Selfish Few

[PHAT PHILE ALERT! Megalodons of megs!!!]

http://www.mediafire.com/file/ztdx05nnp1w7tgj/Last+Drinks+CDR+2003.zip/file

B L O O D Y F I S T

"Greetings fuckers, Here it is. Job #8 complete - in all its glory and splendour.

Was it worth the wait? You decide. It has been stated on the website now for some time

that this job in particular would be finished and fully released by the end of June 2003.

LIES - all of it. Life is usually a lot easier if you believe only

about a third of what you read and nothing you hear.

Anyway... as you will already be aware, this CDR was released to

commemorate the final Bloody Fist gig "Last Drinks" at the seminal

Newcastle pub venue: The Hunter On Hunter Hotel. The pub stands at

417 Hunter St Newcastle, and has existed there as long as I can

remember. Beneath the Hunter's ceiling is where the Newcastle punk

scene, metal scene, indie scene and industrial hardcore scene have all

co-existed at one time or another. That very same ceiling collapsed in

early 2002 after years of insanely loud noise had shaken the shit out

of it. Insurance had refused to pay for the ceiling as an inspection

revealed that it had not been built to standard in the first place.

The ceiling incident also followed a major fire upstairs in the

accommodation area sometime during the late 90's. Over and above all

this - anyone who was a student at Newcastle University in the mid

90's or involved in the Newcastle band scene during the early to mid

90's will have their own story to tell of the Hunter.

Heres mine:

The first time I played there was with Nasenbluten back in 1993 -

10 years ago exactly. These early gigs were pre-Bloody Fist, and

usually consisted of local alternative/indie rock bands, punk bands,

and us - all usually packed onto the same bill. If you think that

sounds strange - it was.

One of the first times we performed there as Nasenbluten in late 93,

we were the opening act for some local experimental rock band that

Dave Melo was friends with. One of my most vivid memories of that

evening was looking up at the crowd whilst we were halfway through our

set, and seeing 200+ people seated on the floor with their legs crossed,

quietly observing us. No one was leaving, no one was dancing, no one

was even fucking moving. When our 60-minute set ground to a halt, there

was polite applause. This was one of our first encounters with a 'rock'

crowd, and the fuckers applauded us. We were expecting abuse, shouting,

people throwing shit at us and general malice. We were not up there

playing 'real' instruments like everyone else was doing in Newcastle

circa 1993. Oh no. We were making what must have appeared to the usual

pub crowd as a completely alienating sampled idiotic racket. If it was

really our intention to kick up some sonic dust amongst the 'rock'

crowd back at the Hunter in 1993, it well and truly backfired.

The next time we played support slot for a band at the Hunter, more

people rocked up to see us play than came to see the main act. Word had

travelled, and this culminated in Frank (the Hunter's long suffering

bar manager/booker/bouncer) eventually asking us to headline our own

show there sometime in 1994. Frank hated our music - and still does. He

had originally asked us back in 1993 if we wanted to have our own 'rap'

night. I wondered what he was on about for a minute then it clicked

that he actually thought Nasenbluten was 'rap'. You see dear reader,

back in 1993 the average Australian suburban bloke (like Frank) referred

to anything that wasn't 'rock' music as 'rap shit'. Kylie Minogue,

Public Enemy, C & C Music Factory, Front 242, Snap, Nasenbluten - all

of it 'rap shit'. Anything that could be loosely classified as music

without guitars was 'rap'. These days if it isn't rock or rap, it's

'techno shit' - but that's another .txt file.

So off we went on an occasional journey of Hunter On Hunter 'rap'

nights. Word slowly spread and we eventually met people who were

coming to the shows from outside of Newcastle. Meanwhile, Frank didn't

give two shits what we did as long as we pulled a crowd, they drank,

and we were completely gone by 4am. The shows were at their peak by

the mid 90's, with a regular turnout of 200+. The shows then became

less frequent and punter numbers began dwindling around 1997,

culminating in an embarrassing midweek show where the great Laurent Ho

from France played to a measly 25 people.

By the end of 1998, the cogs were starting to turn again and the gigs

were starting to become more frequent and better attended. By

September / October 1999, the annual Electrofringe Festival had

begun to attract enough of a big crowd to Newcastle to guarantee a

good turnout for the Hunter gigs which coincided with the festival. The

Hunter gigs held during festival time in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002

were all excellent, and some of the busiest times the Hunter has ever had.

Not much has really changed at the Hunter in the last 10 years. The

place still looks like a dump, the dunnies are still full of childish

graffiti, the bar reeks of stale beer and old men's farts, and Frank

still wears the same black polo shirt with 'Only At The Hunter' printed

on the back. To this day I still want one of those shirts. Someone

once described the Hunter to me as a men's urinal that sells beer.

Everyone who has been there has a 'Hunter story' to tell. If you are a

female you have probably had your arse grabbed, had your bag racked or

spewed your hole up at the Hunter. If you are a male you've probably

lost your keys, been in a fight or spewed your hole up at the Hunter -

or perhaps you've managed all of the above over the course of 4 hours.

(..and what is the past tense of 'spew' anyway? Is it 'spewed' or

'spewn'?). "Big fuckin' deal.. that type of shit happens at every pub!"

I hear you cry. Ah! But the difference is that other pubs try and

pretend that your average night on the piss shouldn't slide down into

the abyss of drunken idiocy, drinking injuries and bitter regret. At

the Hunter however there is NO PRETENSE. The sheer look of the place

screams untoward behaviour and drunken revelry from every corner, and

the Hunter On Hunter Hotel really means it, maaaan. None of your

poncy Irish pub trimmings, imported beer, spotless dunnies or

dicky-bow security here mate. No sireee. It's like getting drunk in

your mate's garage with plastic chairs, peeling paint, torn up carpet,

gaffer tape, dirty tiles, graffiti and a Nirvana covers band. Several

tossers have in recent times attempted to unsuccessfully bring a

new spin to the Hunter with their limp-wristed music nights and crap

decorations. But the Hunter is the Hunter is the Hunter is the Hunter.

And you fucking little wankers will realise that The Hunter On Hunter

is one turd that steadfastly refuses to be polished. Ever.

Unless of course - it is sold. There was much talk of the place being

sold to some Sydney people (gotta love those Sydney cunts) sometime

late 2002. Frank had informed me that the current owners were looking

at offloading the place if a good offer came along. A good offer did

come along, and the place was ready to change hands in March 2003.

Frank had told me during February that he was being given the

'mushroom' treatment (fed bullshit and kept in the dark) by the owners

in regards to the whole deal. He told me that he had worked there for

at least 15 years, and if new owners bought the place, he'd be out of

a job. 'Cunts' I thought. Being in Frank's position would suck very

hard, not knowing if your 15 year job would be there or not in two

weeks time. Frank ain't a young bloke anymore, and Newcastle ain't

exactly brimming with employment opportunities for someone his age

either. Aside from all this we could only speculate on what might

happen to the Hunter if new owners took it over. Nobody in their right

mind would buy the Hunter and leave it exactly how it was. The place

has been struggling to keep the doors open since the Newcastle band

scene died down in the late 90's. Purchases of similarly run down

Newcastle pubs had taken place around late 2002 as well, with the

Sydney pricks rolling in and refurbishing the places to look like

fucking airport departure lounges. I decided to visit one of them a

month or two after it opened in order to have an informed opinion -

research. The beers were hideously expensive and there were

wall-to-wall girls wearing those wretched denim jeans with the rubbed

down patches. The blokes all stood around with neat haircuts and tight

t-shirts mouthing the words to dance mixes of Eminem songs.

Needless to say I was outta there quick smart. I could never imagine

someone like Frank working in a place like this, and wondered what

would really happen if the Hunter turned into one of these meat markets

- or worse - under the new management.

We booked in for the final Bloody Fist show at the Hunter for Feb 21st,

2003. If we were going to give the place a good send off then this

would be the way to do it. This was also a perfect opportunity for me

to personally throw the towel in with organising gigs at the venue as

well. By this time I had been involved with almost nine years of

arranging Bloody Fist gigs at the Hunter, and I was well over it.

For 9 years we had kept a strict $2/$3 door policy, and some nights

during the 90's we even made it free entry. The upshot of all this was

that by the end of the night, after everyone had been paid, I went home

with sweet fuck all. I continued doing it this way because I enjoyed it

and most people who supported us over the years were on welfare.

We'd had some great shows, some crap ones, some funny ones and some

horrendous ones. If we could go out on a good one I'd be happy to leave

it at that. I also did not want to reach a point where the turnouts

started dwindling again, and it felt like I was flogging a dead horse.

For the night of the 21st Feb, I tried to book as many guys as possible

who were involved in Bloody Fist and the Hunter gigs throughout the

90's, and still lived in Newcastle. It turned out to be a handful -

plus Epsilon who is a major part of the new school of Fisters. Most of

the other guys had either moved away to find employment, get a life,

travel, or just simply get the fuck out of Newcastle once and for all.

We also booked the sound system from hell.

The night was a corker. Excellent turn out from all around the place,

cracking sound system, and mad support from everyone, including a lot

of old faces who we hadn't seen since the mid 90's. The proceedings

were recorded and ripped to MP3, and here they are for you to make

whatever you will of them.

As I write this it is a dark and rainy Sunday night / Monday morning in

early September 2003. The Hunter never did get sold after all. Turns

out the people who were going to buy it got cold feet at the last

minute and balked. That's not to say of course, that it won't become a

karaoke bar in 5 years time - but I couldn't give a fuck anymore. I had

my evil way with the place for 9 years. I'm happy with what took place

there and grateful for Frank & management letting us use it as a hub

for the Bloody Fist live scene for 9 years. From here on it doesn't matter

who attempts what at the Hunter, it's best days are now 100% behind it.

I walked past the place last night and looked in. The front doors were

open and the place was empty except for two crusty old blokes propping

up the bar and the same two faded pool tables that were always there.

The front window is jammed with band posters advertising upcoming gigs

to a disinterested public. Life drags on, and the glorious turd that is

the Hunter On Hunter Hotel still remains unpolished."

--Mark N.

2:42 AM, 8th September

2003

"'Home Taping Is Killing Music' was the 1980s slogan of a copyright infringement campaign by the British Phonographic Industry. With the rise in cassette recorder popularity, the B.P.I. feared that the ability of private citizens to record music from the radio onto cassettes would cause a decline in record sales. The logo consisted of a Jolly Roger formed from the silhouette of a cassette.

An early proponent of home taping was Malcolm McLaren, who, post Sex Pistols, was managing the new wave band Bow Wow Wow. In 1980, they released a cassette single featuring a blank b-side so the buyer could record their own music. The band's label, EMI, dropped the group shortly afterwards. One version of the Dead Kennedys E.P. 'In God We Trust Inc.' had a blank side, printed with the message 'Home taping is killing record industry profits! We left this side blank so you can help.'

The slogan was often parodied, one example being the addendum 'and it's about time too!', used by Dutch anarcho band The Ex. Some fanzines changed the words to 'Home taping is killing the music industry, so be sure to do your part!' Just the cassette & crossbones image were displayed briefly in the 'Time Out For Fun" video by Devo, and Venom's 1982 album 'Black Metal' used the logo with the words 'Home Taping Is Killing Music; So Are Venom.'

More recently, the infamous torrent site 'The Pirate Bay' uses a logo of a pirate ship whose sails bear a sigil of 'tape and bones', while the RIAA in 2005 claimed that CD burning was hurting music sales."