Thursday 24 May 2012

Round 5: Art

Soldiers and contour drawing
This was a difficult couple of weeks for me. Music and particular punk are very important to me, they pulled me into art and adulthood. Critical distance is important, but Katrina's poem was a challenge which I wanted to take on. Since Peter Saville designed the Unknown pleasures album cover and Jamie Reid made cut ups Punks means of communication I was never going to look at the world in the same way. Punk and its consequent waves of influence, and our early relationship are forever entwined.

Friday 11 May 2012

Round 4: Poetry


Jubilee

Punk’s gobby charm largely passed me by,
lost in a chasm between disco and metal.

I’ll admit to a headbanger award at Dreamland,
(a 50’s frock in a sea of denim), split ends thrashing

to Mötorhead’s Overkill; yet, still too shy
to compete as a disco champ, unlike Emin.  

And while I flitted between the pages of Sounds,
you were NME. I shouldn’t sneer; we got together

to Smash It Up, never to be DLT’s kind of couple.
And while I loved the women’s spikes and chains,

who could afford ‘Sex’ on the Kings Road?
And I saw Rotten once with PIL (so much better

than the Pistols) he walked off after 20 minutes.
I disliked him then and now. This is heresy to you,

with your three pairs of bondage trousers,
your home-stencilled Combat shirts –

I knew no one like you in Margate. And now,
Reid’s pins hold a number to a marathon vest,

punters paying to advertise two companies
for 3 hours, 39 minutes. Today, you’ll thread

a safety pin through your lapel. And while I dance
to Sister Sledge, I’ll loosen my hair for the Sabbath.

Katrina Naomi 11 May 2012