Hallo Planet Earth. We’re Mostly Lovely, (Honest!).

Media used to talk of a British Invasion about 20th century music. Invade? Nah. Include. Yeah! This century, INCLUSION is the way forward.

Music, Art, Passion.

SongDanceLand, more like. For such a tiny dot on the world map, the British Isles (Ireland, Wales, Scotland, Channel Islands and England) are so bonkers right now.

Look again at what passes for “honorable”, “law”, “politics” and even the ancient concept, “royalty”, in 2022). Normal Island and environs, are anything but normal!

BIG JOANIE are a perfectly punked pop star outfit (on and off stage) - invited back to SXSW. Note how many artists are multi disciplinary in what they bring to thew newer music world. Realised as Decolonised, they’re fresh from supporting Idles, they’re special guests of the iconic Skunk Anansie AND Grace Jones - already in that league for 21st century in their own right, too.

Artists represent song art dance power. Despite everything, they Share The Joy with tune and performance power.

The presence of musicians, no matter how loud their decibels, can bring needed peace to the soul or raise spirits.

2022 needs that.

Even before the clocks have gone forward for Spring has sprung, many names have sprung. Again!

Big Joanie, The Clockworks, Nova Twins, Family Jools, Fitzroy Holt, Calva Louise, Enjoyable Listens, The Shakes, Yard Act, Jekyll, Anna Wolf, The Kairos, Rolla, Lock-In, Wet Leg, Idles, Red Rum Club argh, just so much mushroomingvia SXSW, This Feeling and a variety of events/forthcoming festis from a part of the globe that has became more restricted after mid 2016’s fascist coup. But world misleaders, wherever they are, don’t represent most of the people.

If ya wanna know what’s in most hearts, look at a nation’s Arts.

TheZineUK has been documenting under the radar art rock music scenes/anti-scenes (since Chapter 1 of the picture diary first uploaded mid March 2014)

With descriptions like ‘rocking pebble’ and the ‘new whimsical express’, we’re obviously far from mainstream. As one of the contributors I’m a bit self opinionated, but neither a journalist or even academic.

Yet we get much kind feedback for our vibration’s ripples on and off line.

It’s not the size of our platforms or (still rising!) readership, but the intensity of those who follow, react to and thereby weave this non-conforming tapestry we’re compelled to weave.

The Ides Of March

The first cut n past diary doc of pictures was uploaded mid March 2014.

The last five years, especially, have often been beyond rock n roll dreams and disaster movie nightmares - simultaneously.

“F*** you Classic FM. But yeah, let's act like there is no elitism and racism in music.” **Monefa Walker**, Autumn 2021 (cont. on her instagram)

Being part of what’s going on, while observing a new music industry creating itself to feed the next levels is a fascination.

Very best wishes to all concerned.

We’re up to November 2021, picture diary wise.

Our latest piccy flicky is now at https://issuu.com/thezineuk

Love to the many folks in our doc, on our socials and at events we promote and co-promote/collaborate with. Especially right now when it feels like so many of us are testing positive or even falling really ill.

Escapisms from this surreal reality are part of our mental health medicine and we couldn’t make up what happens in this tale. No need…

It’s like punk happened and magick liked it.

You can hear and see that as we kick and scream into the next level of this warped simulation with a beautifully composed and performed array of sounds.

Caught The Clockworks a couple of years ago at The Social, (Extenction Rebellion had a big pink yacht on Oxford Circus that elated surreal humanity hopes). One of Roobi TV’s GET ON! alumni, they’d been invited to support The Pixies, as well, in USA!

Working Class heavy, these music scenes are naturally more diverse.

Who would have thought that enslaved anti-culture would create such a determined and authentic arts movement?

Well, me, actually.

I’m away with the fairies.

You have to believe in the magical to experience it’s musical.

Not just the fairys (The Faeries Band of New Cross are now Margate ArtBeat central and Madame Fairy - met while doing a car boot stall “Star Bay 6” are in our lives).

A M P ! (A Music Party) started our shenanigans for 2022.

The Blur Fairy, Sonja Amoretti, was part of the gathering that started to reshape our year. That surreal night out at AMP Studios is as close as we come to a board meeting, I guess…

Fairies, Wizards, Spells, a Genie…

In situationist style, at a poet’s live music performance around a decade ago, I met Dizzy Spell pre TheZineUK.

Our mutual hero, Patrick Jones inspired with the line ‘Something Must Grow’.

Something definitely grew from that show.

Since 2017, with her SEO skillz and theatre/NHS background, musician, TheZineUK’s editor, Dizzy has swelled the rep of TheZineUK and even built this site from scratch.

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. Hallo Bright Pink - but also Green - Catwalk

Not just SXSW 2022 but on USA tour dates with sloth-rust - Calva Louise (one of the golden threads who graced Reading/Leeds 2021) are a card game of possibilities!

Another word legend of the punk world and beyond, Bruno Wizard, is in our cast and crew as is The Wizard Of Wolvo, Gavin Monaghan of The Magic Garden Studio.

Newer Wave rock essentials mecca like an urban Rockfield.

Zeenagers also include multi talent tasking artists Joe Moon, Anna Wolf and Jean Genie. I choose to be a Love Pirate as a career. Where else could I fit in with a moon, a wolf, a genie, a witch…?

As I write this (March 2022), our astrologer, classical musician (and stage style punk/promoter) Monefa Walker is later addressing the Missing Witches coven. She also appears in videos by art house punx, Calva Louise and will release the ‘Aquarius’ remix collaboration with electro punk space vixen, Kat Five, at the end of this month.

History has never been so historic.

Smaller names could get lost amidst the Adeles and Sheerans. It’s also not just the biggest music world / marketing events to focus on. Under the radar is exponentially buzzier. We mix in the folk heroes of the interdependent rock scenes under radar and creating something completely different makes our timelines take off like a runway of hope. Festivals like DecoloniseFest, CroCroLand, Loud Women Fest… blueprints.

End Of The Trail Creative, like Fierce Panda Records, are totally storming it at this year’s SXSW!

Fly beautiful poetic souls, fly…. and keep the music coming, The Force is strong in song.

Not just internationally, but here at home.

This month started with NME Awards (yaaay, Bob Vylan and Nova Twins on the Music Venue Trust table!) in Brixton Academy.

and This Feeling’s Test Transmission Event at The Social on Little Portland Street

TF gigs, sessions and festival stages are a running theme: Definitely one of the above-mentioned folk heroes of the movement.

Guitar music’s rise over the years has been strongly propelled by The Zone. Basically an extending community of artists, allies and creators taken under the collective wings of Mikey Jonns and team.

At Test Transmission on March 1st, Lock-In, The Shakes, Rolla, Fitzroy Holt, Cocoa And The Lost and, making their London debut, The Kairos steamily stormed a sold out night with DJ host John Kennedy of Radio X (who also went on to airplay the stars on his essential show at the weekend).

A swathe of industry faces caught bigger-stage sets at very close range, there’s much support for photographers (professional and otherwise) which, in turn, swells the press kit of Big In 22 tips to mutual benefit.

Little Portland Street, just before going into The Social for This Feeling

This pic of Little Portland Street was taken that evening when a tube strike meant everybody did an Indiana Jones style safari either from around the country or even across London to be there.

A threat of nuclear war during a recession, austerity and a pandemic (threatening everybody and everything) couldn’t keep us down.

That’s where these wonderful music hearts, below, are chilling. A few seconds candid sweep of some after-gig vibes inside (John Kennedy and Louise Schofield) and outside.

New generation tremorists have been born since we started, also ace teens (Vanity Fairy (naturally!) at promoter Scarlet Hall’s MASHzine party is our October 2021 cover). Pint Size Punk inspires us. Polarized Eyes and Hotwax thrill us. We really hope to catch Alex Spencer playing a.s.a.p. The list goes on.

OK, so we’re in the dystopian future that the movies used to predict. They didn’t usually compile all the disasters into one but that’s because capitalist baddies and other aliens were defeated in the end. They’re currently winning this battle, financially. Fuck us/our home world.

These farce holes have no souls.

BUT

WE got the tunes and the potential to make a song and dance that changes things. Civil rights are human rights to this day.

Propaganda lies. The devil says “The devil has all the best tunes”. The angels know better…

Despite climate/war anxiety, the rabid rapid rise of evil hisstablishment, our cast of supernatures and a galaxy of fellow twinklers beyond, keep aiming to make the world a better place with random kindness, performance, ideas and interdependent collaborations. Any song that can move people is a power all of it’s own.

Bless the Fertile Environment consistently blooming in spite of the mainstream condoned hostile environment. TheZineUK social media timelines are full of “yay and wahey” as talents - especially from the last five years - take a step or two forward, deservedly so.

The label that bought you Coldplay and so much more…

Dear world, please believe us, The Many on these (by definition, 6,000+) isles and island, still have the compassionate heart and soul of green and pleasant lands. The best popular and alternative music potential - wishing peace.

The (ingreeding) Few are a cruel virus - even during Covid 19.

Grassroots music power is working hard to keep our increasingly impoverished heads above water.

We have to.

Children of all ages are our rainbow.

We even have a Rock n Roll Superman (true story) who has filmed many of the golden threads. It sounds like John Clay is an imaginary character.

So many of our friends sound like that, come to think of it.

Our voices are 4REAL.

A parallel dimension is here, and necessary.

As Events Department of TheZineUK, I’m seeing much friendship, affection and new futures just from the generation tremorists coming together on the grassroots venue circuit on land and via the interNUT on-line. TheZineUK’s Music People Party events started this year at Amersham Arms with an ArtBeat gathering.

Here’s 90 seconds or so (Anna Wolf - who found us via Lullaby Lou and Roobi TV’s GET ON! show) of “command performance” personified. We’ll keep the #FuturePicks tips coming

Anna Wolf played Isle Of Wight’s New Blood quarter finals on 5th March. Now confirmed through to the semi finals. Catch her up close.

We don’t (wanna) live forever, but stars shine long after they’re gone (see night sky for further details).

Still can’t believe it when friends and inspirations leave this world, though. A collective tender heart across the generations has been raw, exposed and vulnerable during these moments. Our shared vulnerability is actually who we are, despite the shields of thickening skin we adapt to deal with the overwhelming and underwhelming of rubbisher moderner life. #Whelmed

I’ve had long conversations with artists and their crews, veering from elation to depresssion, over the last few years especially, humanity’s mental health is frail. Don’t beat yourself up about that.

Since 2020 vision saw clearly we’ve witnessed the inconceivable from bog roll zombies and the establishment’s war/heist on every day people to eco anxiety and dangerous insanity in pandemica. If you’re feeling completely fine about everything, you’re possibly the prime minister. I’m a live events promoter who has staged 1 gig in 2020, 1 gig in 2021 and 1 gig in 2022 so far. I could scream but, instead, I stream. Artists inspire me to keep going and believing.

So glad we can connect.

Technology has done something positive for us. Hey, if anybody reads this, it’s another plus!

Cyberspace is the audiovisual Earthlings experience. For music, fans are the taste makers and the A&R as well as the audience.

Social media is a valid press for visual or sonic articles, interview and reviews. Independent/DIY often ahead of the game especially if privileged enough to be able to gig on the grassroots circuit.

Now, as so many artists jet off to USA for The Great Punk Reset’s inclusion, many more of us get to live the dream, vicariously, as friends and faves head outta Normal Island. Ambassadors that we can actually be proud of. Being part of a growing movement, we send biggest and best wishes into the ether…

Oh, and ignore anybody who drones on that they’ve “seen/heard it all before”. STFU couch critics. No WAY have they! (Trust me. I’m old enough to know. I’ve gigged in the 20th century!)