Whatever Happened to the C86 Kids?: An Indie Odyssey

Product Information

In 1986, the NME released a cassette that would shape music for years to come. A collection of twenty-two independently signed guitar-based bands, C86 was the sound and ethos that defined a generation. It was also arguably the point at which 'indie' was born. But what happened next to all those musical dreamers? Yet, while the pursuit of long-lost musicians can often manifest as earnest hagiography, Tassell's unique, light-hearted approach makes this a very human story of ambition, hope, varying degrees of talent and what happens after you give up on pop - or, more precisely, after pop gives up on you. It's a world populated by bike-shop owners, architecture professors, dance-music producers, record-store proprietors, birdwatchers, solicitors, caricaturists and even a possible Olympic sailor - and let's not forget the musician-turned-actor gainfully employed as Jeremy Irons' body double... Various Artists (26) - C86". BBC Music. 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-05-13 . Retrieved 2016-07-04. Very few still make a living from music and the range of jobs they now have is the result of a careers officer having several strong coffees and randomly shouting titles from a work I started reading NME in the late ‘90s, so this era of bands is before my time, but this book is just brilliant. First band is Primal Scream who are a favourite of mine, and having just read Gillespies Tenement Kid it leads on nicely.

There was an upside as well as a downside,” concludes Stephen McRobbie, of the Pastels. “There’s no doubt that it helped us to reach a larger audience. We probably benefited. But it became more of a signifier than any of us imagined … ” Nige Tassell -Whatever Happened to the C86 Kids?: An Indie Odyssey - in conversation with David Eastaugh One common complaint which seems to afflict most of these acts, was how unhappy they were with the choice of song they put on the compilation. Most insist that they thought it would be more along the lines of C81, which was released to celebrate five years of the Rough Trade label and the wider Independent music scene in the UK in general. So most of the bands approached it with low-expectations, believing that this set-up would be along the same lines in terms of audience and impact. But of course hindsight is always 20/20 and no one was to know just how significant and popular the tape would become. The C86 comp is a legendary document in indie history, more influential as a one-off than most of the featured bands individually.Who, of a certain vintage and a certain propensity for hoarding things in lofts, including cassette-tape compilations sold via a weekly music publication, wouldn't want THIS BOOK?' -- Andrew Collins You may also opt to downgrade to Standard Digital, a robust journalistic offering that fulfils many user’s needs. Compare Standard and Premium Digital here. Twenty-two tales of youthful anger, innocence and indolence, filtered through almost forty years of regret, melancholy and, occasionally, dogged resistance. Nige Tassell succinctly and sweetly conjures up an era when groups could form in Glossop, Hebden Bridge or Whitstable and - for a few months, at least - become national heroes via the patronage of John Peel and the weekly music press. He spins gold from their grab-bag of agendas, musical politics and effects pedals and creates something that is frequently more impressive, entertaining and enjoyable than the music itself.' -- Bob Stanley Fire Escape Talking", "Anoraky in the UK,C86, the punk that refuses to die" ("Fire Escape Talking blog", July 7, 2006) But by uniting the muddled sounds of “indie” under a single albeit contested banner NME stamped a unique moment in British music. Journalist Nige Tassell, author of 2022 book Whatever Happened to the C86 Kids?: An Indie Odyssey, would write in The Guardian: “These groups laid the foundations for later outfits such as the Stone Roses, Oasis and Arctic Monkeys who took indie ‘overground’, swapping upstairs rooms in pubs for headline slots at the biggest festivals.”

This is a book for those of us, now in our late 50s or early 60s, who grew up devouring the NME as a means of nurturing our music tastes as well as broader cultural interests. It may also help to be male, perhaps? Gourlay, Dom (2014-06-13). "Album Review: Various - C86: Deluxe Edition / Releases / Releases // Drowned In Sound". Drownedinsound.com. Archived from the original on 2015-09-06 . Retrieved 2015-06-11. One by one they agreed to be interviewed. Invariably, they would ask who else had confirmed. If, say, members of the Pastels or Age of Chance or the Mighty Lemon Drops were on board, that was enough for them. Some would tender old phone numbers of their former bandmates, keen for each of these missing persons cases to be solved. In the end, no band wanted to be left out, for their story not to be told. When I secured an interview with the drummer from the 22nd and last band to respond, I punched the air in delight. Relief, too. In 1996, NME continued the tradition of compiling a new band album (this time a CD) by releasing C96. This had little impact, with Mogwai and Broadcast being the only acts on the compilation to subsequently enjoy mainstream success. [23] Three other bands on the compilation - Babybird, The Delgados and Urusei Yatsura - had brief success in the United Kingdom after the compilation's release.Rather brilliant ... in the stories of many of these C86 kids are reminders of the power of optimism. If we can, we should guard against losing our belief in possibility.' -- The Scotsman Often funny, sometimes poignant ... [a] candid, evocative snapshot of a scene that is fondly but scarcely celebrated. 4/5' -- Classic Pop The RRP is the suggested or Recommended Retail Price of a product, set by the publisher or manufacturer.