Reconquesta & Codi de Silenci: La força de la raó Split EP (Disco Nightmare)
Codi de Silenci and Reconquesta hail from the Lleida and Barcelona regions of Catalonia respectively. Both are skinhead bands of a Catalan separatist persuasion, and just as Catalan separatism has reached boiling point, these bands are on top of their game with their new split-EP, La força de la raó. Continue reading
Nowadays it’s all prawn sandwiches and latte, but there were times when people went to football carrying meathooks… Interview with ‘Peter’, a 17 years old Park Lane boy from a “housing estate in the heart of the East End”.
From the Sunday Times, 21 September 1969. Continue reading
It wasn’t so long ago – five years perhaps – that I stumbled upon the name Paris Violence in a blog about the classic French Oi band Komintern Sect: “Paris Violence should be right up your alley”, was a commenter’s advice to frog-Oi loving Anglo-Saxons.
But then, the sounds I found on YouTube weren’t quite what I had expected. Although the Fred Perry-clad lead singer’s vocal style clearly placed the band in the skinhead camp and the melancholic overtones evoked Chaos en France-era memories, there was something else going on too. Continue reading
This is an ongoing, decade by decade, attempt to catalogue in 500 words or less the most notable skinhead books, starting with Richard Allen’s Skinhead in 1970 and ending on ST Publishing’s output until the turn of the century. Click here for Part 1 – the 70s. Continue reading
Klasse Kriminale: Construito in Italia 7’ EP (Skinhead Sounds)
Skinhead Sounds is run by Italian skinhead historian Flavio (who we interviewed here) and has just reissued two classic 7-inches. Constriuto in Italia is the 30th-anniversary release of the debut EP by Klasse Kriminale, who in the latter half of the 80s were one of very few Italian Oi bands left. Continue reading
As a youth cult and subculture, skinheads, their fashion and music, have been the subject of numerous books and documentaries, some favourable and others not so.
This is an on-going, decade by decade, attempt to catalogue in 500 words or less the most notable (our own Research Unit, if you like), starting with Richard Allen’s Skinhead in 1970 and ending on ST Publishing’s output until the turn of the century. Continue reading
We hope this article will shed light on questions you were always afraid to ask, for few topics are more divisive than monkey boots. However, Matt Crombieboy does not pretend that his stab at tracking the history of the boot is comprehensive. It’s just an attempt that heavily relies on word-of-mouth accounts – for few topics are more shrouded in mystery than the history of this fine footwear item. If you know more than he was able to find out, we’d encourage you to enlighten us. Continue reading
You’d have to go back quite some time to find proper skinzines like Hard As Nails, Zoot, Bovver Boot and the like. Back far enough, in fact, to the era before even the MP3 or dial-up modems.
Verbal, despite the aggro title, isn’t a ‘sussed skin’ zine in the vein of Hard As Nails, though it’s arguably as sussed as any of those earlier titles, and no one could deny that editor John King has more than earned his stripes as the novelist behind Skinheads and the Human Punk nights at the 100 Club, if not more. Continue reading
Footballer biographies are two a penny these days, but this wasn’t always the case. First published in 1996, Chelsea, Stoke and Arsenal legend Alan Hudson’s The Working Man’s Ballet was unusual in its time of being a non-ghosted tale of battles on and off the pitch, demons fought and, yes, Ben Shermans worn. London Books, run by John King (Skinheads, The Football Factory) and Chelsea Shed boy Martin Knight, are now republishing Alan’s biography, which John says is an account of “shared rebelliousness” between the dressing room and the terraces.
A Creases Like Knives exclusive, John King’s intro to the new edition is below (with thanks to Stevo). Read also our interview with John if you haven’t already. Continue reading
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