Honey Bane

Destined to go down in punk history as one of its biggest sell-outs, in the space of three years Honey Bane went from associating with Crass and Poison Girls to tarting herself up as some kind of pop strumpet for Jimmy Pursey at EMI. That’s quite a leap.

She was in her mid-teens and living in a care home when she became lead singer of the wonderful 'Fatal' Microbes. Their one single Violence Grows was/is a delightfully assertive, snotty and memorable little record, earmarking Bane (real name Donna Tracy) as a unique and interesting voice to watch out for. I've heard this creepy reggae-inflected marvel compared to 'The End', which is actually quite close to the mark.

Her first solo single, the disdainful You Can Be You EP was issued on Crass records in late 1979 and musical backing was provided by the Kebabs, who actually turned out to everybody's favourite Epping Forest anarchists. The three cuts were certainly Crass-sounding, but with Bane's bright screechy vocals on top. The A Side can be found on the Crass Records compilation A-Sides (Part 1. 1979/1982) but as it hung around the indie charts for a full year, shouldn't be too tricky to locate on vinyl.

A reggaefied second single, Guilty (backed by an ominous dub version) came in a sleeve with a picture of Jesus Christ crucified on a telephone pole and cemented her reputation for writing interesting pop-punk numbers with chips on their shoulders. Given her upbringing, this isn't surprising. Maybe for that reason her subsequent signing to EMI under Pursey's wing wasn't either, but her singles for that label have absolutely nothing even remotely interesting to offer, apart from the bouncy Turn Me On Turn Me Off; and even then Pursey's pretentiousness is stamped all over it (the cover states "A JIMMY PURSEY PRODUCTION", as if he's Phil Spector); and Jimmy... (Listen To Me), which doesn't appear to be about Jim Sham but is a decent piece of pop anyway. The rest consists of dire cover versions and Toyah-gone-wrong rubbish. Wot a fuckin’ shame.

For the record, she also sang guest vocals on the Angelic Upstarts 2,000,000 Voices album in 1981, dated Mickey Geggus of the Cockney Rejects and, as of the year 2002, sang in a "melodic alternative metal band" called Dogs Tooth Violet. She also had a minor acting career (1982's girls-in-prison film Scrubbers, then a co-starring role with Richard Jobson of Skids in the play Demonstration of Affection) and paid her rent for the rest of the decade by showing her naughty bits for nudie mags.

jane@punkygibbon.co.uk

You Can Be You/All Systems Go

Yeah…back again with a double post of more, yes can you believe it, more from the world of Crass Records. As mentioned in the Split 12” Closed Shop post, Honey Bane was the first artist to appear on Crass records with a banging 7” EP. Originally starting out as Donna And The Kebabs (or Honey And Crass) the three tracks explore some of the underside of London circa 1979 as seen through a young Ms Bane’s eyes while on the run from Social Services. Girl On The Run explores the homeless and desperate conditions of a young pregnant girl on the city streets. Porno Grows has a deceptively pretty piano that belies the rants at the seedy side of Soho and the Red Light sex industry exploitation, while the final track Boring Conversations does exactly what it says on the tin, kicking off with some Spanish Flamenco Guitar, Bane talks about the conversations she’s had with the Social Services and how she wasn’t letting them into her head.

If Discharge were blazing a whole new trail for Punk Rock to travel then the Poison Girls were doing likewise but going off at a completely different tangent. Both bands were sat at almost opposing extremes though both were similar in the way they were polarising critics, leading to both of them being either loved, hated or studiously ignored.

If Discharge were playing unlistenable music (for unliveable times) then Poison Girls were playing music for pleasure in a very mature manner and it was a sign of the times that the only people able and willing to appreciate both bands at once was the Punk crowd who were acknowledging, perhaps, not only the form but the content. All Systems Go was Poison Girls' first 7" record totally of their own and featured two tracks, Promenade Immortelle and Dirty Work. Though very much their own record, the connection to Crass was still on full display as in being released on Crass Records, produced by Penny Rimbaud, featuring Eve Libertine on backing vocals, with photography by Gee Vaucher. There was something of the epic about Promenade Immortelle; something modestly, even shyly majestic. If ever a song was fit to be played on national radio then surely this was it? If ever a record might appeal to teenage Anarcho Punk Rockers and their parents alike then - surely - this was the one? Not that Poison Girls had lost their edge in any way or their spikiness as evidenced by the other track on the record, Dirty Work. Propelled by tribal drumming and scorched by fuzzbox feedback, the words are delivered in an almost robotic fashion.

Closed Shop/Violence Grows

This 12” split EP was the recording debut of Essex based Poison Girls and Fatal Microbes, on the Small Wonder and XNTRIX Records co-release. The Fatal Microbes side was re-released in 1979 on Small Wonder as a 7″ single with an extra track Cry Baby. Both The Poison Girls and Honey Bane from The Fatal Microbes were to go on to work very closely with nearby Essex based neighbours Crass in 1979 sharing gigs, recording at Southern Studios and releases on Crass Records. This release was recorded at Spaceward Studios in Cambridge. After Fatal Microbes split, Honey Bane was first to release a non Crass record on the Crass Record label, then she went solo and worked with Jimmy Pursey releasing records on EMI. Pete Fender and Gem Stone formed Rubella Ballet with fellow Essex punks Sid and Zillah Minx.

During the lifespan of the group, Poison Girls became a massive influence to the audiences in the UK. Originally hailing from Brighton in 1976 before moving to Burleigh House in Essex the band featured singer/guitarist, Vi Subversa, who just happened to be a middle-aged mother of two at the band's inception, and wrote songs that explored sexuality and gender roles, often from an anarchist perspective. They worked closely for a number of years with fellow anarchist band Crass, playing over 100 gigs together. In 1979 they contributed to the revival of the peace movement by playing a number of benefit gigs, again with Crass and paying for the production of the first CND badges since CND's heyday.

Honey Bane and The Damned

Honey Bane began her musical career at the age of 14 in 1978 when she formed the punk rock band the Fatal Microbes. The band released a split 12" record with anarcho-punk band Poison Girls the same year. The first single, "Violence Grows" garnered some press attention and was given positive reviews by the British music paper Sounds.

After the 1979 breakup of the Fatal Microbes, and a stint in a juvenile detention facility that garnered more press attention, Bane began a collaboration with Crass while she was on the run from the Social Services after serving a sentence at the St. Charles Youth Treatment Centre in Essex. Lending lead vocals and backed by the band under the name Donna and the Kebabs, Crass released the EP You Can Be You in 1979. It was the debut release on Crass' newly found label, Crass Records. The following year, Bane released her debut solo single, 'Guilty' and sang vocals for Killing Joke on "What's the Matter" during a February 1980 gig at London's Venue club.

Friday 13th EP was issued as the result of a one-off deal with the NEMS Records label. It was released on 13 November 1981, which just happened to fall on a Friday. The EP was released in the UK and Sweden on 7" and also in Germany on 12" (the German 12” is the version to get). In 1981, EPs were still eligible for the UK Top 75 Singles chart, and Friday 13th reached the heady heights of  No. 50. The lead-off track, "Disco Man", was featured on a large number of compilations, also becoming a live favourite. Two of the other three tracks, "Billy Bad Breaks" and "Limit Club", were composed by the band; the final track was a cover version of The Rolling Stones song "Citadel”. The Vanian/Sensible/Scabies/Gray line-up has always been my favourite, and this EP as an example of just how good they were in the early 80s. I went through a phase of listening to Friday 13th on repeat a couple of years ago because "The Limit Club" is quite possibly one of the best songs The Damned ever did and sadly is so underrated.

I had a dream or was it true

I saw the sun set low on you

In a blood red sun's final rays

We laughed at that subtle shadow play...

"The Limit Club" is proof that The Damned really were at their peak at this time after the punk and before the goth-pop. Melancholic, swooning, psychedelic-tinged….heaven.

Violence Grows

Fatal Microbes were an English punk rock band formed in 1978. The main line-up of the band consisted of Honey Bane on vocals, Gem Stone on drums, Pete Fender on guitar, and Scotty Barker on bass. The band's name is regarded as a reference to the theme of disgust and toxicity, explored and embraced by many punk rock acts in the late 1970s and early 1980. Releasing only one 7” single and a split four track 12” with Poison Girls they’re best known for the start of Honey Bane’s career first on the Crass label and eventually being picked up by EMI.