The one thing you can guarantee about THE ROCKSTAR EXPERIENCE is the unpredictability of song choices. We spend a lot of time planning our events and part of that is to devise a list of songs that cover different genres, cultural backgrounds and social statements about the chosen decade. More on that soon.
It’s no secret that we faced a lot of adversity putting 90s together. We were let down by a number of people and their poor communication which meant that we couldn’t issue our event immediately. By the time we did, most parents had spent their vouchers on other programmes, but thankfully The Albion Rooms saved us on the venue front and we were able to provide our programme to around 40 young people over the week. This felt like a massive victory given how hard it had been to organise everything and it was so good to see some familiar faces enjoyng their time with us. And boy did we have a good time...
First though, let me preface things. The 90s were rich with diverse and political music; borne of a time when social change was necessary – much like today. The 80s were extravagant and costly for a lot of people so the 90s arrived with their jack boots on and angrily kicked society into action.
Through that common cause we were treated to some incredible genre crossovers and collaborations between the most unexpected artists, for instance, Elizabeth Fraser of Cocteau Twins joining Massive Attack for the wonderfully evocative, “Teardrop”, or Hip-Hop maestro, Ice T forming the band Body Count – a metal/rap amalgamation that was as politically en pointe as it was sonically angry. We saw bands like The Prodigy break away from their house roots and turn almost metal with tracks like the iconic “Firestarter”, and suddenly music became a bridge between different social factions, ethnicities and socioeconomic groups. Let’s not forget that Acid House was the beginning of the end for football violence, a most necessary social change. Music also returned to grass roots, with movements like Grunge making it more accessible to both musicians and the public than in previous decades, paving the way for a whole new wave of bands to flourish.
It was a pleasure to share all that history with our young people at Easter, tucked away in our tiny corner of the world at the delightful Albion Rooms in Cliftonville, making our noise and having a good time while the world grew more difficult to navigate outside.
But let’s not get dark. There is light and a quiet optimism that change is coming.
At Easter we threw a lot of song suggestions into the hat; we’d crafted a set which we felt was both commercial yet obscure enough to tick all the boxes, but there was no disappointment when we were greeted by the choices from our young rockstars. Ready or Not? No Scrubs. About a Girl. Brain Stew. To name but a few. What a brew! They were such good suggestions and through those choices we got to flex our skills and introduce new elements into the performances. As always the musicianship was excellent considering how challenging some of those songs were and for the first time we had live beats underpinning one of the tracks - No Scrubs. We created loops on an iPad which were played live. That created new textures and opportunities for future electronic music inclusion, and this summer we want to get into some Hip-Hop and dance music. Another bonus was the feedback we received from parents, carers and guests. Many of them were children or teens in the 90s and it was so lovely to talk about their formative experiences throughout that time, all while an embracing musical soundtrack lifted and spurred them on, as it still does today. Music is for everyone and it impacts us all in ways that we often don’t even realise. In my belief, it’s a close to real magic as we can get. Anyway, enough from my inner-Tolkien. Joe and I played drums live for the first time ever which was really something. It wasn’t great but it wasn’t horrible and, in fact, we felt it put us at the same ability level as our young rockstars. I’m not going to lie, I was nervous sitting behind the kit and I did make a couple of howlers, but that’s what it’s all about. The Rockstar Experience isn’t about staying in your comfort zone, it’s about discovery and pushing yourself, finding new limits, changing patterns of behaviour and developing your confidence to such a degree that you feel empowered enough to be included in this world. Because never forget, your voice is as valid and important as anyone else’s, so don’t be afraid to use it. Ever. We’re back at The Albion Rooms for more 90s this summer and you can read about that HERE. So until August, when we’ll make more new memories, be good, be happy.
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