Much like an unbidden memory, it’s in the nature of ghosts, whether imagined or real, to manifest or be revived when least expected. The discovery of a cassette of songs mixed down from a TEAC 4-track machine at Spectro some thirty-seven years after the music had been recorded came as a complete surprise and caused more than a little Proustian swell of remembrance to the five musicians who joined together to form Punching Holes in 1980.
-01-
Back then if you were in a serious, ambitious band the aim was to be signed to a record company. Major or Indie didn’t matter. If you wanted them to hear what you sounded like you had to get a demo in front of them. Brian Bond, having just parted company with Punishment Of Luxury after they’d been dropped by their label was spending time writing songs initially at the piano rooms at Newcastle Polytechnic. When he needed somewhere to demo a clutch of new songs he walked downtown to Pilgrim Street, and into Spectro Arts Workshop, a repurposed Victorian-built three-storey warehouse containing a gallery, screen-printing works, a suite of photographic darkrooms, a small performance space and a recording studio. “They were so lovely,” recalls Brian nearly four decades after entering that building. “They granted me a kind of bursary so that the recording was all done free of charge. This was so, so lucky for me as I was broke!”
THE STORY -02-
I worked at Spectro’s sound studio at the time and hearing these songs with their raw, quirky inventiveness, it was obvious they should be played by a full band to heighten their impact. I’d been playing bass on some tracks and suggested keyboard player Steve Cowgill with whom I’d performed on the free-jazz/improv scene. Brian and I both admired drummer Norman Emerson’s work with The Weights who happily agreed to get involved, leaving only Tim Jones, who’d been with Durham-based outfit Neon, to come on board after Brian made contact. This was a time of change for everyone involved. “It was the first keyboard-led band I’d played in,” explains Tim. “I’d generally worked in a three-piece setting of guitar, bass, and drums, so it was a learning experience for me. The thing I enjoyed the most was the creativity and excitement alongside the wish to create something new and original. The band all got on very well as we built an understanding of each other as musicians and where we were coming from as people.”
THE STORY -03-
Punching Holes’ songs were anything but straightforward. Some laid bare a variety of unpleasant character flaws and misanthropic tendencies; Sourface Valerie’s big-mouth misogynist; the deadly egotism at the centre of Gone Loco; Joke Elaine’s cowardly protagonist. Others scrutinised societal issues. Spots On The Sun, with its hymn-like chorus, explores the quasi-religious implications of technology, while Mad Mother unflinchingly gazes upon prurient hypocrisy and media-complicit demagoguery. Life In Zoo traces the tender angst of romance, while the exuberant love-hate outbursts of Bits Of Romeo captures that addictively exciting volatility. Even the usually reliable nexus of sex and guilt is unexpectedly subverted with something akin to supernatural dread in The Ghost Of Danube Street.
THE STORY -04-
Although principal songwriter, Bond was never precious about his work and always keen for others to shape and arrange the material. “Playing all original stuff meant that I could introduce neat drum patterns like Gone Loco, Life In The Zoo and Mad Mother,” remembers Norman, who became regarded by his bandmates as the group’s secret weapon thanks to his ability to deliver a thunderous rock presence across complex meters and intricate ideas. The spiraling guitar motif corkscrewing through Bits Of Romeo sprang spontaneously from Jones’ first reaction to the piece. “It was a revelation when Tim came up with his guitar line, and his guitar in Spots On The Sun was unbelievable,” says Bond. Looking back, Jones, like others enjoyed this collaborative methodology. “The band gave me room to create and positively encouraged me in that. I was never told ‘You play this…’ The songs were a real pleasure to play. I think that we captured that feeling extremely well on the recordings.”
THE STORY -05-
The band’s name conveyed something of pent-up energy that would inform their live work. Their first at Newcastle’s Cooperage on 5th February 1981 was dangerously over-capacity thanks to febrile word-of-mouth interest with punters keen to see and hear the new band. That they exceeded the weight of all that fevered expectation was down to its compelling delivery both musically and visually. “Brian is a brilliant frontman. Having worked in theatre, he has a great understanding of how to project himself onstage,” says Jones, himself a highly mobile performer and whose whip-cracking energy acted as a foil to Bond’s intense stillness and telling economy of movement. Steve Cowgill, who would go on to work and tour around the UK and Europe in other settings has especially fond memories of that show. “I was so fucking scared! I’ve since played in front of thousands and had many blasts but that night was super-special. Given a chance, I would love to relive that gig.”
THE STORY -06-
Even after all these years, the gig retains a special charge for Bond. “It was an explosion of adrenalin-fuelled performing for all of us. Everything came together and we were a tight unit.” The group spent countless hours honing and arranging songs and their live presentation. “Punching Holes were different from the other bands I’d been in as we rehearsed every note.” That demanding regime wasn’t easy but it meant that when it came to recording the band were extremely well-drilled laying down backing tracks in a small number of takes. Working with 4-track everything had to then be bounced down to stereo leaving two remaining tracks for overdubbing vocals or guitar. The sessions were recorded by Ian Boddy, now a respected pioneer on the international electronic music scene but back then just starting out as a composer and performer. “As if the pressure of engineering one of the first bands I ever recorded wasn’t enough, they then asked me to play a crazy synth solo on Bits Of Romeo,” remembers Ian. “Listening back it came out rather well didn’t it?”
THE STORY -07-
In their first year, Punching Holes generated a lot of momentum. Alongside gigs around the north-east and around the country, there were appearances on TV and radio, as well as live reviews in regional papers and the national music press. The demo tracks here did their job and attracted record company interest. However, by the time the band went to the Ian Gillan-owned Kingsway studios for sessions with Human League producer, Richard Mainwaring, I’d left the group as indeed had Tim Jones, who nevertheless guested at Kingsway. With several adjustments in personnel, a new lineup released the single, La Mer, on Pinnacle in 1982, securing national airplay with Radio 1 and 2. Further changes in musical direction and a new name would follow before things finally came to a halt in 1989.
THE STORY -08-
The rediscovery of long-forgotten tape has rekindled vivid memories for each of the players. “It was a mix of colourful and creative personalities that I dearly hoped would remain a tight unit, energised but also stabilised like a diverse but secure family,” offers Brian with some affection. Whatever the sonic limitations of the source tapes, The Ghosts Of Pilgrim Street nevertheless captures something of the spirit of what everyone in the band agrees was a special time and one which they remain proud to be associated with.
Sid Smith
Whitley Bay, July 2019
Sid Smith writes about music and musicians in print and online. Find out more via @thesidsmith
THE STORY -END-
Much like an unbidden memory, it’s in the nature of ghosts, whether imagined or real, to manifest or be revived when least expected. The discovery of a cassette of songs mixed down from a TEAC 4-track machine at Spectro some thirty-seven years after the music had been recorded came as a complete surprise and caused more than a little Proustian swell of remembrance to the five musicians who joined together to form Punching Holes in 1980.
-01-
Back then if you were in a serious, ambitious band the aim was to be signed to a record company. Major or Indie didn’t matter. If you wanted them to hear what you sounded like you had to get a demo in front of them. Brian Bond, having just parted company with Punishment Of Luxury after they’d been dropped by their label was spending time writing songs initially at the piano rooms at Newcastle Polytechnic. When he needed somewhere to demo a clutch of new songs he walked downtown to Pilgrim Street…
THE STORY -02-
… and into Spectro Arts Workshop, a repurposed Victorian-built three-storey warehouse containing a gallery, screen-printing works, a suite of photographic darkrooms, a small performance space and a recording studio. “They were so lovely,” recalls Brian nearly four decades after entering that building. “They granted me a kind of bursary so that the recording was all done free of charge. This was so, so lucky for me as I was broke!” I worked at Spectro’s sound studio at the time and hearing these songs with their raw, quirky inventiveness, it was obvious they should be played by a full band to heighten their impact.
THE STORY -03-
I’d been playing bass on some tracks and suggested keyboard player Steve Cowgill with whom I’d performed on the free-jazz/improv scene. Brian and I both admired drummer Norman Emerson’s work with The Weights who happily agreed to get involved, leaving only Tim Jones, who’d been with Durham-based outfit Neon, to come on board after Brian made contact. This was a time of change for everyone involved. “It was the first keyboard-led band I’d played in,” explains Tim. “I’d generally worked in a three-piece setting of guitar, bass, and drums, so it was a learning experience for me.
THE STORY -04-
The thing I enjoyed the most was the creativity and excitement alongside the wish to create something new and original. The band all got on very well as we built an understanding of each other as musicians and where we were coming from as people.” Punching Holes’ songs were anything but straightforward. Some laid bare a variety of unpleasant character flaws and misanthropic tendencies; Sourface Valerie’s big-mouth misogynist; the deadly egotism at the centre of Gone Loco; Joke Elaine’s cowardly protagonist. Others scrutinised societal issues.
THE STORY -05-
Spots On The Sun, with its hymn-like chorus, explores the quasi-religious implications of technology, while Mad Mother unflinchingly gazes upon prurient hypocrisy and media-complicit demagoguery. Life In Zoo traces the tender angst of romance, while the exuberant love-hate outbursts of Bits Of Romeo captures that addictively exciting volatility. Even the usually reliable nexus of sex and guilt is unexpectedly subverted with something akin to supernatural dread in The Ghost Of Danube Street.Although principal songwriter, Bond was never precious about his work and always keen for others to shape and arrange the material.
THE STORY -06-
“Playing all original stuff meant that I could introduce neat drum patterns like Gone Loco, Life In The Zoo and Mad Mother,” remembers Norman, who became regarded by his bandmates as the group’s secret weapon thanks to his ability to deliver a thunderous rock presence across complex meters and intricate ideas. The spiraling guitar motif corkscrewing through Bits Of Romeo sprang spontaneously from Jones’ first reaction to the piece. “It was a revelation when Tim came up with his guitar line, and his guitar in Spots On The Sun was unbelievable,” says Bond. Looking back, Jones, like others enjoyed this collaborative methodology.
THE STORY -07-
“The band gave me room to create and positively encouraged me in that. I was never told ‘You play this…’ The songs were a real pleasure to play. I think that we captured that feeling extremely well on the recordings.”The band’s name conveyed something of pent-up energy that would inform their live work. Their first at Newcastle’s Cooperage on 5th February 1981 was dangerously over-capacity thanks to febrile word-of-mouth interest with punters keen to see and hear the new band. That they exceeded the weight of all that fevered expectation was down to its compelling delivery both musically and visually.
THE STORY -08-
“Brian is a brilliant frontman. Having worked in theatre, he has a great understanding of how to project himself onstage,” says Jones, himself a highly mobile performer and whose whip-cracking energy acted as a foil to Bond’s intense stillness and telling economy of movement. Steve Cowgill, who would go on to work and tour around the UK and Europe in other settings has especially fond memories of that show. “I was so fucking scared! I’ve since played in front of thousands and had many blasts but that night was super-special. Given a chance, I would love to relive that gig.” Even after all these years,
THE STORY -09-
the gig retains a special charge for Bond. “It was an explosion of adrenalin-fuelled performing for all of us. Everything came together and we were a tight unit.” The group spent countless hours honing and arranging songs and their live presentation. “Punching Holes were different from the other bands I’d been in as we rehearsed every note.” That demanding regime wasn’t easy but it meant that when it came to recording the band were extremely well-drilled laying down backing tracks in a small number of takes. Working with 4-track everything had to then be bounced down to stereo leaving two remaining tracks for overdubbing vocals or guitar.
THE STORY -10-
The sessions were recorded by Ian Boddy, now a respected pioneer on the international electronic music scene but back then just starting out as a composer and performer. “As if the pressure of engineering one of the first bands I ever recorded wasn’t enough, they then asked me to play a crazy synth solo on Bits Of Romeo,” remembers Ian. “Listening back it came out rather well didn’t it?”In their first year, Punching Holes generated a lot of momentum. Alongside gigs around the north-east and around the country, there were appearances on TV and radio, as well as live reviews in regional papers and the national music press.
THE STORY -11-
The demo tracks here did their job and attracted record company interest. However, by the time the band went to the Ian Gillan-owned Kingsway studios for sessions with Human League producer, Richard Mainwaring, I’d left the group as indeed had Tim Jones, who nevertheless guested at Kingsway. With several adjustments in personnel, a new lineup released the single, La Mer, on Pinnacle in 1982, securing national airplay with Radio 1 and 2. Further changes in musical direction and a new name would follow before things finally came to a halt in 1989.
THE STORY -12-
The rediscovery of long-forgotten tape has rekindled vivid memories for each of the players. “It was a mix of colourful and creative personalities that I dearly hoped would remain a tight unit, energised but also stabilised like a diverse but secure family,” offers Brian with some affection. Whatever the sonic limitations of the source tapes, The Ghosts Of Pilgrim Street nevertheless captures something of the spirit of what everyone in the band agrees was a special time and one which they remain proud to be associated with.
THE STORY -13-
Sid Smith
Whitley Bay, July 2019
Sid Smith writes about music and musicians in print and online. Find out more via @thesidsmith
THE STORY -END-