Steve Ignorant

Right I'm off to Tilburg today. Stayed up for hours working on my spoken word 'A Slice Of Life', which I'll be doing with Carol Hodge and Pete Wilson on Sunday. Years ago I did a couple in London and always wanted to get back into it. When we got stuck in Sydney drinking beers in some hotel, looking out into the night Carol , Pete and myself got talking and it just grew from there.

Really looking forward to this weekend. It's going to be good.

Friday 16th September, Incubate DIY Conference at Midi Theater. I'll be interviewed by John Robb from 15:00-16:00 about DIY Culture and my book 'The Rest Is Propaganda'. There will be some copies there in case you want to buy one.

http:://incubate.org/2011/event/6

Friday 16th September at V39 from 20:00                                                      Laatste Halte / Eve Libertine & Charles Webber / The Cravats

Saturday 17th September at V39 from 20:00                                                  Stalag 17 / Goldblade / Liam Noble

Sunday 18th September at V39 from 18:00                                                        Steve Ignorant, Carol & Pete / Andy T / Suffering Quota

For more info on the artists or performances:

http://incubate.org/2011/event/17

Hope to see you there, I'll be at the bar or the merch table.

In December 2010 I was asked if I was interested to curate at Incubate, a Dutch annual celebration of independent culture. Now in it's 7th year, it has grown from strength to strength. They have a fantastic team who put together a varied programme from punk rock to ambient, from hardcore to experimental. You name it and it will be there.

On Friday 16th September at the DIY conference in Midi Theatre at 3pm I'll be interviewed by John Robb. There are also some other great speakers on that day. So come along, join in or have a beer at the bar afterwards.

That evening at V39 will be the first night of acts/bands that I have invited to perform and who will make the weekend a special one. They are friends I have known for years and/or bands which I admire, enjoy and who have a real DIY attitude.

For example: Stalag 17, I have known Petsey for years and first met him in Belfast; Eve Libertine and Charles Webber, Eve and I go way back as you all well know; Laatste Halte, a young punk band with a strong DIY attitude. All in all 9 performances over 3 days, from punk rock to jazz to experimental. I will also perform myself doing a spoken word 'thang' about Life with Carol Hodge and Pete Wilson.

More info to follow but you can check out http://incubate.org/2011/venue/18  for all dates and bands that are playing.

After thousands and thousands of miles we arrived back in New York where it all started on the 20th April for our final gig at Santo's.

It certainly was a fantastic night with a great crowd. It was lovely to see my friends that came over especially and talk to so many people.

Time had flew by and I couldn't believe that this was the end. I'd met so many wonderful people and there were so many special moments that it was hard to take it all in.

Thank you all for making this tour so special.

Carol helping Spike with setting up his drum kit.

Cartel and I listening to Bob, Gizz and Spike.

Back stage, which we shared with Goldblade.

Carol, Bob, Gizz and Spike giving it their all.

All Right Spike?

Hello New York.

What a night.

A great bunch.

Goodnight!

After only an hours flight we were in Auckland ready for our final gig. Tom was already at the venue with the gear, Tim was working hard to set up the projector for the visuals that Allison had sent and we got ready for the sound check.

It was a fantastic night, I met some lovely people and a great mate of mine turned up as well. We had good sound, visuals and a wonderful crowd. We really couldn't have wished for more and were quite sad that that was our last gig of the Australia and New Zealand Tour.

We had a day off before we flew back home. Tom and Tim gave up their time to drive us around to see the sights, eat some good food, buy some souvenirs and visit the museum. We had a lovely day!

A big thank you to Tim for organising the New Zealand tour, for the special stamp and the Crass symbol on the drumhead. Thank you also to Tom, Roger and all the others that worked so hard.

It was time to say goodbye and go home, flying from Auckland to Sydney, from Sydney to Hong Kong and from Hong Kong to London. Little did we know that we started the journey from hell. After we arrived in Sydney they closed all airspace due to volcanic ash and we ended up staying the night. The next morning we flew to Hong Kong only to be told on arrival that there was no connecting flight for us. By the time we ended up in a hotel it was 3am. After a short night we checked in at the airport and finally were on our way home. We were suppose to arrive on Wednesday 6.30am but arrived on Thursday at 4pm absolutely knackered.

Apart from the flight home it was a fantastic tour. We all enjoyed it, met some wonderful people and played  in some great venues. What an experience.

Gizz and Pete during soundcheck.

Great visuals.

Look at Spike's drum kit.

Cheers everybody!

What a great bunch of people.

Go for it Carol.

Our last breakfast in New Zealand.

The whole gang.

We could have stayed there all day.

Home again.

Jona and Carol outside the airport.

Here some great photos from our gig at The Kings Arms in Auckland taken by Roger Grauwmeijer. Thanks for that Roger.

At 6 am we were off to the airport to fly to New Zealand and I was really looking forward to it as I'd never been there.

When we arrived at Wellington airport Tim was already waiting for us and before we knew it we were in the van, driven by Tom. We were staying the night right next to the venue so we managed to get an hour's kip before the sound check.

Bodega is a great venue, we soon felt at home and got to know Roger (who took photographs of the 2 gigs) and loads of other people. By now we were seriously suffering from sleep deprivation but as soon as we got on stage the adrenaline kicked in, we became alive and loved every minute of it.

Thank you to all the people that travelled from afar to see us, thank you to those that helped on the night and a special thank you to Tim and Min to make this tour a reality. What a fantastic first night in New Zealand.

Pete and me chilling out.

Checking in.

Photo by Roger Grauwmeijer.

Photo by Roger Grauwmeijer.

Photo by Roger Grauwmeijer.

Photo by Roger Grauwmeijer

What a great bunch of people.

Bloody Revolutions.

As you can see a great night.

So many faces.

It's 6 o'clock in the morning when I drag myself out of bed after 3 hours sleep to get ready to fly off to Melbourne. We are all shattered and catch up on some sleep while on the plane.

That night Gizz, Jona and I went to 3PBS Radio for a live interview with Michael Mullholland. He certainly knew what he was talking about, had some really good questions and the time just flew by. Michael was then kind enough to drive us to the Melbourne Anarchist Club, where Brendan was waiting for us with a pizza for Gizz and Jona and a beer for me. Just what we needed. We had a Q&A in the living room and there was a great atmosphere with lots of laughter. What a night.

I have to say I am not a morning person and getting up the next day at 8am for an interview on RRR Radio is not what I call fun.  But coming downstairs Terri and Paul, who had kindly offered to give us a lift, were already there and I just knew it was going to be a good day. The interview with Tony Biggs on his show 'On the Blower' was great fun and we talked like we knew each other for years.

Sadly that night was already our last gig in Australia. The Tote is a great venue with really friendly people, who did everything to make us feel at home. There was a huge crowd and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Thanks Glenn for organising it all!

Again we met some fantastic people who went out of their way to help us and make us feel at home. I was fortunate enough to visit two great independent radio stations, mostly run by volunteers and a thriving anarchist club. What an experience, thanks everyone.

A quick sip of tea while Michael is playing the next track.

At the Melbourne Anarchist Club.

With Tony Biggs on the early morning show.

Everyone giving it their all.

Enjoying the show.

Goodnight Melbourne.

A fantastic crowd.

After Sydney it was off to Perth. Apparently it's over 4011 km and a 43 hours non-stop drive by car, so we were told by the cab driver. Needless to say we went by plane, I've never flown so much in my life.

On Tuesday, our day off, Carl had arranged a visit to the Fremantle Volunteer Sea Rescue. It was really interesting to see how they worked and trained their crew. That night we went to The Moon and Sixpence pub for a pint and a chat. It certainly was a brilliant day.

Wednesday we played at The Bakery, which is a great venue for gigs. We all spend most of the time chatting with people and watching the support bands. We had a fantastic night, thanks to everyone for turning up and a big thank you to Min for organising it all.

Waiting for our flight to Perth.

Pete got himself a new tattoo in Sydney.

A tour of one of the boats of Fremantle Volunteer Sea Rescue.

Trying not to get blown away while posing with Bon Scott.

We enjoyed watching Min and her band SSA.

Hanging around the merch stall.

Gizz sorting out his pedals before the gig.

Giving it my all.

Gizz Butt, Carol Hodge, Spike T Smith on drums and Pete Wilson.

A great night with great people.

Go for it.

Another great night.

After a day of traveling we arrived in Sydney and went straight to the venue for load in and sound check. Anthony and his friends worked for days to get everything ready on time. A great banner was hanging from the ceiling and oil drums standing ready  to be used that night to keep us warm.

Before the gig I went to Mu-Meson Archives where Jay Katz and Miss Death showed the film 'There's No Authority But Yourself', afterwards there was time for a chat and some questions. I was sorry to leave but I still had to play that night.

Loads of people came, the support bands gave it their all and there was a great atmosphere. We really enjoyed it. A special thanks to Anthony and all the people involved.

That oil drum looks great.

Look at that banner and it was still hanging at the end of the night. Unlike the one in the UK.

At Mu-Mesan Archives.

Darling.

I couldn't do it without this great band!

Hello Sydney.

Lovely to meet you all, especially Ollie.

Everyone is having a good time.