Rock Against Racism

Last Sunday, April 1st, Maryport Against Racism organised it's first ever public event, Rock Against Racism and it was a great success.

A Sunday night is not the best night to hold a rock concert, as the club owners pointed out, but we still managed to attract an audience of about 100 people mainly local people. Even better was that while we expected the audience to be mainly young people it was people of all ages who turned up.

The purpose of the concert was to raise awareness about racism in general and racist political parties, the obvious one being the BNP, in particular which are once again organising and winning support. Judging by the amount of people who gave us their contact details to get more involved we were very successful in this.

The other important part of the night was that people enjoyed themselves and with a cheap bar and some excellent bands it’s safe to say most people had a good time.

The bands playing were punk rockers (in a teenage sort of way) Band Substance, Six String Revolution with acoustic protest songs, some classic rock with AWOL, Shore who sounded a lot like Oasis, more class rock from Ionian and finally Speeding Bee who were more like stand up comedians than a band.

I had a slot to do a short speech on racism and the arguments racists use in between AWOL and Shore which was well-received, even if I say so myself. I would post up a transcript of this but I ad-libbed most of it on the night.

Despite our various worries beforehand, that no-one would turn up on a Sunday night or that some of threats from people on the internet would actually be carried out for once, all the planning ensured that the event happened without a hitch.

Since this was our first public event we were all extremely happy with the result. We have reached a wider audience, mobilised more people in the run up to the local elections and gained a fair bit of publicity for ourselves. We would suggest that any local groups similar to ours tried out similar events because we put across a powerful anti-racist message, accompanied by a great soundtrack and fun while we did it.

Rock Against Racism Band Line-up

Here's some info on the great bands you'll be hearing on 1st April! Visit their Myspace sites to hear samples of their music.

Band Substance:Band Substance are a punk rock band from Workington. They formed in mid-2005 when drummer Andrew Terlerckjii joined guitarist Alex Elliott and bassist Sam Houston. They've been building up an enthusiastic following, playing at Monroe's in Workington and other local venues. Right now Band Substance are writing new material and playing shows around Cumbria. You can listen to their tracks on: www.myspace.com/bandsubstance

The Six String Revolution: The Six String Revolution consists of CJ and Comedy Dave. Influenced by Billy Bragg and other protest singers, they write and play politically poetic, acoustic songs on anti-homophobic, anti-racist, anti-sexist and anti-capitalist themes. They say: "Music isn't just about playing pretty tunes, it's about saying important stuff too." Hear them playing on: www.myspace.com/thesixstringrevolution

AWOL: AWOL all met up at school in Maryport and formed a band in 2002. They have played many gigs in Keswick, Cockermouth, Workington and Maryport, including highly successful appearances at the Maryport Blues festival in 2004, 2005 and 2006, and at the Silloth Beer Festival. They love to rock out, and their main influences are bands like Guns 'N' Roses, Free, ZZ Top and Motley Crue. Find out more about AWOL by going to their website: www.myspace.com/awoluk

Ionian: Ionian are a five-piece, alternative rock band from Keswick and Maryport. They play a mixture of covers and original music, and are currently working on their own album. They played at Maryport Blues Festival and Solfest in 2006, and were regional winners for Cumbria and Lancashire in the Rockidol 2006 competition. Their influences range from classic bands such as Fleetwood Mac, Pink Floyd and Cream to more contemporary music such as Velvet Revolver and Tool. They are building an enthusiastic fan base online, and they are set to win over plenty more. You can hear their music on: www.myspace.com/ionianrock

Speeding Bee: Speeding Bee are a band from a village in Durham called Pity Me. They play music which can be most easily described as ska-punk. They are blighted by the fact that they are all in separate further educational institutions across the country. They like feminism, animal rights, unilateral disarmament, respect, peace, love and Twin Peaks. They don't like racism, sexism, homophobia, stereotypes, intolerance, ignorance or Hollyoaks. One of them once made Billy Bragg a cup of tea. Check them out at www.myspace.com/speedingbee

MARYPORT ROCK AGAINST RACISM

Maryport Against Racism are organising a Rock Against Racism concert for the 1st April at Grasslot Club. Unfortunately we are going to have to operate an over 18's only policy so bring ID so as not to be disappointed. The cost will be £5 on the door, all proceeds will go towards covering the costs of organising the gig. Hope to see you there.

Rock Against Racism

Maryport Against Racism is presenting Rock Against Racism. It's going to be held at Grasslot Club in Maryport (near the go-kart track) .

It will be held 1st April with tickets at £5. The probable times will be 5pm - 11pm although this will all be confirmed nearer the time.

Confirmed Bands:

• Band Substance
• Speeding Bee
• AWOL
• Ponse
• Ionian

If your band is interested then leave send us an e-mail or leave us a message on our MySpace.