Monocled Alchemist

Article published in Sounds, 13th November, 1982

The Urban Dogs | Doggie Doings | CHARLIE HARPER is late, Charlie’s always late. Me and Knox sit in the office cracking the usual jokes about it being his pension day. Not that Knoxy can talk, at 37 he’s only one year younger than Chas. Six-years-on punk rockers who were over 30 when punk started and still going strong. Makes, me feel like Peter bloody Pan.

WHEN CHARLIE eventually bowls in he’s raving over the Sounds Beki Bondage front cover. “Beautiful girl,” the dirty old man leers, “shame you can’t see the scratch marks I left. Or the whip marks.”

Some hours later he’s turned to the Urban Dogs single review in Street Explosion which is a neat little rave, if I may say so myself, especially when contrasted to the lukewarm reception dished out to the latest offering from his other spikey enterprise, the UK Subs.

“F***ing hell,” he grins, “I’ll ‘ave to go into hiding for a few days. This makes me feel really good. Nicky Garret threw ‘New Barbarians’ out of the Subs set too – he’ll go mad. Still it’s better for me to have the review this way round. It’d be terrible if people thought the Urban Dogs were just a joke.”

The Urban Dogs | Doggie Doings

New readers had better start here. Charlie, of course, is the vocal mainstay of those premier populist punk’s-not-dead protagonists the UK Subs. Knox is guitarist with the Vibrators, the seminal art-punk garage band who’ve just reformed after four years on the RIP tip.

And both of these ageing heroes co-star in the Urban Dogs, alongside Subs bassist Alvin Gibbs and an unknown drummer called Turkey.

On the face of it, this is the sort of reckless in-breeding that’s left generations of so-called Royalty hideously insane. But in these cases the vinyl off-spring has been anything but defective.

Take the Dogs newie, the aforementioned ‘New Barbarians’. If ever there was a call for a ‘Cor, What A Stormer’ tag it’s this little gem just released by Fall-Out Records, which has been described, albeit mostly by me, as a ‘glorious cross between Sham and the New York Dolls . . .

Charlie’s pleased. “Yeah that’s about right, we’re much more rock ‘n’ roll than the Subs . . .”

“The whole Dogs sound is very messy in patches,” Knox adds, “but it’s got spirit.”

How did the Dogs come about?

Charlie: “It was all down to the Subs just wanting to do big halls, and then the management thought if they kept us off the road for a year we’d come back massive. All that really happens is people forget about you.

“I’m not one to sit on me arse, I was writing all the time and wanting to play. And when the Subs refused to play the 100 Club after Xmas last year I said ‘f*** you’ I’ll do it meself. There was 650 people there and no one noticed the difference.”

The Urban Dogs | Doggie Doings

I mentioned my disappointment with some of the obvious omissions on Abstract’s recent ‘UK Subs, Recorded 1979-81’ Greatest Hits style album.

“You’re so right,” Charlie agrees. “When they took off ‘Barbie’s Dead’ and put ‘Ice Age’ on I just lost all interest in it. I was disgusted . . .”

“But you shouldn’t be interviewing us,” Knox says out of the blue. “We should be interviewing you. What’s all this punk’s dead’ stuff?”

I reply with the sort of thing you’ve all heard 100 times, bemoaning the number of dodgy bands and punters abounding, sullying punk’s good name.

“Yeah,” Knox replies with some justification, “But you go down the 100 Club and punk’s still the only exciting music. I agree something’s missing now . . . I think we’re trying to attain the perfect mixture of energy and aggression – and there’s no way that’s gonna cross over into the charts.

“But then again bands like Conflict are doing something really good. I believe in punk, but if someone asked me what it was I wouldn’t be able to put it into words.

“In the early days punk was really wide, now it’s all sounding the same. It’s defensive, like the Teddy Boy thing.”

“One thing about rock ‘n’ roll,” Charlie elucidates, “is it’s just music, whereas punk tries to question things which makes it a whole lot more complicated. What really gets up my nose is people who say they used to be a punk, but really they just dressed like one to pull birds.”

“I always saw punk as a way of life. Not just escapism, an attitude.”

The Urban Dogs | Doggie Doings

AH, HOW VERY true, though to most punks now it’s just another uniform. But enough of such urban depression, let’s talk here and now!

Firstly the wonderfully rabid Dogs are as we speak ensconced in a dodgy Ladbroke Grove studio recording their debut album for new release.

Meantime the Subs follow the solid if somewhat derivative ‘Self-Destruct’ Abstract EP with a UK tour this month with Blackpool’s own Fits supporting, while the reformed Vibrators (Knox – guitar, John Ellis – guitar, Pat Collier – bass, and ‘Eddie’ – drums; everybody sings) bring out a re-run of ‘Baby Baby’ now on Anagram with an album and tour to follow in January.

Confused? You wouldn’t have been if you hadn’t started reading this drivel. Now pub-handed, Charlie is waxing patriotic:

“Go down the 100 Club any Tuesday and the bottom of the bill band will still be ten times better than the best band in Holland, it just comes natural to kids here whereas in other countries they’re just aping us and taking all the wrong points.”

How do you think today’s punk compares to the ’76 / ’77 variety?

“Back then we were sticking our necks out to do something we wanted to do and we didn’t have an audience. Now punk’s come of age, there’s lots of places to play whereas before there was only the Roxy and the Vortex. Now there is an audience but inevitably that’s taken the challenge away.”

But don’t you think punk’s become very conservative and ‘tradition’ conscious?

Knox: “Yeah yeah yeah punk’s gotta evolve! Trying to make it in the charts for example is fun, but there are contradictions in being a very big punk band.”

Weller and Strummer have done well.

“Yeah,” Chas agrees, “Weller’s left on a good note with ‘Bitterest’ he’s done a very brave thing breaking up the Jam.”

The Urban Dogs | Doggie Doings

Knox: “Strummer should leave the Clash too, but I think the basic punk ideology is defective, it doesn’t allow for someone growing and playing Madison Square Gardens or whatever. I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing. What are these young punks now gonna do when they’re 30.”

Charlie: “When I turned 32 I formed the UK Subs . . . Personally I think it’s good that there isn’t a new Stones, that there’s lotsa good smaller bands sharing the wealth and all that. All the huge bands are missing out on the fun!

“The Gonads seem to me to be the band nearest to a commercial punk band (Eh? -Ed) “I think the Subs now have got to start from square one again – we never took enough chances. We were always talked into things by nine to five record company wallies . . . “

“People should do their own thing, not tow the record company line. Same with the punters, there’s so many what I call Hillman punks, they lack individuality. They’re the ones who get exploited. It’s the ones that take the chances that really get it right.”

Leaning forward over his lager Chas shakes his head and concludes: “Y’know the real trouble with punks is their hearts are too much in the right place. They’re very naive and caring – it’s very easy for them to get hurt. They’re like victims of society . . . but they’re gonna take over some day.”

Personally, I doubt it. (Garry Bushell)