Every week, we’ll be posting a new illustration by David Lester. The Mecca Normal guitarist is visually documenting people, places and events from his band’s 36-year run, with text by vocalist Jean Smith.
In the mid-’80s, David gave me a lot of great albums by bands he’d found out about when he squatted in London in the very late ’70s. I was introduced to politically charged music by way of punk rock. X-Ray Spex, Slits, Poison Girls, Raincoats, Au Pairs and Crass. Most of the bands he listened to had women in them. Exceptions were the Clash, Sex Pistols and Gang Of Four. Bands played benefits and rallies. Rock Against Racism, Rock Against Prisons, Anti-Nazi. I think he saw Gang Of Four on the back of a flatbed truck at a No Nukes rally.
“Revolution#Pine” from The Family Swan (Kill Rock Stars, 2002) (download):
