When I was growing up in Marion, Ohio in the late 80’s and early 90’s, access to punk rock, or really anything that would eventually be labeled as “alternative” was hard to access. Obviously, there was no streaming of music and the only place to buy cassettes and vinyl, and that expensive new format - CD’s - was at the Radio Shack in the single strip mall in town. While stocked with the latest Def Leppard and Billy Joel albums, you would be hard pressed to find a copy of Never Mind the Bollocks, Ramones, or even Horses.
Then someone got their license, and we’d drive to the closest college town of Delaware and discovered UGLY STICK - a local cow punk band (they were the progenitors of the term) that would play in the coffee shops and bars in central Ohio. Back then, you could go bars at any age if there was live music -- provided you didn’t drink (insert double wink here). Watching UGLY STICK at least a couple dozen times during these formative years introduced and cemented the DIY punk ethos in me. I realized that there was little separation between the band and audience, that there was little differentiation between artist, creator, and consumer. That creating music, zines, art was something anyone could do, even in small backwater town. In fact, in those situations, creating art and music was something you HAD to do to make sense of your surroundings, and it was a vehicle to understand yourself and your world better.
They released their opus album Absinthe on CD in 1993. Now, over thirty years later Hovercraft is releasing it as a double vinyl album remastered by Carl Saff and with an additional six previously unreleased tracks. The album includes the original artwork by
@oneohsevenseven and new liner photos by
@kem667 . My band
@thedumpies has the privilege and lifelong dream of getting for open for them along with
@golombgolombgolomb in Delaware on September 13th. The album will be for sale on the website then and streaming shortly after.
We all have heroes, but in the small world of DIY punk, I consider them more as sparks. Beacons of inspiration and motivation for us to create, defy, and move above.
