Essex punk legends NEWTOWN NEUROTICS have announced the debut screening of their long-awaited documentary movie.
KICK OUT! The Newtown Neurotics Story is the work of filmmaker Luke Baker and was made possible thanks to a fevered crowdfunding campaign.
The film charts the career of the band from their early beginnings in the post-war newtown of Harlow, at the same time as Margaret Thatcher ascended to 10 Downing Street, not un-coincidentally, just prior to the second UK punk explosion.
Inextricably linked to iconic and fertile Harlow venue, The Square, the band provided a string of insurgent anthems - 'When the Oil Runs Out', 'Kick Out The Tories', 'Living With Unemployment' - fuelled by Steve Drewett's insightful, incisive lyrics, which have earned a new relevance in the current political climate.
“What started as a simple video idea quickly grew into something much bigger," explains Baker. "What struck me during our initial meetings was how relevant the lyrics Steve wrote over thirty years ago were still today.
While mainstream success alluded them, they have quite the pedigree in terms of their fan base, their historic shows behind the iron curtain and Steve’s solo shows in North Korea and Cuba. On one hand, you could say it’s a film about a band that has continuously evolved with the political and social changes around them. On the other, it's a film about how many of the issues and problems tacked in the band's lyrics still resonate today as much as they did back then.”
Alongside the band themselves, the movie also features contributions from such friends, fellow-travellers and observers as Billy Bragg, Attila The Stockbroker, Phil Jupitus, Garry Bushell and journalist and broadcaster Steve Lamacq.
Co-promoted by Vive Le Rock and Black Wax, KICK OUT! will receive its world premiere on Saturday 25 April 2020 at the Leytonstone Ballroom (upstairs at The Red Lion), East London. Hosted by MC Steve Lamacq the event will feature performances from the Neurotics, Attila The Stockbroker and more, plus a Q&A with Luke Baker.
Tickets go on sale at 9.00am on Thursday 31 October from newtownneurotics.com Black Wax and Dice.
