Fifty years to the date of the original Rock Against Racism concerts, when The Fall played a pivotal, mercurial set that felt like history bending in real time, I suddenly found myself in a room with three former members of that same band. One of them, Una Baines, was now on stage with Poppycock. It was a tremendous performance. But when underground post-modernist beat poet Tamra Smith took to the stage and delivered spoken word with ferocious intensity, the audience, myself included, were utterly mesmerised. I caught up with her in Stretford Town Hall in Manchester, UK at the end of the night.
You performed with Una Baines and her legendary band tonight. It was a great performance. How did this collaboration come about?
โIโve known Una for years. We met at Blue Sci a wellbeing centre for help with mental health issues. I was referred there by my doctor after leaving hospital after the first time I was sectioned. The place gave me back my self esteem because of the people. Una being one of those people. Also playing bass in Poppycock, Janet, who taught me a lot about music and gave me her time and great advice, made a great impact on me. Sheโs also a producer as well as an empress and an amazing musician. I got involved with Rock against Racism after asking Una if there was anything I could get involved with. I feel so proud and privileged that Poppycock let me perform with them. They are one of the best bands around, most unforgettable. They have their own sound which I find mystical with many elements which add to its beauty.ย It was a great honour to perform at Rock against Racism. Simon Wolfenscroft was in the crowd and Mike Bennett from The Fall. They both made great comments about Poppycock and my performance with them.ย I performed a personal political poem at a political event that I believe in ferociously and I felt joy passion and support from Popycockย I heard absolute Nirvana โฆ(not the band)โฆ. in the music.โ
Youโre making an album with your collective. This mainly female cooperative includes the Hacienda classical legend Melanie Williams, Natalie Fitzgerald the filmmaker, and members connected to bands such as the Happy Mondays, The Smiths, and Wishbone Ash. How did this collaboration come about?
โIt was supposed to be a militant feminist project but I could only find women who were just feminists and not militant. Thatโs why we allowed the men to get involved. How did it happen? We all got back on the magic roundabout and because Douglas was chilled, Dillon went electricย Zebedy got to bounce around the studio on pink champagne and it all made sense for once, especially with Funky Si on drums. The funk with my punk. Fru from the Mondays who is a breath of fresh air sings on Porcelain doll. What the f this shit only happens in dreams and the queen of Manchester Melanie Williams is working on a track with me through the nights which you sleep through.ย Natalie Fitzgerald the the intricate avante garde film maker and all round genius has been working tirelessly on making videos for the pieces. Her styles range from the Surrealย to naturalistic detail and emotive content. Her film making challenges and provokes. Sheโs also such a fun, upbeat and positive influence. She has much knowledge and creativity. Mike Bennett of the Fall, The Blockheads, Wishbone Ashโฆ is producing the Album. What I love most about Mike is that he works organically. With Mike many ideas grow along side each other and with his experience and expertise they become actual and meaningful.โ
Your long-term partner Wags is part of this collaboration. The track โHeroin babyโ is very moving. Whatโs that about, and what was his involvement?
โWags would often say that Heroin baby was his swan song. It was the last song he ever played. I wrote it in 2018. Itโs about a little girl whoโs parents were heroin addicts and sheโs born addicted. As soon as I had written the lyrics Wags picked up his guitar to play and we had it down that evening.โ
Youโre known for your punk attitude, but this album is eclectic and atmospheric. Does being an actress tackling a diverse range of subject matters influence your music.
โI trained as an actress and got to work with music students often. But I started out with poetry at an early age and storytelling. I like to tell a story to music. I play different roles and have different vibes. I also like to have different styles of music within each piece. I am very much influenced by practitioners such as Brecht, Artaud, Boal, Pinter, Berkoff, Grotowski & Stanislavsky.โ
Iโve seen you on various punk bills. Iโm surprised you havenโt made a purely punk record. Why go electronic on this body of work?
โThe album is electro punk. Iโve never felt confined to one genre. When I was four, my brother who was ten was a punk he introduced me to the Sex Pistols. I was singing theyโre records long before I understood them. At heart Iโm a punk and my heart remains with John Lydon, who Iย met with. He was my first ever influence and I love all he does and what he represents. Speaking with him inspired me and put a firework up my arse, to get my shit together. My parents had a wide range of music. Mum looked like Marc Bolan and dad looked like Roger Daltry. They listened to all kinds of rock and reggae. A lot of it stuck. My parents were drug addicts, theyโveย gone now and listening to there sounds is a way to bring them home for a while. When I became twelve years old I discovered the Smiths. They were a cult to me and I was obsessed. At twelve and a half I was put in a prison for children. I listened to the Smiths in my cell none stop. The band literally kept me alive. At nearly 15 it was 1988, I was let out and Iย hit the dance floor at the Thunderdome. Music was sailing from Chicago to Manchester through Eastern records straight to the dome, the one Manchester club better than the Hacienda. The Indi scene in Manchester was exploding it was a historical moment in time. Later there were bands like Orbital and the Orb. Probably influenced by 808 and early house. I also love rap. Iโm an absolute sucker for Eminem. Heโs marmite I know. What a great lyricist he is. So no, Iโm not a stereotypical punk. Punk is an attitude it can be found in the cracks as well as on the surface. I enjoy making Electronic music it gives me space. Space to layer atmosphere, to be cinematic, to experiment. I also love many genres and hope to express this through music. I like to think that my poetry that I read on the radio for Louder than war is very punk. Also Barking which I wrote with Wags is punk too, and the lyrics to Porcelain doll part one that I did with Julie Gordon who sang with the Mondays, are very punk. Julie was the second female singer in the Happy Mondays, incredible the Mondays synergy going down on this album. Of course my play Hallelujah which was on at Contact theatre was totally punk. Yet I hope to express further shades and bring some more of the best of music to the forefront through the passion I have inside.โ
Youโve made a new album does it have a specific theme and what is the style guide.
โItโs a mixture of electro punk, old school. Itโs a vast array of music. Gabba, reggae, doom, glitchย rock, punk and more. I have my anologue modulater. Whatโs reggae today could be stoner rock tomorrow with a twist of a few knobs and a bpm readdress. There are enveloping themes, including a trilogy thatโs a psychological drama. I had to tone down the true story of what happened in those vital twenty four hours. Thereโs a track with Craig Gannon called Porcelain doll 2 about standing up to a bully. Then thereโs a track about creation as told through the life of a tree. I havenโt decided what to call the album yet but I have a colourful selection of ideas. Essentially making the album was a diy creation of absolute punk anarchy. Itโs happened because of the spontaneous collisions of the collectives and their spectacular creative art forms all taking a moment to step into the twilight zone.โ
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