For many young New Zealanders in the early 1980’s, living in London was an OE magnet, and as with any other megacity around the world, it offered an international education in life’s highs and lows. Members of the Newmatics, part of that generation’s Auckland music and nightlife scene, were among that wave of Kiwis heading for London for the traditional OE.
Quickly absorbed into the London squatting scene through acquaintances already established, places like Bonnington Square (Vauxhall), Greys Inn (Holborn), Levita House and Chamberlain House (Somers Town), and Flaxman Court in Bloomsbury, all offered the opportunity of free rent with an edge.
Living in a squat had its advantages for the musically orientated; you could practice all day with little or no complaints from neighbours, who were generally of the same ilk. The London music scene was a huge draw card in these communities. There was music everywhere: Curtis Mayfield at a small club in Camden, the Pogues at a local pub, Linden Kwesi Johnson & Dennis Bovell at a local theatre, Fela Kuti at the Brixton Academy, Prince & James Brown at Wembley … the choices were endless.
All genres offered inspiration for Benny Staples (drums), David Cole (bass), Mark Clare (vocals), and Syd Pasley (guitar), who formed the Blood Group as a result. Writing sessions at Levita House, Flaxman Court and a couple of rehearsal rooms (dives) produced all but three tracks on this album.
Blood Group came to an end when Benny had the opportunity to join Nick Kent’s The Subterraneans, started working shows with them, and was then spotted by Rolo McGinty of the Wooden Tops, who in turn offered an audition and the rest is history. Around the same time, Mark Clare showed an interest in acting and stepped back.
David Cole & Syd Pasley were then joined by Mark Lassana Tunkara (vocals) and formed the Flaxman Posse with Benny Staples joining in when he could. Amongst the demos recorded at this time is Lovesalt and A Couple, which is included in the album.
Squatting being generally a short-term residency, over time David & Syd moved from Flaxman Court to Mecklenburg Square and then into a squat in Willesden Green.
This squat was a large 3 floor semi-detached house where a tiny 8 track studio could be built, a huge improvement from the previous music cassette recordings. The next-door neighbours (also squatting) were Tim Mahon (Blam Blam Blam) & Carol Varney (The Girlz), in the bottom flat, with Paul Streekstra (RIP) and Steve Kennedy, both well-known NZ sound engineers, in the flat above. Tim and Carol formed the Dead Sea Scrolls which included Kathleen Anderson (vocals) and Syd Pasley (guitar), and did a few shows around London, including the Mean Fiddler in Harlesden. The band recorded an EP on 4-track engineered by Paul, which Tim later released on vinyl. It’s now a collector’s item.
Eventually, Flaxman Posse transformed into World Tribe, again with some collaboration from Benny and access to the Wooden Tops rehearsal room. During this time the last track on the album (la Pazzle) was written. However, by this time Syd had become a father and decided to return to NZ, ending a ‘what could have been’ situation.
Over the years of parties, musical collaborations, shows, art, travels, history, good and bad times, many lifelong friends were made. What better source of material for any artist.
