.com/2009/01/gun-club-live-pandora-7in-bootleg.html

I have 04 - 13, taken from various radio broadcasts and Danse Kalinda Boom, total time 47'30".

Other info
Kid Congo Powers and Morrison went on to form Fur Bible who played Pandora's 85 alongside the Jeffrey Lee Pierce Quartet and Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, whom Powers joined afterwards.

For some reason, the double cd re-release of Danse Kalinda Boom (Flow Records, 2006) fails to get the complete show at Pandora’s. Disc 1 is the same as the original release and disc 2 is an Australian show from 1983. Remember: disc 1 is only 35 minutes long…, at least 3 more songs were recorded. Why not restore the complete show? Or even: why not add the Jeffrey Lee Pierce Quartet show from Pandora’s 1985?

The end of the year saw a major European tour during which Kalinda Danse Boom was cut live at Pandora's Music Box festival on September 22nd 1984. It's a good powerful set but at around 35 minutes, it's way too short. I know that a version of Bad Indian I've been told is brilliant has been cut from the start. I wonder what happened to the rest of the gig? (http://www.furious.com/perfect/gunclub2.html)


Article from festival booklet


Powers on stage at Pandora's 84 (Oor 1984/20)




Interview with Pierce and Powers discussing Pandora's. Photo possibly from Pandora's (Vinyl magazine 1984/11)

Jeffrey Lee Pierce Quartet

In 1985, Jeffrey Lee Pierce put the Gun Club on hold to record his first solo album Wildweed. To promote the album he toured under the moniker Jeffrey Lee Pierce Quartet.

Scheduled
Friday, 11 October 1985, "Dance Hall", 21:00 - 22:00

Line up
Jeffrey Lee Pierce – vocals, guitar; Romi Mori – guitar; Dean Dennis – bass; Nick Sanderson - drums

The tour supporting the Wildweed LP was done by a different band than the recording. This saw the first appearances of Nick Sanderson and Pierce's then-current paramour Romi Mori. At this time, Romi was playing guitar, as she had done previously in a Japanese Runaways covers band. They toured under the name The Jeffrey Lee Pierce Quartet, including Dean Dennis of Clock DVA. As they toured the US, the record label was giving Jeffrey a lot of hassle over the disbelievability of a Japanese girl as a musician. The band were also getting a lot of racism from their audiences, presumably taking the rebel flag seriously. (http://www.furious.com/perfect/gunclub3.html)

Set list
00 Midnight promise
00 Hey Juana
00 Wildweed

Recording
Midnight promise was broadcast on radio, along with an interview. Hey Juana and Wildweed were released as bonus tracks on Wildweed (remaster), Flow Records, 2005.



Other info

JLP on stage at Pandora's 85 (Sounds, 26 October 1985)

Dennis and Sanderson were previously in Clock DVA, who played Pandora's 83, and the Anti Group, who played Pandora's 84. They are the only artists appearing at all three Pandora's Music Box editions.

After Clock DVA split in the mid eighties, the remaining members continued to record as experimental collective The Anti Group, a period that also saw Dennis tour as part of the Jeffrey Lee Pierce Quartet - predictably, he describes his time with the former Gun Club singer as ‘punishing and debauched.’ (http://www.cyclicdefrost.com/blog/?p=1059)

In 1985, eager for new adventures, Dean & Nick joined the Jeffrey Lee Pierce Quartet for the Wild Weed tour. This was to be a punishing year of broken down buses, hysterical laughter, sweltering heat and alcohol abuse. (http://www.sonicgarden.com/sonic-web/artist.cfm?artistid=31206)

Pierce was planning to use Murray Mitchell (who played saxophone and guitar on the record) on guitar. Eventually, this didn't happen because Romi Mori joined the band. Mitchell was guitar roadie (and occasional player) for Siouxsie & the Banshees (who played Pandora's 83) and ended up playing guitar in Fur Bible, also on Pandora's 85, along with ex-Gun Club members Kid Congo Powers, Patricia Morrison and Desperate.

When the album is out, Pierce is going on the road again. A European tour is planned, but Sweden is unfortunately not included in the planning.
"I'm going to use the rhythm-section from Clock DVA and Murray Mitchell, who played saxophone on the record, will probably be playing guitar. Or else it will be a Japanese girl I know on guitar. She's better than me and besides, she'd look great on stage, something like an oriental Kid Congo." (From Swedish magazine Schlager 1985/4, http://www.thegunclub.net/interview.html)

Article from festival booklet

Clock DVA

Clock DVA is an electronic music group from Sheffield, England. The group was formed in 1978, with two members, Adi Newton and Steven "Judd" Turner. Along with contemporaries Heaven 17, Clock DVA's name was inspired by the Russian-influenced Nadsat of Anthony Burgess' A Clockwork Orange; "dva" is the Russian word for "two". The group was originally known for making a form of experimental electronic music involving treated tape loops and synthesisers.

Scheduled
Saturday, 3 September 1983, "Kleine Zaal", 21:45 - 22:30

Line up
Adi Newton – vocals, electronics; Paul Browse – saxophone; Dean Dennis - bass; John Valentine Carruthers – guitars; Nick Sanderson – drums (Katie Kassoon – vocals?) (http://www.clockdva.com/discography.html)

Set list
01 City of the nights
02 Eternity in Paris
03 The secret life of the big black suit
04 Someday
05 Shake your body
06 Sister
07 Beautiful Losers

Recording
A partial recording exists: 01 - 07, 34'49"
I have a radio recording of tracks 02, 04 and 05, get them at http://www.wiels.nl/blog/index.php?entry=entry070717-180952.

Other info
The Box (also on Pandora’s 1983) were Paul Widger – guitar, Charlie Collins – saxophone and Roger Quail – drums; all ex-Clock DVA.

Newton, Browse, Dennis and Sanderson went on to form The Anti Group, who played at Pandora's 84.

Carruthers would join Siouxsie & the Banshees (also on Pandora's 83) in 1985, replacing Robert Smith.

Dennis and Sanderson toured as Jeffrey Lee Pierce Quartet to promote his Wildweed album and as such played Pandora's 85. They are the only artists appearing at all three Pandora's Music Box editions. Sanderson joined the Gun Club in 1987 and stayed until 1992/1993. He also played in World of Twist, who played at Pandora's successor Ein Abend in Wien in 1991. After World of Twist, he joins the Jesus & Mary Chain, who had played Pandora's 85.