builders arms with grey daturas, young prfessionals, bug girl
we get very little sleep as we have to get up early to make an apperance on the japanese program on 3zzz – the host koji being a recent convert to the wonders of the special show time – the band feel very comfortable being able to talk in japanese and all goes well with many laughs.
we split up later as jj and koji go to the city to buy some bits and pieces and yukari heads up to 3cr for a radio interview on the ‘girl’ show (sorry – forgot the name of the show) with another recent convert, larissa. yukari gets to introduce limited express (has gone?) and her other band ni hao! to the listeners and does well for a solo interview in English.
we all converge back at robert’s place and fall asleep for a few hours.
we make our way to the builders arms around 7pm and pretty soon bug girl are up the front bashing out some nifty rock – the small room makes for a nice atmosphere and i have a good feeling about the show tonight (as each band plays the room fills more and more).
next is young professionals who were fantastically amateurish and entertained us all no end – my kind of music!
grey daturas crank the volume with some huge slabs of noise and big pounding beats and most everyone has their fingers in their ears but enjoying it nonetheless.
the room packs full as limited express (has gone?) set up and with a gambatte, break into a familiar start of ‘free style riding’ and ‘aloha’ which has the audience boogying with big smiles. tonight is the culmination of an exciting few days and the band excel themselves (yet again!) with a lot of guitars held high, jazzy craziness and bouncing bass players (‘4-7-3-5-8-1-0-tiger rock!’ (or something!).
the crowd refuse to let them leave after ‘talk to me, all right’ and they rip through one of their high energy, high intensity tracks from the new album with such a ferocity it’s impossible not to just laugh at the absurdity of the amount of pleasure that is being connected and interlinked between everyone in the room. even the landlady and door guy come back with favourable comments and surprise at the size of the crowd for a sunday show.
limited express (has gone?) conquered all tonight and the merchandise box is favourably lighter for the trip to new zealand. we make lots of new friends and contacts yet koji can’t overcome his shyness around pretty girls! packed up and home – the excitement keeps us up until 2am despite having to get up again at 6.30am.
yukari – “i promised myself i will come back to melbourne because so many people enjoyed with us – that was my pleasure too” koji – “i was happy for many people coming and i could do my best. i appreciate melbourne people” jj – “thank you melbourne! thank you melbourne’s punk rock! we are rock and roll!”
we got up early in an effort to get down to lygon street for breakfast though by the time we were sorted it was lunch time anyway – still, the food was great and we relaxed a little in the 30 degree plus heat. we found the source of jj’s technical problems, so feel confident everything should go well today.
so – load out from the house, load in to missing link, setup and wait – thank god for the air conditioning in the store!
gray daturas play first and churn out some nice sludgey noise – the set is short and sweet and the crowd are digging it.
anticipation mounts as limited express take the stage and play through a more poppy set (if you can call it pop!) with a great rendition of ‘donuts’ and much jj and yukari theatrics. everything goes without hitch and the band are happy and the crowd are happy too!
everyone comments on how happy limited express (has gone?) are on stage and how infectious their smiles become. special show time!
jj – “i did a good show – but we forgot to sell t-shirts – sorry!” yukari – “in japan we can’t have a show in a record store because they are too mainstream” koji – “i was a little nervous because i haven’t played many instores. i am soundcheck!!
pony with ai yamamoto & kaigen and twitch of the death nerve
after much chat we finally load out and head up to the pony to load in again! straight onto stage and the band are jamming out and instrumental soundcheck while soundman nao sets up around them. twitch of the death nerve looked impressed as they brought their kit in and were really looking forward to the show.
the room filled up and ai yamamoto and kaigen beat out some laptop noise and curious hip-hopisms which sounded great to me.
a few minutes later and twitch of the death nerve cranked up the pressure some with some very impressive genre bending stop on a dime twists and turns – they were cool and super nice guys too.
there seemed a genuine curiousity about limited express (has gone?) tonight and the crowd eagerly watched and enjoyed the best show of the tour so far.
the pony is a nice intimate venue and nao managed to get a good loud sound cranking. with a little bit of space in front of the stage it was the perfect opportunity for yukari and jj to mix it up with the crowd and the response was very enthusiastic indeed.
it took us a long time to get out of there as we sold a ton of merch and the band were asked to autograph cds and have a chat with near everyone in the place! cool cool – damn cool – tonight was the shit – but i reckon it’s going to get better!
jj – “awesome! awesome people – lots of applause – we had lots of fun together – our music is best enjoyed together – band and audience. australian audience is nice.” koji – “last night was the best show in australia so far. fucking great show! everyone was nice – i like melbourne people.” yukari – “now i don’t remember everything because i was too excited. i was glad many people told me ‘fantastic’ and ‘great!'”
mark from twitch of the death nerve had this to say after ‘special show time’: “bands like limited express (has gone?) are capable of making someone’s year or even changing someone’s life. seeing artists who have delved so deeply and passionately into a world of their own inspires others to fight harder for their art. it reinforces peoples belief in the things that they already know, universal truths which reside in the minds and hearts of all people who truly believe in the significance of art. it is clear that touring a band like limited express (no matter how mind blowing) is a low profit venture. the fact that someone was prepared to lose money on them warms my heart.”
good day! green square hotel with terrapin, triangle, vincent over the sink, faux furs, kiosk
after getting to sleep at 4.30am it was difficult to get up at midday and we were running a bit late but still managed to be first to arrive at the show only half an hour before it started!
luckily everyone turned up soon and kiosk blasted out 15 minutes of superb sonic chaos to a small but enthralled audience.
faux furs were up next – they play a cool minimal fall-type music that made me happy – again quite chaotic and fun. i think these young bands are great – they seem to have a complete disregard for any normal rock conventions and the attitude of ‘fuck it if you don’t like it’. and then…
vincent over the sink! boy, these guys were amazing! and just their 3rd show – this two-piece take structure from ruins, sounds from indie types yummy fur and quirk out like the minutemen – bands which they’ve never even heard of!
triangle psyched us all out with distortion-drenched rhythmics and swirling acid patterns.
at this stage i went in search of the missing yukari to find her curled up asleep under a table at the side of the stage – how she slept through the noise i don’t know – but she seems to fall asleep anywhere (as did jj and koji at various stages of the day) – samurai-koala is becoming an ever more appropriate name for this tour.
terrapin, now a 5 piece, threw out a quick set of their ever-improving rock and tonight some quieter and poppier moments – very nice and jj liked them a lot.
anticipation mounted and temperatures rose as limited express took the stage and once again amazed a reasonable-sized crowd – i don’t know how they do it but they seem to be getting better each show, jj’s stage theatrics playing a bigger part tonight with yukari bouncing around as usual and eventually, during tiger rock, into the audience and with jj breaking a string yet again – that was it, to much rapturous applause and the sale of many CDs.
big thanks must go out to all the bands, especially those prepared to lend equipment and to toby who did the sound for the cost of two beers. good day? it was a fucking great day!
koji “this show had a great sound and was easy to play”
jj “i loved terrapin – i was excited”
yukari “i couldn’t see the audience faces because of the lights but i could feel their vibrations – so nice”
had to stir the band at 9am otherwise, they would’ve slept all day. after some pumpkin gnocchi breakfast koji and i played some soccer at the park while the others got ready. packed the car, dropped off the gear at the bowlers club, made a quick appearance at paint it black record store in newtown. the band are all keen to hear new australian music.
had a successful interview at fbi despite all our nerves and excitement. much kudos to nick who was very professional despite a crushed vertebrae. another quick look around red eye records and it was off to lunch and an interview for japanese newpaper info-m. the band is tired so we head up to the bowlers club where they all fall asleep on chairs as the sound guys work around them.
bowlers club with la huva, love of diagrams, youth group
just got the soundchecks finished in time – the sound guys aren’t too sure what to make of limited express (has gone?) but i know what’s coming. many introductions and friends were made with the other bands and with about 50 curious people through the door yukari, koji and jj ripped the place apart with their huge grins and bouncy theatrics.
must say many thanks to tim from la huva for coming to the rescue when jj broke a string and tim loaned his guitar for the final two songs.
so 30 minutes after the start of the samurai-koala show and there seemed to be 50 new fans all eager to talk to the band and purchase cds. yukari slept through some of la huva’s set – they were certainly different after limited express (has gone?) but had some really nice pop songs that everyone enjoyed. can’t stress enough – la huva are cool people.
had to pack up a lot of stuff and only managed to catch a few songs of love of diagrams whose music is as good as ever. we hope we can catch youth group another day.
koji “i was a little nervous because it was the first show but i enjoyed it very much”
jj “yeah – i was very nervous – we hadn’t played a show for one month until now. i was happy many people enjoyed our show” yukari “i was so glad to see everyone’s smiling face”
maggotville show with pure evil trio and many other dj’s and bands
wow – now this place is cool – a warehouse location with a great diy feel, drunk punks and dogs running around and all. after grooving to misanthrope everyone got setup and the room started to fill – it was party time. champagne was served and the audience popped poppers (among other things i’m sure) and the balloons started flying.
with a much more intimate environment the bands grins were reflected right back at them and it was a joyous occasion for all. jj jumped straight on to the speakers and urged the audience on and surely, halfway through some drunk punks decided to join in during stop-go and even picking up the bass during tiger rock (and doing quite well at that!).
again many friends and fans were made. we all hung around to check out pure evil which all the band enjoyed for various reasons – yukari scoring a free album after smiling sweetly at pure evil’s bass player.
finally, at 2.15 am, it was time to head back for some food, some ping pong club and maybe even some sleep.
jj “the australian audience has a great reaction – i like the australian underground scene”
koji “i was a little scared of the punk crowd but they were cool”
yukari “when the guy got on stage and picked up my bass i felt it was great to have this kind of interaction and participation”
Sat here in my room, next to the train line. Reading Ginsburg’s America. The planes coming down around me threatening to pass through my window. I wonder how quickly I can move if the nose ploughs in through the fern curtains. Into my life into my room.
The trains carry on past just glimpsing in as they go. The flowers outside dance in the wind, God’s breath giving them life. And the three cats sit and laze knowing attention will come their way, sooner or later – not bothered. Waiting.
The piano begs my fingers, though they know no melody and rhythm but I’ll let them dance over the keys, tapping out my song. When the right notes hit it feels me full of majesty, happy, high on life like no drug.
I wanted to write about number 41 when I was there but destiny altered that desire and now it will have to be done with hindsight. Though hindsight is better than no sight at all I wish I was there to clearly describe to you that plain old building, fifth along in the row of twenty or so. And with the events surrounding us leaving that blackens the view, dim’s the picture – which will have to be dragged from my clouded memory anyway. I’ll go away and think about it and return to disclose my secrets.
You laugh at your boss When he winces at the radio You think he’s just so old Cos he enjoys the golden oldies show One day, you too will be old And your kids will laugh at you And when you hear the golden oldies Will you be able to laugh too?
3rd Feb 2023 – This list is from the back of my diary and on the page following is a revision, top 25 only, though it looks like I planned more. That list added Stiff Little Fingers – Picadilly Circus, Adam and the Ants – Stand and Deliver, Stiff Little Fingers – Silver Lining and Clash – Magnificent Seven.
Damned – Machine Gun Etiquette Damned – Black Album Cockney Rejects – Vol II Dead Kennedys – Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables
13th July 2021 – I can’t imagine how I had these records at aged 13! I know I used to steal money from my mum’s stash of savings hidden in the bureau (sorry mum!) so maybe that was it. I do remember a year or two later I would never eat lunch and just saved the money my mum gave me to buy records on the weekend. I was skinny and starving.
14th January 1979 Going to see Close Encounters of the Third Kind
14th Oct 2021 – This would have been at the Tivoli in town (Wimborne Minster) and a very special event for an 11-year-old living out in the sticks. The movie really provoked my imagination – not so much about the alien visitors but how crazy the humans became. This and the War of the Worlds soundtrack really got me going, thinking about space and the universe though it wasn’t long until what was happening on earth overrode everything.
15th January 1979 Cleaning out the stream Forgot Don’t know
14th Oct 2021 – The woods opposite my house were a few children’s playground though for me it became a big part of my imagination and life. I familiarised myself with every corner, nook and cranny of the woods, sometimes even expanding over into overgrown backyards that backed onto it. It was divided up into several sections depending on clearings, paths, tracks and type of trees. There were three main entrances and a stream ran through the middle in a miniature valley (a ditch!).
When walking my grandparents’ dog – a job I mostly enjoyed – I would navigate through the grassy entrance to the woods, through the small paths amongst the bracken, to the main clearing where another path formed into a big circle you could walk, run or ride a bike around and beyond this down into the ditch where the stream was attempting to flow from right to left as I approached it. With the melting snow feeding it there was lots of water and so much debris would be picked up and block progress so that it flooded over the sides onto the banks and paths. I made it my mission to clear it, a little bit every day. I thought myself the owner of this stream and woe betide anyone who tried to reverse my hard work and block it again.
It took me many weeks to clear through halfway and later in the year, as seasons changed, there would be fresh challenges ahead. In my wellington boots, I kicked at the bottom of the stream to clear rocks away, pulled at entangled bushes on the bank, removed fallen branches until one day, about three-quarters of the way through I came to a small bend and beyond was the next objective to clear. The banks were steeper here and the tree cover dense so it was impossible to see the bottom. I bravely took a step forward feeling confident I would find the safety of the stream bed.
Alas, I was too careless and, as my foot plunged deeper, the icy water flowed over the top of my left boot and filled it full of water. Fuck! Stupid stream! I got out, emptied my boot and trudged home, cold and damp footed.
I went back of course but opted to start at the other end of the stream and work my way back to the cavernous depth that brought me despair. Having done this however, I found that the stream could only be accessed so far until it was blocked by a big hedge – and what was over that hedge made me extremely curious for further investigations.
16th January 1979 Same as yesterday Forgot Don’t know
14th Oct 2021 – I called my friend, Jason White, who lived on a farm down the end of the lane that ran alongside our house. You had to walk through his farm to get to the bottom of the field where Horton Tower was and where we used to climb up the crumbling brickwork inside to get to the windows from where you could also jump out. This was a teenage tradition for everyone locally and some kids even made it up to the second level but I was never brave enough to try.
Anyway, I called him…..actually, I probably didn’t even call him, I would’ve gone to his house and seen if he wanted to ‘come out to play’? I was proud of my stream cleaning success and wanted to show him. When we got there though he didn’t seem impressed at all which was disappointing. He was, however, curious about what was on the other side of that hedge.
Egging each other on, we climbed up a tree and along a branch that hung over into this forbidden territory. We dropped down onto a path that seemed to curve round in either direction. Whilst the path looked well enough used, the overgrowth on either side was so high it was difficult to predict what was around each corner. As I was thinking about this, Jason began to tell stories of the owner laying animal traps and walking around with a shotgun ready to shoot people who trespassed there. So it was in trepidation we snooped around as far as we could until we scared ourselves too much and jumped over/through another hedge and into an adjoining field.
Curiosity was well piqued by now and I ventured back a few more times, both alone or with a friend, until one day the owner walked right to us and asked what I was doing. I mumbled about just wondering and wandering what this area was and he told me to get out the way I came and not to come back. I don’t think I ever did.
There seemed to be nothing of interest in this enclosed wooded area, which, of course, made it even more tempting to investigate further but the threatening look of the owner was enough to keep me away.
I returned to the woods many years later and whilst some parts are the same, others have either changed or they no longer fit with memories. I’ll always be tempted to go back and look again (even though it’s on the other side of the world) but I’ve learned that memories are sometimes better left to themselves.
17th January 1979 Found out that ID and the Blockheads isn’t No. 1
14th Oct 2021 – Although I have no diary for 1978 I can see that music was taking on a more important role in my life throughout 1979. From football and cars at the beginning of the year to the charts and punk rock by the end. Critical times and enough to drive my mother mad.
18th January 1979 Painted WODs today Painted them white Interesting this article isn’t it!
14th Oct 2021 – Wall of Death? Wheels of Death? What’s the ‘s’ on the end? It seems I was also conscious of writing this diary for a reason, talking to a future self.
19th January 1979 Given new set book The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe BLURP
14th Oct 2021 – I struggled with reading books during these years, especially if they were school-assigned books. Who wants to read what they’re told!? I do believe I did complete reading this book though. Something about a lion, a witch and a wardrobe, I bet!
20th January 1979 Finished some homework Ipswich 3-1 Wolves HEYY!
14th Oct 2021 – Weird that I would comment on finishing homework. I guess I was proud of this achievement.
1994ever 