OK, do we know any of the real names behind Sikick, Steve Collapsible, Tony, etc – surely the DHSS can’t keep records going this far back?
SiKick is Si Walters, Steve Lucas is my brother, and Tony is . . . oh! If I ever knew it, I’ve forgotten it. Last names used to be accorded to Adults and Sensible People. I was over 30 before people started using my last name in zines [how did they find out?] and I tell you it felt like I'd had Normality slightly forced upon me! The whole punk identity deconstruction [all the nicknames] was a way to reinvent ourselves, say bollocks to family values and, er, start the destruction of the patriarchal naming system!
Obviously the Mental and Stupid Humans were precursors to Subhumans etc. But were there any precursors to the Mental? Had you or any members of the band been involved in anything musically before this?
No, this was all totally new to all of us.
Which might connect to the above – what was it that attracted you to punk as a means of expression, the words, the music, the art, the ethos? Or the whole package? Which groups, in particular, were key to deciding to throw your hat into the ring.
The whole lot?! Punk was such a massive invitation to join in, make as much noise as you liked, make an impression of any kind, even if you couldn't play, it didn't matter. Anyone with any of the following - practice space, any instrument, any words that rhymed, could form a band as fast as asking 'who wants to be in a band?' Which is why punk at first was SO musically varied. As for groups, well it sounds a cliché by now, but the Sex Pistols really did it first and foremost; then other faves were the Adverts/Clash/Vibrators/Menace/Ramones [and so on]
What about the songs? I guess Kill The Bill is pretty self-explanatory?
Yes, subtlety and shades of meaning were a way off at that point! Kill the pigs, go insane, being 18 is shit, that sort of thing.
How easy was it to raise the money to get the single out?
As easy as taking all my meagre wages from a crap job I had, and borrowing from Si's parents.
How many gigs did The Mental play, and what brought about the decision to merge the two bands and move on to the Subhumans
We did 10 gigs, mostly awkward chaotic [read 'terrible' from a more objective angle!] - abrasive, uncoordinated, the list goes on. But then most small bands were doing similarly messy gigs at the time, and being Good didn’t matter as much as Doing It, and a few of the 10 were totally excellent fun! One of which was with the Stupid Humans [and Vice Squad, in Warminster]. I'd met Ju and Bruce [of Stupid Humans] at an Angelic Upstarts gig, and saw them practice and do gigs. When we split up it was partly cos I wanted to sing with Bruce in the new band he was forming in the wake of the Stupid Humans breaking up [summer 1980]. And partly cos The Mental were geographically held together by the fact that we were all at the same [cred drop coming up!] boarding school. So when we all left that, it was an insane travel distance to keep practising, so we called it a day [much to Si's annoyance]. Steve formed Wild Youth, and I joined Bruce in his new band Subhumans.
The Subhumans had a quite distinct set of socio-political viewpoints. Obviously, some of those must have been the same with regard to The Mental (i.e. DIY etc). But was the philosophy you had evolved by the advent of that band pretty much in place with the Mental? There was always a lot of humour in Subhumans (I'm thinking especially of things like Till The Pigs Come Round). Was that always an element, etc.
Very few of the songs the Mental had were socially aware to the point of any profundity, and those that were, were written by Si. Our later songs were written after we'd heard Crass. I think that helped our attitude expansion a lot!
Any other abiding memories of that time, that place, that band, etc.
Having our EP played by John Peel, the engineer getting drunk midway into recording the EP, getting drunk on 2 cans of anything, sniffing Zoff! Oh my God! Being stranded in King’s Cross all night with some London punks. Going to Stonehenge festival. Us four taking turns to doodle until the EP cover was full up. Playing the EP to our parents [my Dad's never listened to anything I've done since, I think he thinks it still sounds like that]. Being so embarrassed by the chaotic performance in Basingstoke I sang from the side of the stage. Steve dyeing 'UK Subs' into his hair. Shouting at the sky. Playing records with the speakers hanging out of the window. Getting the Buzzcocks first LP. Realising that work was an extension of school i.e. full of wankers, Tony POUNDING his drum kit! [continues forever]
From Alex Ogg's forthcoming book "No More Heroes"
©Detour Records