JOHN ROBB @ 21 SOHO, LONDON

On his 63rd birthday and spoken word tour in support of his recent book, ‘Do you Believe in The Power of Rock ‘N’ Roll?’, John Robb, the musician turned writer spoke at length about his Blackpool heritage, forming his punk band The Membranes, his musical influences from the ’60s and ’70s that included David Bowie to Slade to The Monkees, his punk days and moreso his interest in ‘post-punk’, with credit giving to PiL, Section 25 and The Fall as well as the gothic “art of darkness”, the subject of his last book, such as The Sisters of Mercy, Siouxsie Banshees and The Cramps. Robb progressed to talk about his fanzine work as a music writer, interviewing huge emerging artists such as Nirvana (and sleeping overnight on their floor with them), his relationship with the late Steve Albini as well as listening to Oasis’ album with the band at Rockfield Studios. For the second part of the evening, he interviewed editor and entrepreneur James Brown about his life in music and the publishing industry.

04/05/24: John Robb @ 21 Soho, London.