The band’s imagery – which includes, but is certainly not limited to, some of the most outrageous hairstyles ever conceived by mankind – has become synonymous with a genre (street punk) that’s often misunderstood, even by its own fans.
The latest in a string of classic punk rock bands to hit Australia this year, Birmingham, England’s pioneers of ‘UK82’ hardcore hit the Melbourne this coming week. Vocalist Colin Abrahall is adamant that his band’s longevity is simply down to the blood, sweat and tears the members have put in over the last three decades.
Let’s get down to brass tacks. If you’re a fan of punk rock and you haven’t at least seen some GBH iconography bandied around on a leather jacket, tee-shirt, or studded piece of denim, you’ve been living under a freakin’ rock.
The band’s imagery – which includes, but is certainly not limited to, some of the most outrageous hairstyles ever conceived by mankind – has become synonymous with a genre (street punk) that’s often misunderstood, even by its own fans.
Talking down the line in a softly-spoken, neat Brummy accent, Colin Abrahall belies all the nonsense with his down-to-earth manner and totally easy-going demeanour. When asked why, out of all the bands on the planet, his is one of the most recognisable, his answer is completely humble.
“I think we’ve been lucky, really,” he replies. “’Cause we’ve traveled all over the world and played lots of shows. We go to America nearly every year, which is good for us. It’s probably one of our best markets. We just keep spreading the word.”
Could simple hard work be the key?
“Yeah, after Australia and Japan and New Zealand, we’ve got about ten days off. And then we start a big European tour which will take us up to almost Christmas. We’ve got a couple of shows in Greece. One show in Birmingham, and then it’s 2011. We’ve got a few shows in January, then I think we’re going back to America in February-March time. And, [we] just keep going,” he nods.
Remember that this is a band 30 years into their career. If the touring sounds relentless, the records GBH have produced are just as full-throttle. The latest LP Perfume & Piss was mixed by Rancid’s Lars Frederiksen, and released on his band-mate Tim Armstrong’s Hellcat label.
“We’d been talking about this for a few years now,” Abrahall says of Fredriksen’s involvement.
“But with our schedule and Rancid’s schedule we could never be in the same place at the same time to actually do it. So, when we finished recording, we did a final mix of roughly how we wanted it to sound. And then we sent an external hard-drive over to the ‘States, and then Lars did the final mix. And then as he did it, track by track, he’d email me the finished version for our approval.”
Finally, one of the most confusing aspects of the band’s existence – even among fans – has been their use of duel names: GBH, and, for a time, Charged GBH. Abrahall seems completely happy to explain.
“Well, when we first started, we were just called GBH,” he points out.
“And then, as we started playing shows around England, people would say ‘oh, there’s a band from London called GBH, there’s a band from Bristol called GBH.’ So we did try and change our name, but it didn’t work.
“So then we just added the ‘Charged’ bit to distinguish ourselves if there was another band. And then there turned out not to be… or, if they did, they never put out any records or anything.
“So we kinda dropped it after a bit,” he laughs.