INTERVIEW – Animal (Anti-Nowhere League)

Published on September 28, 2011 by Christian Sellers · 1 Comment

Anti-Nowhere League are perhaps now best known for their notorious punk classic So What?, which was first released on their debut album We Are…The League in 1981 and covered by thrash legends Metallica over a decade later. Fronted by Nick Culmer, known to his fans as Animal, Anti-Nowhere League remained true to their punk roots throughout the 1980s, even as their peers turned to goth and new wave.

A statement on the band’s Facebook page declares, “The Anti-Nowhere League set out on the road in 1980 to prove they could be the worst band on God’s Earth; loud, violent, obnoxious yobbos with one mission… to get banned from every TV show, radio station and newspapers.” Over thirty years later and Animal is still leading the League in a fight against conformity and mediocrity. As their statement concluded, “Long may independent bands continue keeping the music live and real…..long live the League.”

Animal discusses his opinions on modern music and what the punk attitude means today.

Every generation has a voice or movement that speaks out to alienated youths and challenges authority, such as punk rock and grunge. Are there any artists on the scene today who you think could make a difference and have a voice worth listening to?

“Sorry mate, I think it has all been said before… and to be honest I feel nobody gives a fuck anymore about what opinions from some other tosser telling us what to do… talk talk talk.. easy, isn’t it? But always the same end result… fuck all… verbal bollox.”

The mainstream music scene is currently dominated by reality TV shows like American Idol and gossip websites such as TMZ. Do you feel that these cheapen the power of music and do you find it frustration that teenagers are brainwashed by this kind of media?

“It’s called evolution, mate… we stopped going forward about twenty years ago and now we are evolving back to our ignorance. These ‘talent’ shows just goes to prove the less brains we have the better we all are. “I want to be a star, it’s something that I’ve always wanted”… get a fucking life first!!!!”

How do you feel the internet has affected your approach to making music, as well as discovering other artists? Do you feel that downloading – legal other otherwise – has had a negative effect on the public buying albums or has this taken the power out of the hands of the companies and given it back to the people?

“The internet is just another cover for the losers in life to become somebody… again, so obsessed in getting recognised they have forgotten how to live. Music is fun, and always should be. There is no answers in it and why should there be? It’s only entertainment… a few moments out of this cesspit we call modern life. Enjoy it now… you’re a long time dead!”

Music at its best is a reaction against the world around us, with many artists in the 1960s and ‘70s protesting against the Vietnam war or standing up for equal rights. In the world we live in today, from the constant fear of terrorism to the concept of Big Brother watching over us, are there any artists who have stood up and provided this generation with a voice?

“No… because all people want to do nowadays is to be ‘famous.’ Their small brain cells could not cope with saying something contradictory to the system… fake… as fake as their tits and stubble… (not together?… or possibly?).”

Being a rock star allows your voice to be heard by millions; do you feel that it is the responsibility of these artists to take part stand up for human rights and question authority or should music be used as escapism?

“Just because they bore us with their awful bleating songs doesn’t give them the right to think they know anything about anything. Musicians are so fuckin’ boring they should be singing only… and then shut the fuck up. About says it all really… thank God for these fuck-wits… loads of material for my next album… later… ANIMAL.”

For more information on the Anti-Nowhere League:
- Official site
- Facebook
- MySpace

Live photo: Fishbones Photography, Scotland