The English punk movement, circa 1976, influenced multiple generations of artists, photographers, writers, designers, and musicians. Host Richard Smith intervie...
There’s an urban myth that OMD (Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark) were “discovered” by Lindsay Reade, the wife of Factory Records founder, Tony Wilson. As a local Manchester celebrity and TV presenter, Wilson was often inundated with cassette tapes from bands wanting to get on one of his shows. He kept them all in a shopping bag in his car and would often throw the rejections away, allegedly. As the story goes, Lindsay reached into the bag one day and played a tape by a “bunch of hairy shits from Liverpool.” Wilson said it was crap, Reade said it was a hit. It was Electricity by OMD. Founded in 1978, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, have sold over 40 million records, and are considered “one of synth-pop’s most influential bands.” Its original members, Andy McCluskey, and Paul Humphreys, continue to perform at sold-out shows worldwide and write critically acclaimed songs to this day. One of their biggest hits, If You Leave, was written in a day for John Hughes’s big 80s hit film, Pretty in Pink. It helped the band “break” America and also break into the hearts and minds of every teenage misfit and outcast. “All the music in John’s movies was the soundtrack of his characters. They're not the jocks and the cheerleaders. They are the outsiders. And what do they listen to? They listen to English imports. And off the top of our heads, we wrote, If You Leave, in a day, and it was massive.” (Andy McCluskey)-Follow us on Instagram @destroypunkpodcast for the latest updates. Or visit us online: https://destroypunkpodcast.com for transcripts, show notes, and more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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54:27
"Malcolm Garrett: conceptual continuity."
The day Malcolm Garrett walked into Virgin Records in 1977 and bought Anarchy in the UK was a revelation. The Sex Pistols, and punk, were a modern manifestation of his Dadaist dream, and seeing them playing on TV that day changed his life. From that moment on he knew he was destined to bring his artistic vision to the masses and went on to create some of the most daring and original work for multiple punk, post-punk, new wave, and new romantic bands in history: Magazine, Duran Duran, Simple Minds, and Culture Club, amongst many others. His cover for the Buzzcocks notorious single “Orgasm Addict”, is considered one of the most important record covers of that time. Unafraid to mix high art with pop culture, his work also helped define the aesthetic of an era, creating unique visual identities that elevated the public image of each band he worked with. And, as the 80s saw the birth of MTV, his unique vision also helped them conquer the second “British invasion” of America, enabling them to cement a place in the hearts and minds of anyone who had just turned 16. “In 1977, the rebellious ‘Dada’ movement that I was looking for suddenly walked through the door, and it was a band called the Sex Pistols. It was like a light switch. Click. That’s it. Today. I’m a punk from here on in.” (Malcolm Garrett)Born and raised in Cheshire, on the outskirts of Manchester, England, his contrarian point of view and passion for design earned him an MBE in 2020. He is currently the creative director of Images & Co and continues to work with long-term business partner and Design Manchester co-director, Kasper de Graaf.Follow us on Instagram @destroypunkpodcast for the latest updates. Or visit us online: https://destroypunkpodcast.com for transcripts, show notes, and more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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1:00:03
"Peter Care: projecting rebellion.”
Filmmaker and video director Peter Care has spent a lifetime reimagining his craft. In the early 1970s, inspired by documentary filmmakers such as Ken Loach and cinematic auteurs such as Kenneth Anger and Luis Buñuel, he started the Sheffield Independent Film Company, which grew to be the largest film production company outside of London. Seeing a live performance by industrial music artists, Cabaret Voltaire, changed his career trajectory and started a long-term relationship with the band that began with Care’s short film, “Johnny Yesno.” His music video for their 1984 song “Sensoria,” was one of the most requested videos on the MTV video charts for 7 months. It was subsequently procured by the Museum of Modern Art, in New York, bringing him long-sought recognition for his unique approach to filmmaking. “At the time, people wanted to move away from the norm of putting up with conventions and the deadening mediocrity that seemed to be happening with much of the film and TV you were seeing. That’s what I was trying to do with music videos, I was a bit of a rebel.” (Peter Care)It also brought him to Los Angeles and work with Public Image Ltd, R.E.M., New Order, HBO, Jodi Foster, and Levi’s. He also directed films for the Santa Monica City Council as part of their residents’ Well-being program, which helped the council win a $1,000,000 prize from Michael Bloomberg’s Philanthropies’ Mayors Challenge.His documentaries for Yo San University have also helped to highlight the school’s pioneering work in integrative medicine in treating poor communities across Southern California.His first feature film, “The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys,” was voted Best First Feature Film at the Independent Spirit Awards in 2002. His music video for “Sensoria” was also voted the Best Video of the Year (1985) by the LA Times and is considered the greatest “underground” music video of all time. He also received six nominations for R.E.M.’s “Man on the Moon” video at the 1993 MTV Video Music Awards.-Follow us on Instagram @destroypunkpodcast for the latest updates.-https://shows.acast.com/destroy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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50:36
"Anton Corbijn: imperfection is perfection."
At 17, inspired by the defiant spirit he saw in the various music magazines of the day, Anton Corbijn picked up his father’s camera and never looked back. By 1979, he was in London, capturing a photo of his beloved Joy Division at Lancaster Gate tube station. A year later, Ian Curtis’s death would transform the image into an icon, and cement Corbijn’s place in photography’s rock-n-roll hall of fame.“ I like people finding my work somewhere, that’s what I always liked about magazines, you accidentally meet your work if you publish in magazines, and I’ve always liked that.”Throughout his career, with a camera always as his cover, Corbijn has built countless profound relationships with artists and musicians of every kind and creative persuasion, capturing their essence through his raw, unfiltered reportage style. None are more profound than his 40-year collaboration with Depeche Mode, a deeply prolific relationship that began in 1986, which has propelled both Corbijn and the band into cult-like heroes. Today, continuously pushing himself forward, his relentless vision and unwavering ambition have made him a pioneer in image-making and visual storytelling. From album covers to set design, and music videos to filmmaking, he is constantly pushing the boundaries of his craft, always inserting his unmistakable personality into every project and idea; leading him to fertile collaborations with legends like George Clooney, REM, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and U2, and establishing him as one of the most influential creators of the 20th century.Follow us on Instagram @destroypunkpodcast for the latest updates.https://shows.acast.com/destroy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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42:49
“Alex McDowell: design is a sharp knife.”
The work of acclaimed narrative designer and world visionary, Alex McDowell, has probably touched every corner of our lives. Beginning with an early career at street-style magazine i-D, he quickly moved on to music videos for Depeche Mode and Iggy Pop, record covers for Siouxsie and the Banshees, as well as game design for the BBC, and continues to fall forward even today. The incident that started it all was when he put on one of the first-ever live shows by the Sex Pistols at the Central School of Art in London, in 1975. This “transformative” moment has taken him from working with Vivienne Westwood to collaborating with David Fincher on his groundbreaking film Fight Club, as well as devising a window into the future with Steven Spielberg’s Minority Report. “I'm always drawn to something that's going to be disruptive, and seeing the Sex Pistols on stage for the first time immediately reverberated. I’m here now because of that night.”Never one to sit still, he also teaches World Building at the University of Southern California, encouraging students to imagine an uncharted and unknown future.In 2006, McDowell was named Royal Designer for Industry by the RSA, a design society, and was appointed Visiting Artist at the MIT Media Lab. In April 2015, McDowell was awarded the BritWeek Business Innovation Award.Follow us on Instagram @destroypunkpodcast for the latest updates. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The English punk movement, circa 1976, influenced multiple generations of artists, photographers, writers, designers, and musicians. Host Richard Smith interviews the key protagonists of this cultural revolution, who impacted every aspect of society and is still being felt today. Produced by BRB Studios Visit berightbackstudios.com for more details. Follow us on Instagram @destroypunkpodcast for the latest updates. Visit our website for transcripts and more destroypunkpodcast.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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