Martin Dust

Techno Zen Master
Stewart Home vs Tony Wakeford

What do people make of this? I read a small article about two years ago but I've just read the revised text and a few things struck me:

1. I knew most of that info and I live miles away, how comes it took so long
2. It's a very painful read, repeats himself over and over
3. The personal insults and I heard it from a friend shit in there would make the Sun proud
4. Does anyone care?
 
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Noah Baby Food

Well-known member
Bloody hell, have just read all that, and loads of other stuff surrounding this. Hmmm. Have never actually listened to any DIJ, didn't know anything about them other than they were post-punk grey trenchcoat kinda cats who flirted with fascist imagery. It's all quite interesting though, I like the background about all these dysfunctional types. Home gets stuck right in doesn't he? Loads of juicy info. I love reading about these deviants...anecdotal stuff about the state of Wakeford's bathroom etc. Paints a picture of some right spackers, doesn't it? And the stuff about Boyd Rice. Again, don't know loads about him, but the nazi stuff's not so good is it, really? Flirting with fascist imagery is the ultimate post-WW2 spoilt-kid indulgence, innit?

With a lot of this stuff, and I suppose it has always been the case with factionalised 'underground' left or right politics, and the associated musical forms, we're really talking about, oooh, maybe DOZENS of people, tops? I dunno. A lot of chat over very little action? What's yr opinion?
 

Martin Dust

Techno Zen Master
I just find this on a bit unbalanced, more like he's got a personal gripe against Tony, which I think takes something away from what he writing about.
 

mistersloane

heavy heavy monster sound
It reads like a personal gripe, with all of the uncontained anger and badly phrased and badly written stuff that just makes anyone trying to sort out the wheat from the chaff ( odinist pun intended ) even more confused, if he's gonna write that stuff then he should sort out his grammar a little more I think.

I've had personal dealings with most of the people mentioned and have my own thoughts, but kinda prefer not to go there anymore really, y'know? It's really nothing to do with me, I'm the generation under them.
 

john eden

male pale and stale
I think it's fair to say that Stewart does have a personal grudge against Wakeford. This is hardly surprising given the amount of lieing Wakeford has done to cover his tracks - and the amount of shit Stewart got for writing a foreword to his lyrics book in good faith.

Perhaps it could be better written (I think the Death In June piece is better).

And perhaps some people knew it all along (I certainly didn't know all of it - for example I'd heard about the Boyd Rice interview but not actually seen it).

But there it is, warts and all, for everyone to see, add to, or criticise.

For me it seems like a step away from the 'nudge nudge' bollocks fans and "anti-fascists" alike get so excited about - purely by dint of it being made public.
 
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mistersloane

heavy heavy monster sound
I wish the England's Hidden Reverse book had talked about it more and better so it could all finally be put to bed.
 

john eden

male pale and stale
Any idea why it didn't happen Mr. Eden? Surely most people are aware of the right-hand leanings of this merry crew, it's not like you invite David Myatt round for a cup of tea is it?

"I heard it from a friend". ;) What I heard might be bollocks, tho.

(My only contact with the author was about the spanner trial, iirc)

I think most people are aware that there is a certain dodginess involved, yes.

But I think there is a kind of attempt to dress it all up as wildly intellectual or visionary rather than basically being sub-Alf Garnett nonsense with added political violence.
 

mistersloane

heavy heavy monster sound
I think the author of the book wished that as well.

That's really good to know anyway cos I was involved with that lot at the HH and when it came out, I was like, finally I can just say 'read the fuckin book' rather than have to answer the 'are they really fascists?' thing...and then I read it, and I think you could hear my cry of anguish bouncing off walls in London for weeks. It's nice to know he tried.
 

Martin Dust

Techno Zen Master
But I think there is a kind of attempt to dress it all up as wildly intellectual or visionary rather than basically being sub-Alf Garnett nonsense with added political violence.


True enough but the cupboard was bare, DIJ always bring Discharge to mind, and boy did they have nothing to say.
 

Martin Dust

Techno Zen Master
Aww but they said it so well.


I wanted them to be so much more tho, the first two 7's are brilliant and they looked ace but it was such a shame there was nothing much behind it all :( Plus they couldn't play live to save their lives, out of time and Cal often sang the wrong words.
 

mistersloane

heavy heavy monster sound
I wanted them to be so much more tho, the first two 7's are brilliant and they looked ace but it was such a shame there was nothing much behind it all :( Plus they couldn't play live to save their lives, out of time and Cal often sang the wrong words.

Lol "war is a blackhole to avoid" goes up there with 'war war is stupid' and 'war what is it good for' in my books in trite declarations about genocide. I still play that first thing in the morning sometimes. Missed em live, that's sad, I had this image of them being this burning brilliant dumb thing...

Death in June did one good song, 'Fall Apart', and then did it again, lots and lots, and worse and worse.
 

Martin Dust

Techno Zen Master
Lol "war is a blackhole to avoid" goes up there with 'war war is stupid' and 'war what is it good for' in my books in trite declarations about genocide. I still play that first thing in the morning sometimes. Missed em live, that's sad, I had this image of them being this burning brilliant dumb thing...

Death in June did one good song, 'Fall Apart', and then did it again, lots and lots, and worse and worse.

I really liked Black Ice by DIJ. I once went to an I.O.T ritual and Ian Read from Fire+Ice was there, everyone was going on about what a good voice he had. I wished they hadn't talked him into singing - it was shite.

Check Youtube for some live Discharge action.
 

Grievous Angel

Beast of Burden
Ian Read is a knob.

I'm a bit disappointed by all this and yes, I do care, and no, I didn't know all this, despite... well, you know.

I thought Tibet and Freya were a bit more switched on than this. It's a bit more than just doing something silly as a teenager - it's deliberate entryism.

At some point I should write to Stewart and ask him to clarify that the IoT wasn't a fascist organisation and had some really good people in it.
 
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