{"id":6531,"date":"2017-07-20T08:53:53","date_gmt":"2017-07-20T06:53:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/?p=6531"},"modified":"2017-07-20T09:54:42","modified_gmt":"2017-07-20T07:54:42","slug":"jon-langford-posao-mekons-a-je-da-nastave-da-rokaju","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/?p=6531","title":{"rendered":"Jon Langford: Posao Mekons-a je da nastave da rokaju!"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: right;\"><em>Pi\u0161e: Katarina Samurovi\u0107@<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/svemirsko.majmunce\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Svemirsko Majmun\u010de<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6541\" src=\"http:\/\/media.popdepresija.com\/2017\/07\/Mekons-Bowery-neild-e1437791764108.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"650\" height=\"488\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Mekons-Bowery-neild-e1437791764108.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/Mekons-Bowery-neild-e1437791764108-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px\" \/><br \/>\nMitska 1977. godina u Engleskoj. Dok dru\u0161tvene tenzije vrtoglavo rastu a radni\u010dka klasa propada, vazduh postaje druga\u010diji. Klinci po\u010dinju da okre\u0107u le\u0111a sudbini koju su im je prethodna generacija zacrtala. Po\u010dinju da ne mare za nametnuti red i poredak. A muzika prati. Clash izdaju prvi album. Pistolsi izdaju \u201eNever Mind the Bollocks&#8230;\u201c. Po\u010dinje uzbudljiva, \u0161okantna i revolucionarna era panka.<\/p>\n<p>Iste godine na severu Engleske, u Lidsu, grupicu talentovanih, ali neambicioznih studenata umetnosti obuzima ista eufori\u010dna pobuna, ista potreba da se vikne sopstvena istina. Jedan deo te ekipe formirao je bend pod imenom <strong>Gang Of Four<\/strong>. Drugi bend, \u010dija je prvobitna svrha bila da bude predgrupa Gang of Four, zvao se <strong>The Mekons<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>\u010cetrdeset godina kasnije, Mekons su i dalje na okupu. Zajedno su preplovili okean, obi\u0161li svet, dizali glas protiv rasizma, fa\u0161izma i svake vrste represije ljudskog bi\u0107a, potpisivali za velike etikete (i ubrzo bili pu\u0161tani niz vodu od strane istih), pravili predstave, slikarske kolaboracije&#8230; Sve u svemu, ludo se zabavljali i usput oplemenili mnoge du\u0161e.\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><strong>Jedino \u0161to Mekons nikada nisu uradili ni zajedno, ni pojedina\u010dno, jeste pravljenje kompromisa.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Nikada nisu prodali svoj umetni\u010dki integritet &#8211; uvek su radili ba\u0161 onakvu muziku kakva se njima svi\u0111a, i slali poruke kakve su \u017eeleli. Zato je te\u0161ko definisati da li su ili nisu pank, pank-folk, alt-katri, ili ne\u0161to \u010detvrto, a ba\u0161 zato nije ni bitno. Svaki ponaosob neverovatna li\u010dnost i muzi\u010dar\/ka, poput komi\u010dnih verzija arhetipskih mitolo\u0161kih junakinja i junaka, Mekonsi zajedno kroje jednostavne, a neverovatno zna\u010dajne pri\u010de i vatreno ih prezentuju na bini.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6532\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6532\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-6532 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/media.popdepresija.com\/2017\/07\/loftydeeds-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/loftydeeds-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/loftydeeds-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/loftydeeds-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/loftydeeds-50x50.jpg 50w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/loftydeeds-660x660.jpg 660w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/loftydeeds-144x144.jpg 144w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/loftydeeds.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-6532\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">* Lofty Deeds je Langfordov imaginarni junak, koji se jako \u010desto pojavljuje na njegovim slikama. Predstavlja simbol katri peva\u010da starog kova \u010dije je vreme pro\u0161lo, ali tako\u0111e je \u0161ira merafora za ameri\u010dko dru\u0161tvo. Koncept Lofty Deeds-a razra\u0111en je na albumu \u201eAll the Fame of Lofty Deeds\u201c.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Me\u0111u Mekonsima, neumorni <strong>Jon Langford<\/strong> (D\u017eon Langford) pravi je renesansni \u010dovek. Preko dana slikar i grafi\u010dar, kao muzi\u010dar u Mekonsima \u010duva pank o\u0161tricu, a kao solo autor provodi duhove svojih heroja poput D\u017eonija Ke\u0161a (ili svog imaginarnog junaka, Lofty Deeds-a*). I pored toga \u0161to drugi Mekonsi isti\u010du da je on glavni motor benda, sam Jon insistira da nije njihov, niti bilo \u010diji \u201evo\u0111a\u201c. Tra\u017ee\u0107i istinu negde na sredini, zaklju\u010di\u0107emo da briljira u svakoj svojoj ulozi, bilo da pi\u0161e ili ilustruje pesme, svira ili igra na bini, ili se na istoj, izme\u0111u pesama, upu\u0161ta u neki od beskrajno zabavnih verbalnih dvoboja sa nesputanom i opojnom koleginicom Sally Timms. A dao je i neke ni\u0161ta manje brilijantne odgovore na pitanja koja smo mu postavili <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/events\/319980951759194\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">uo\u010di beogradskog koncerta u Elektropioniru, 24. jula<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h2><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong>&#8220;Mislim da The Mekons prili\u010dno vole da budu zajedno. Jo\u0161 uvek je ose\u0107aj sve\u017e i zabavan. Kada ne bude tako, presta\u0107emo.&#8221;<\/h2>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><strong><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6533\" src=\"http:\/\/media.popdepresija.com\/2017\/07\/hi-res-mekons-photo-e1500533057794-1024x594.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"650\" height=\"377\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/hi-res-mekons-photo-e1500533057794-1024x594.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/hi-res-mekons-photo-e1500533057794-300x174.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/hi-res-mekons-photo-e1500533057794-768x445.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/hi-res-mekons-photo-e1500533057794-660x383.jpg 660w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/hi-res-mekons-photo-e1500533057794.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px\" \/><br \/>\nThe Mekons su po\u010deli kao eksperiment tokom prvog talasa panka &#8217;77-e. Bili ste studenti umetni\u010dkog fakulteta koji su odrastali u turbulentnim vremenima. Sada kada pogleda\u0161 unazad, \u0161ta je bila glavna motivacija Mekons-ima da stanu pred javnost?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jon Langford:<\/strong> Cela ideja pank-roka bila je veoma privla\u010dna za nas, jer pre njega ljudi koji nisu umeli da sviraju svoje instrumente nisu ni mogli da budu u bendovima. Progresivni rok 70-ih bio je vezan za virtuoznost i ume\u0107e sviranja mno\u0161tva nota. Nas je interesovala umetnost, politika i pevanje pesama o svakodnevnom \u017eivotu. Imali smo sre\u0107e da poznajemo <strong>Gang Of Four <\/strong>iz \u0161kole, pa smo svirali kao predgrupa za njih, ali posle nekog vremena nam je pri\u0161ao <strong>Bob Last <\/strong>iz <strong>Fast Product Records <\/strong>i pitao nas je da snimimo singl. Mi zapravo i nismo bili muzi\u010dari, ve\u0107 studenti umetnosti; iako su nam pesme bile primitivne trudili smo se da ih sviramo najbolje \u0161to smo umeli \u2013 i to je bilo zbunjuju\u0107e za publiku. Nismo imali nameru da ovo postane dugoro\u010dni projekat. Bacili smo slikarske \u010detnice i napravili bend zato \u0161to je to bilo ne\u0161to najuzbudljivije u tom trenutku.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tokom vremena, krenuli ste dalje od panka i nju vejva. Engleski folk i ameri\u010dki kantri postali su veliki uticaj na Mekons-e. Kako ste dobili potrebu da krenete u tom pravcu?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>JL:<\/strong> Naleteli smo na studio na severu Engleske, \u201e<strong>Leader Sound\u201c<\/strong>, koji je bio jedan od istaknutijih folk studija. Vodio ga je tip zvani <strong>The Leader<\/strong>, koji je bio ne\u0161to poput engleskog Alana Lomax-a. Postavio nas je u okvire tradicije \u201efunkcionalne\u201c folk muzike, gde su na\u0161a muzi\u010darska ograni\u010denja postala deo na\u0161eg stila, \u0161to nas je u\u010dinilo interesantnim. Na\u0161 drugi songls se zvao \u201eWhere Were You\u201c i di-d\u017eej iz \u010cikaga je rekao da je kao kantri\/vestern zato \u0161to je imao dva akorda i bavio se pi\u0107em, barovima, i propalim seksualnim vezama. Na\u0161e pesme su bile veoma jednostavne i poku\u0161avale da opi\u0161u svakodnevni \u017eivot, \u0161to je svakako paralela sa kantri muzikom, ali nismo poku\u0161ali da imitiramo kantri; samo smo mnogo slu\u0161ali, posmatrali i upijali.<\/p>\n<p><strong><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-6535 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/media.popdepresija.com\/2017\/07\/ftr-jon-langford-300x219.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"219\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/ftr-jon-langford-300x219.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/ftr-jon-langford.jpg 576w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>Ipak, prelazak sa panka na folk nije ne\u0161to \u0161to je potpuno jedinstveno za The Mekons. Mnogi pankeri, od John Doe-a (X) do va\u0161eg kolege sa Bloodshot Records, Scott H. Biram-a, do\u0161li su iz panka i zavr\u0161ili stvaraju\u0107i na katriju baziran rokenrol. \u0160ta stoji iza kantri-pank mutualizma?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>JL:<\/strong> Jednostavnost forme i veoma direktna poruka. Distanca izme\u0111u publike i izvo\u0111a\u010da se bri\u0161e.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Ono \u0161to jeste jedinstveno za The Mekons je odluka da prebacite bazu \u010ditavog projekta preko okeana, iz Ujedinjenog Kraljevstva u Sjedinjene Dr\u017eave&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>JL:<\/strong> Ljudi u Americi su prosto delovali zainteresovanije za nas, a ponekad kao muzi\u010dar morate da idete tamo gde mo\u017eete da prodate plo\u010de. Mislim da je svako ko je odrastao u Britaniji posle Drugog svetskog rata neizbe\u017eno veoma fasciniran Amerikom i da imamo odnos ljubavi i mr\u017enje prema njoj: volimo George Jones-a i mrzimo George Bush-a; volimo Donnie Trumpet-a i mrzimo Donald Trump-a.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Mekons perform &quot;Beaten and Broken&quot; (Live on Sound Opinions)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/xc98m7u_RyE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>The Mekons ne vi\u010du parole u svojim pesmama. Ipak, politika i pravda su oduvek bili deo aure benda i \u010desto ste svirali razli\u010ditim aktivisti\u010dkim povodima. Tako\u0111e oduvek ste imali \u010dvrste principe u vezi stvaranja i izdavanja va\u0161e muzike i umetnosti. U ovoj politi\u010dkoj modernosti, da li je uop\u0161te imati stavove o dobrom i lo\u0161em politi\u010dki, subverzivan \u010din?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>JL:<\/strong> Mislim da mi samo govorimo da postoje drugi na\u010dini da se radi posao \u2013 ne volimo biznis muzi\u010dkog biznisa, pa biramo druga\u010diji, sopstveni put zbog politi\u010dkih i umetni\u010dkih razloga. Nikada nismo bili finansijski uspe\u0161ni, ali nastavljamo da sviramo \u0161to nam je i najbitnije.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Mo\u017eda u vezi sa druga\u010dijim i sopstvenim putem \u2013 zanimljiva je pri\u010da kako je na pesmu The Clash \u201eWhite Riot\u201c gledano van Londona, na primer u domovini Mekons-a, Lidsu. Hteli ste to da ispravite i napravili ste svojevrsni odgovor \u2013 va\u0161 prvi singl \u201eNever Been In A Riot\u201c.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>JL:<\/strong> Zaista volim Clash, ali tu pesmu je bilo te\u0161ko prihvatiti u to vreme, jer je postala svojevrsna himna belim rasistima na severu Engleske, daleko od lodonskih pomodara. Svestan sam da su Clash poku\u0161ali da otpevaju pesmu solidarnosti sa zapadnoindijskom omladinom posle sukoba na Notting Hill-u, ali kada je pesma stigla do Leeds-a dobila je potpuno drugo zna\u010denje. Bila je to va\u017ena lekcija o odgovornosti pri pisanju pesama \u2013 mora se biti prili\u010dno pa\u017eljiv.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Osim \u0161to imaju dru\u0161tvene principe, muzika Mekons-a je emotivna. Da li je ljudska ranjivost i \u017eelja da se istinski voli tako\u0111e vrsta subverzije danas?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>JL:<\/strong>\u00a0Nikada nisam razmi\u0161ljao o tome na taj na\u010din, ali zapravo si potpuno u pravu. Li\u010dno je svakako i politi\u010dko, i kao vrsta smo u opasnosti da izgubimo ose\u0107aj.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h2>Pro\u010ditajte jo\u0161: <a href=\"http:\/\/spacescarab.blogspot.rs\/2014\/12\/tri-dana-sa-jonom-langfordom.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Tri dana sa Jonom Langfordom<\/a><\/h2>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>Kroz \u010detrdesetogodi\u0161nje postojanje va\u0161eg kolektiva, videli ste kako dru\u0161tvo obilazi pun krug \u2013 od represije tokom \u0160trajka rudara 1984. tokom vlade Ta\u010derove, do makar povr\u0161no osloba\u0111aju\u0107ih 90-ih i dvehiljaditih&#8230; Kako percipirate dana\u0161nju situaciju, kada stare pretnje o\u017eivljavaju i antifa\u0161izam prestaje da bude istorijska kategorija? I kako vidite mesto Mekons-a u svemu tome?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>JL:<\/strong>\u00a0Upravo smo svirali na The Tolpuddle Martyr&#8217;s Festivalu u Dorsetu u Engleskoj, koji proslavlja ro\u0111enje sindikalizma. Vo\u0111a laburista Jeremy Corbin je govorio. Bilo je veoma inspirativno \u2013 jako je dobro pro\u0161ao na poslednjim izborima i imam nade da u ovom trenutnku on mo\u017ee da zaustavi skretanje u desno. Mislim da se ljudi bude u vezi ove pretnje. A posao Mekons-a je da nastave da rokaju.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"REVENGE OF THE MEKONS trailer, directed by Joe Angio\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_Hk_c6e7gv0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u010cesto se \u0161alite da ste neuspe\u0161an bend, bar po standardima industrije. Ipak, gurate ve\u0107 \u010detiri decenije i \u010dini se kao da se dobro zabaljvate usput, rade\u0107i svakakve zajedni\u010dke umetni\u010dke projekte \u2013 muziku, slikanje, teatar&#8230; Funkcioni\u0161ete kao pravi egalitarni kolektiv, \u0161to je redak dragulj. Imate lojalnu bazu fanova i evo vas ponovo u kontinentalnom delu Evrope. \u0160ta je mera \u201euspeha\u201c za umetnika uop\u0161te?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>JL:<\/strong> Mislim da je za Mekons-e sve to konverzacija koja se nastavlja, i ono \u0161to nam je interesantno je da vidimo kako da Mekons funkcioni\u0161u i ostanu vitalni dok se vremena i situacije menjaju.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u0160ta mislite da je centralna ideja koja dr\u017ei bend na okupu sve ovo vreme?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>JL:<\/strong> Mislim da The Mekons prili\u010dno vole da budu zajedno. Jo\u0161 uvek je ose\u0107aj sve\u017e i zabavan. Kada ne bude tako, presta\u0107emo.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Poslednje pitanje \u2013 kako mislite da va\u0161 junak, Lofty Deeds, prolazi u dana\u0161njem svetu?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>JL:<\/strong> Okre\u0107e se u grobu i tera bele rade socijalisti\u010dke revolucije.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Mekons - &quot;Ghosts of American Astronauts&quot; (Recorded Live for World Cafe)\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_UDIjHynyQw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>INTERVIEW WITH JON LANGFORD:\u00a0\u00a0The Mekons job is to keep on rocking!<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong>The Mekons started as an experiment in the first wave of &#8217;77 punk. You were art school students growing up in turbulent times. Looking back, what was the main motivation for Mekons to step out into the public?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>JL: The whole idea of a punk rock was very attractive to us because before that people who couldn&#8217;t play their instruments very well really couldn&#8217;t be in bands. 70s progressive rock was mostly about virtuosity and being able to play lots of notes. We were about art, politics and singing songs about every day life. We were lucky enough to know the <strong>Gang Of Four <\/strong>at school so we opened for them, or at least that was what the idea of the band was, but after a while we were approached by <strong>Bob Last<\/strong> of Fast Product Records and asked to make a single. We were not really musicians, we were art students and, although our songs were primitive, we were trying to play them as well as we could &#8211; this was confusing to audiences. And it was not meant to be a long-term project &#8211; we threw away our paint brushes and fromed the band because it seemed to be the most exciting thing to do at the time.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h2><strong>&#8220;Anybody who grew up in Britain after the Second World War is inevitably very fascinated with America, and we have a love-hate relationship with America &#8211; we love George Jones and hate George Bush; we love Donnie Trumpet and we hate Donald Trump.&#8221;<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-6534\" src=\"http:\/\/media.popdepresija.com\/2017\/07\/MEKONS-Derrick-Santini-1-1024x715.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"620\" height=\"433\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/MEKONS-Derrick-Santini-1-1024x715.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/MEKONS-Derrick-Santini-1-300x210.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/MEKONS-Derrick-Santini-1-768x536.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/MEKONS-Derrick-Santini-1-660x461.jpg 660w, https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/MEKONS-Derrick-Santini-1.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><strong>Over time, you moved forward from punk and new wave; English folk and American country music became a major influence on The Mekons. How did you get the need to go in that direction?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>We stumbled on a studio in the north of England called <strong>Leader Sound<\/strong>, which was one of the prominent folk studios and run by a guy called The Leader, who was like the English Alan Lomax. He placed us in the tradition of \u201efunctional\u201c folk music, where our limitations as musicians became part of our style &#8211; what made us interesting.<\/p>\n<p>Our second single was called \u201eWhere Were You\u201c and a DJ in Chicago said it was like a country and western record because it had two chords and was about drinking and bars and failed sexual relationships.<\/p>\n<p>Our songs were very simple and tried to deal with every day life, that was certainly a parallel with country and western music; we didn&#8217;t try to imitate that music but we listened to it a lot and observed and absorbed.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Mekons-SIMONE ON THE BEACH-Live-Hardly Strictly Bluegrass-Golden Gate Park-San Francisco-Oct 1, 2016\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2YgpI78rf4g?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>Crossing over from punk to folk is something that is not entirely unique to The Mekons. Many punk rockers, from John Doe (X) to your label-mate Scott H. Biram, came from punk to make country-based rock&#8217;n&#8217;roll in the end. What&#8217;s the reason behind country-punk mutualism?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Simplicity of form. And very direct messages &#8211; the distance between the audience and performer is removed<\/p>\n<p><strong>What is pretty unique to The Mekons though is the decision to move the base of entire project overseas, from the UK to the States&#8230;?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>People just seem to be more interested in us in America, and sometimes as a musician you have to go where you are selling records. I think anybody who grew up in Britain after the Second World War is inevitably very fascinated with America, and we have a love-hate relationship with America &#8211; we love George Jones and hate George Bush; we love Donnie Trumpet and we hate Donald Trump.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The Mekons don&#8217;t shout paroles in songs. Yet politics and justice have always been a part of your band&#8217;s aura, and you have been very active playing for different causes. Also, you have always had firm principles when it comes to making and publishing your music and your art. In fluid modernity, is having stances on right and wrong a political, subversive act?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I guess we really saying there&#8217;s other ways to do business &#8211; we don&#8217;t like the business of the music business, so we choose our own way for political and artistic reasons &#8211; we have never been very successful financially but we continue to play which is most important to us.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Maybe in relation to that \u2013 it is an interesting story how The Clash song \u201eWhite Riot\u201c was perceived beyond London, for example in The Mekons hometown, Leeds. You wanted to set it right and made your own reply \u2013 your first single called \u201eNever Been In A Riot\u201c&#8230;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I really like The Clash, but that song was a little hard to deal with at the time because it became a sort of anthem for white supremacy in the north of England, far away from the fashionistas of London.\u00a0I know The Clash were trying to sing a song about solidarity with West Indian youth after the Notting Hill riots, but when the song traveled up to Leeds it&#8217;s took on another meaning. It was an important lesson to us about responsibility when writing songs &#8211; you have to be quite careful.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Mekons-Never Been In A Riot\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ewiikymqOxA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>Besides having social principles, The Mekons music is emotional. Is being humanly vulnerable and willing to truly love also a kind of subversion today?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;ve never really thought of it like that, but actually you&#8217;re completely right. The personal is political for sure, and as a species we are really in danger of losing touch.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Existing as a collective for 40 hole years, you&#8217;ve seen the society come sort of a full circle, from oppression of the Miner&#8217;s Strike in 1984 during the reign of Thatcher, to the at least superficially liberating period 90s and 00s&#8230; How do you perceive current situation, where old threats are coming to life again, where anti-fascism is not a historical category anymore? And how do you see The Mekons place in all of that?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>We just played The Tolpuddle Martyr&#8217;s Festival yesterday in Dorset, UK, which celebrates the birth of trade unionism, and the labor leader Jeremy Corbyn spoke. It was very inspiring &#8211; he&#8217;s just done really well at the recent election and I&#8217;m feeling quite hopeful at the moment that maybe we can stop the drift to the right. I think people are waking up to this threat, and the Mekons job is to keep on rocking!<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Mekons - &quot;Millionaire&quot;\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_GyoH15H4lo?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>You often joke about being an unsuccessful band, at least by the industry&#8217;s standards. Yet, you&#8217;ve kept it going for four decades, and you seem to have had a lot of fun on the way, doing all kinds of art projects together \u2013 music, painting, theater&#8230; You seem to work as a true egalitarian collective, which is a rare jewel. You have a loyal fanbase, and here you are, playing in continental Europe again. What&#8217;s the measure of \u201esuccess\u201c for an artist anyway?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I think for The Mekons it&#8217;s a continuing conversation, and what&#8217;s interesting for us is to see how we can make it work and keep it vital as times and situations change.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What do you believe is the central idea keeping the band together for all this time?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I think the Mekons quite like being together. It still feels fresh and fun. When it doesn&#8217;t, we will stop.<\/p>\n<p><strong>And the final question \u2013 how do you think your character, Lofty Deeds, is doing in today&#8217;s world?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>He&#8217;s spinning in his grave and pushing up the daisies of socialist revolution.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Mekons - &quot;Learning To Live On Our Own&quot;\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/lBW6q7_ad6A?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pi\u0161e: Katarina Samurovi\u0107@Svemirsko Majmun\u010de Mitska 1977. godina u Engleskoj. Dok dru\u0161tvene tenzije vrtoglavo rastu a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6537,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-intervjui-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6531"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6531\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6549,"href":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6531\/revisions\/6549"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6537"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.popdepresija.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}