1. Terminal Rage - I like the name, it is what punk should be all about, a constant fire in the belly.  Give us an insight into the band, how it came to be, its style, ethos and ambition?

Bob (TR drummer) and I got together, decided we wanted to make a bit of noise and both having similar views of politics & the shysters that live off it, the first two songs we wrote were about hatemonger Nigel Fucking Farage and that soulless bastard Ian Duncan Smith. I've always been a teeth-grinder - an angry git, so when we started to chuck band names about, that one just stood out.

We write & play what comes our way - Bob & Raph are slightly more level headed than me - my songs are always the angry, ranting type, and I think our different approaches works for us. Ambition? We just want to enjoy it all - three mates having a good time, doing what we love and making some great friends along the way.

2. The fractured state of the punk scene - thoughts please?  Many scenes within one pot is a good thing for me but the nooks and crannies that become too insular are a disease - how do you view it all?

Ah, it's frustrating - Punk for us is a "do what works for you, no judging others" environment and I love the friendships, the caring & sharing that goes on. Punk is known for attracting those who don't feel they fit in to modern society, so why on earth some of those same people then want to create boundaries is beyond me. Just be nice, you wankers!

3. If you had to sell your outfit with one song which one would you pick?  What single blow encapsulates the vibes of Terminal Rage?

 The title track from our upcoming EP called "Where's Our Democracy?" It's just about those of us for whom the voting system doesn't work. Our sort of candidates (those that  give a fuck, rather than want to be a part of the system) never get elected, they aren't part of the mainstream, so we never get a voice. We are from Herefordshire, it has two Tory MPs, the left wing vote doesn't even scratch the surface in any election at any level, so what's the point in voting. It just takes you more and more towards the Anarchist's view - all parties are crap as they all buy into the political game. Add to that we have a Prime Minister who nobody voted for........what a crock of piss is that - I'm ranting now aren't I? Ha, ha.

4. Cuckoo Von Vestibule has designed the first blow-up cupboard that comes with a free DIY rhythm mag, a bag of termites and a Bobby Braden's Toss-o-Matic plastic hand?  The question is:- how would you climb a B&Q warehouse using the said items if the weather was pretty darn poor?

We are all knackered - years of abusing our admittedly very pretty bodies, we'd never get off the ground. We would park ourselves under the cover of the burger van in the carpark and flick the termites at the Volvo driving DIYers. I'm also partial to blow-up cupboards, so you might find me sleeping in it.

5. Back to the band name, 'Terminal Rage' - do you think there is a lack of rage in the scene today, a complacency that is diluting the force of punk and how it can make an ultimate difference?

It's a much more diverse scene isn't it? Back in the dreaded olden days, Punks wouldn't write many "love songs", but times have changed and there's more of the sensitive type of song about. It's not wrong, it's just not what I get from punk. The tune can be as good as you can get, but if the lyrics don't mean anything to me, I'm a bit lost. There's still anger aplenty in the scene, it gets lost a bit by some of the more popular, more accessible or fashionable elements. Just means we have to shout louder. The songs we write come from the heart, so when I look like I am raging on stage, it's real - we fucking hate the injustice in the world. The weak being picked on, the growth of so much unneeded, unused wealth by / for so few people -  I just can't get it into my head that once you are comfortably off money-wise, you still want more and you want that more by taking from those that have little already. If you've got enough money for 10 pints in a night, will you be hurting if you only have 8 pints and give the other two away?

6. What is your local scene like mate - any faces and places worth mentioning and how have you seen things change over the recent years?

It's a growing scene in Hereford, Dave. We have a great venue called the Booth Hall that is always up for any gig we look to put on - incredibly supportive, but as is the case everywhere, they struggle to make ends meet. But they have to survive. Without them, we will be back to local bands playing once a year in one of the pubs who are expecting us to play covers of the Undertones. There are some great local bands too: The Youth Within, Brassick, Purple Flavoured Death, Alvin & the Angry Barrels, Freeborn Rising, Hide Your Eyes.......the list goes on. Check out Hereford's Underground Revolution - voluntary promoters who regularly put punk gigs on.

7. The techno-age is a punk nightmare for me as I see us all as slaves to an electro-system that isn't punk at all but is the only way we can operate if we have to keep the scene moving.  It doesn't sit well with my punk gut but options are limited?  What do you think about the World Wide Web and its effect on our musical mire?

Bitter-sweet. It makes music and bands so much more accessible, but with it comes a shed load of noise - so sometimes it is difficult to get heard. But modern technology does mean we can record ourselves very cheaply, so those of us who prefer the DIY punk ethic, it helps us.

8. Egg Custards - can they be used as phone systems to contact the long dead hermaphrodite Blanche Peach or would you stick to the regular way of contacting the dead using a piece of flex and a Chocolate Eclair?  To add, if you could get in touch with Ms Peach what would you say to her?

I prefer the traditional flex approach, always worked for me. What would I say? Where's my favourite tub of English Lavender talc gone? She promised to give it back, the lying tosspot. The band chaffing rate is very high without it. Plus egg custards look like sick in pastry - stay away from that stuff.

9. The best and worst of the Terminal Rage existence thus far please - be honest, the good, bad and ugly please?

The good is easy - finding three blokes who want to do the same thing, in the same way, and that sits with our own personal lives so well and no egos. 

Bad - Having to re-record our EP - it cost us £150 and will cost us again. We never saw the problem coming, but the recordings are tainted by things out of our control, so we've binned them - horrible experience.

Ugly? Everything we do is ugly. Fuck pretty stadium rock, radio-friendly music - it's just another way to oppress us, drug us so we don't look up and see we are being royally shagged by the Establishment. Ugly is good.

10. The construction of a song is fascinating - how do you lot get your end product finalised and onto the stage for us salivating punters to contemplate?

Keep it simple. One of us comes up with a riff, or a drum beat and we just prat around with it until we either get bored or we get excited. Once you've seen us, you'll probably think we bin the exciting and keep the boring songs, but when you hear us singing "It's a fucking class crime....." on the latest Disney sound track with Phil Collins, you'll know we are the new Mariah Carey gym wear and you'll be wanting our pants.

11. Light Bulb Love - are you a 50 watt man or do you like the new Eco-Friendly Globes with that long, dull glow factor? 

We have no idea where we are going so we hate low-glow lightbulbs - .just another way to keep us in the dark. Me paranoid?

12. And of course to the last question - the time when you need to drop your pants, molest your promotional privates and spurt out some infecting seeds that will impregnate us with intrigue and curiosity - 1, 2, 3...and....wank!

No pissing competitions. Hopefully, our message means something, but if not, just get off on the angry faces we pull. Either way, please buy our EP "Where's Our Democracy?" when we finally release it - it's cost us double, so we aim to make it twice as wank.

 

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