Concerts (Listing)

1981

^{July 1981 (Drama Studio, see below). Photograph: Rupert Whiteman.}

"Cultural Amnesia focused on recording music rather than performing it. We never spent time rehearsing and perfecting a performable repertory. Each time we got together we just wanted to record new material - once a decent version of a song was committed to tape, we tended to forget about it. As a result, our few performances we rather disorganised affairs. The pieces that worked best live were long open-ended improvisations in the first place. We certainly couldn't and didn't try to reproduce our 'recorded' sound. On several occasions many of the audience walked out, but we would have been proud of that."
-- (BN), Interview with Compulsion magazine, May 2008

As Ben says, CA were primarily a recording band, and very much concentrated on the production of new material, but I think our only completely improvised performance was our Drama Studio appearance (see below), and I recall some anxiety on my part regarding that, and suggesting to Ben and John: "should we not do some rehearsal?" (that is characteristic). Geoff Rushton and his former Stabmental co-editor, Tom Craig, were in attendance that evening, and they enjoyed the performance, Tom commenting that John's reel-to-reel tape machine, which we used as an amplifier, had a similar effect to TG's famous "Gristleiser". I have no idea what the rest of the audience thought. But the situation was not helped by the absence of alcohol. However most of our live appearances were rehearsed and we did do our best to reproduce our recorded sound. It was a necessity, since -- as musicians in general before the digital era -- we had to devise the best way in which to try to reproduce live our recorded sound, where the same individual may have played more than one part on a recording (as well as perhaps singing), and -- as Ben says -- we did not perform frequently enough to be able to do so without practise. That is not to say that people didn't walk out -- see Rose Edwards (an early supporter). (GG, 10/26) 

Cultural Amnesia made the following live appearances.

13 February 1981 - Snot Babies - Music Block, Lord Williams's
with Alistair Murray, Simon Hood, Matthew Wells
Playlist: "Transmigration"

14 March 1981 - Snot Babies - Main Hall, Lord Williams's
with Alistair Murray, Simon Hood
Playlist: "Transmigration", "Requiem" (a.k.a. "Coffin Bearer"), "Another New Year's Day", "Nag Nag Nag" (Cabaret Voltaire cover)
Also appearing: Sleeper, Overdose

July 1981 - Drama Studio, Lord Williams's
with Alistair Murray
Playlist: Biohazard Sessions
Also appearing: A House

?Summer 1981 - Main Hall, Lord Williams's
Playlist: "Psychopathic Permutations"

Autumn 1981 - Drama Studio, Lord Williams's
"Class" Revue
Playlist: "The Dogtooth Spar"

5 March 1982 - Main Hall, Lord Williams's
Playlist: "Victims of Rock 'n' Roll", "Repetition for This World", "Dead Men Don't Talk", "Smilin' for the Sirens", "Spit on the Same Stone", "For All Your Needs", "The Manual of Civilisation"
Also appearing: Wheatstone Bridge

12&13 March 1982 - Thame Arts Centre
Playlist: "Magic Theatre"
-- released on The Uncle of the Boot

Summer 1982 - Main Hall, Lord Williams's
Playlist: "Smilin' for the Sirens"

31 October 1982 - Ewelme Village Hall
with Alistair Murray
Playlist: "Dead Men Don't Talk", "The Wildlife of the Tranquil Vale", "Resthome (the man who worked with tourists)", "Victims of Rock 'n' Roll", "The Fountain Overflows", "For All Your Needs", "Little Blue Grains", "Sacrebleu", ?"Materialistic Man"
Also appearing: A House, Kiss My Baby Collective, Overdose

4&5 March 1983 - Thame Arts Centre
With Simon Hood (mixing)
Playlist: "Dance"
-- released on The Uncle of the Boot