Sandman interview

Sandman Interview, November 2005

Jonny (the man behind gojonnygogogogo, and half of Strangeways) has been running a club night in Leeds for over four years now, and has been keeping himself busy, putting on DIY gigs, alldayers and weekenders for over three years. Due to a diabolical clash of diaries, Tom Goodhand and Jonny never sat down comfortably to chew the cud over a pint, but instead conducted an interview across the ‘tinterweb to find out what Jonny’s been gogogogoing on about.

What first got you interested in music?

When I first heard the London Boys at a School Disco in 1985. It progressed from there. I was always a bit of a square and developed late musically, which is probably why I’m completely obsessed with music now and go to about eight to ten gigs a month. The last 2 weeks for instance have included Kimya Dawson, O Fracas, Why?, The Fall (twice), The Rakes, Champion Kickboxer and Deerhoof.

Why did you pick the names gojonnygogogogo and Strangeways (obvious Smith’s reference aside)?

The Strangeways name was chosen by Hans who I run Strangeways with (he also runs Polaroid), I wanted to call it ‘gobbledeegook’ until I learnt that it was politically incorrect. The name gojonnygogogo is a longer story. Basically between 1996-1999 there was an annual alldayer in Sheffield called ‘Pop-a-go-go’ featuring bands like Yummy Fur, Chemistry Experiment and Milky Wimpshake, which I used to love going to. I decided to organise an alldayer in Leeds myself in 2002 featuring all my favourite bands of the time, and was considering the name ‘Jonny-a-go-go’-a direct rip-off, until Christine from Milky Wimpshake pointed out that it sounded like the popular card game from The League of Gentlemen ‘gojonnygogogogo’ - and the name stuck.

What is the music policy at Strangeways?

Currently I’m playing tunes by The Fall, Kraftwerk, Kaito, Le Tigre, ESG, Blondie, The Cribs, Herman Dune, Sonic Youth, Erase Eratta, The Cramps, Neu!, Devo… that kinda thing. I’m quite old school whereas Hans is into similar stuff but he’s more likely to play some electro or punky DFA type stuff. The most played Strangeways tracks to date must be Le Tigre’s ‘Decepticon’, Jonathan Richman’s ‘Lesbian Bar’ and The Fall’s ‘Totally Wired’.

What are your fondest memories of gojonnygogogogo gigs thus far?

The gojonnygogogogo alldayers/weekenders are always a lot of fun, its fun compiling the line up and waiting to see who replies and agrees to play. At gojonnygogogogo 3 I had Herman Dune, Jeffrey Lewis and Hyper Kinako, some of my favourite bands at that time so that was amazing. My fondest memories would have to be the ‘Nonsense Nights’ that I do at the Brudenell Social Club, these have been hilarious. I try to arrange a series of entertaining bands, like Devil’s Jukebox, Plouf!, The Ape Drape Escape, who add a sense of cabaret to the proceedings. I then add a host of fun activities to keep the audience entertained between bands. This has included raffles, bingo, joke telling competitions, pass the parcel, musical statues, musical chairs and my favourite thing ever: Pie Eating Competitions. This involves four heats of apple pie eating (each heat includes five contestants lined up in front of the stage) and usually the audience chanting ‘Pie Pie Pie’ and whoever eats it the quickest gets through to the final. Last time the Prize was £50 cash. I have also tried mince pie eating competitions at Christmas, which was a giggle. But beyond doubt the most fun I’ve had in the last five years is watching a Pie Eating Competition. Another fond memory was when The Futureheads played at Strangeways, when it was at Think Tank (the sound was dreadful). After the gig I was DJing and played their debut 7”which Id’ just purchased. I remember laughing with the band as no-one was dancing and they were probably thinking “shit this isn’t a good sign”.

Do you think it’s important to gigs to be more than just a few bands playing, one after the other?

Not really, I do plenty of gigs like that. I only add extra entertainment at certain gigs, usually at the Brudenell and usually on a Saturday night, probably because the audience is more likely to be pissed at the weekend and more receptive to the fun activities on offer. I mean who’s going to want to play musical statues at the packhorse on a Monday night acoustic gig?

What’s the best gig you’ve ever put on?

Oohh best gig, now that’s a difficult question. I’d say my Christmas gig last year with Printed Circuit, downdime and Plouf! was pretty special - which included mince pie eating competition, and a food fight during Printed Circuit, for which I had to apologise afterwards for. Other than that I remember putting on the Cribs, Zombina and the Skeletones and The Real Losers at The Packhorse, which was ace as I was well into those bands at the time. For anyone who hasn’t seen the Real Losers they are the most Nutzoid band I have ever seen.

Do you think that all dayers ask an awful lot of the audience, having to watch bands all day?

Depends who’s organising it and the bands playing. I’ve been to loads of great alldayers and festivals and can watch bands for fourteen hours a day without getting bored. If the promoter puts on a varied and interesting line up and people pace their drinking then spending all day watching bands should be a joy.

How do you pick the bands that play your gigs/all dayers/ get on your Cds/vinyl?

Gig wise I listen to demos, mp3’s, go to see lots of bands live and invite bands I like to play a gojonnygogogogo gig. I email bands from all over the world, which is why I’ve put on so many New York bands such as Kimya Dawson and Jeffrey Lewis; we usually get on well which is why I’ve put them on again and again. Lots of bands aren’t willing to play, as they want set guarantees rather than a percent of profits, which I can’t afford and indeed wouldn’t be comfortable doing. I try to avoid agents at all costs. For my records I just ask my favourite bands who I’ve put on to contribute tracks. I’ve had 5 releases to date and the first 3 have sold out already so it’s going reasonably well.

Do you find it difficult being a DIY promoter in Leeds when you have to promote against people with much more (or indeed, any) financial backing?

Yeah its getting much more harder in recent years. When Strangeways started there weren’t that many alternative indie night about (we’re branched out a lot now and can more accurately be described as indie/electro/synth/punk/pop ) but now there are loads of nights in a similar ilk, many of which don’t last more than a few months but Leeds is definitely a saturated market for alternative/indie nights. If Strangeways was just starting now rather than 41/2 years ago I don’t think it would be viable. I think people should think carefully before starting a new night and look into what already exists and question whether or not they are just duplicating what’s already out there.As for gigs, it’s the same issue, there’s lots more venues now putting on gigs than a few years ago, which means the shops have less poster/flyer space and therefore its harder to promote gigs (I should add that Jumbo Records have been incredibly supportive of my gigs and I think offer fantastic coverage of what’s going on in Leeds musically). I can’t afford to have posters all over town, but hopefully people who are in to genuinely alternative music (rather that what MTV2 and NME tells people is alternative) will hunt out the alternative music scene and spend time looking through flyers/posters and local press. I’m so bored of bands being hyped up before they even release a single and people swarming to their gigs before they even heard the bands single, because the media tells them to. Why don’t the media just give bands time to develop? My message to the kids is this: “Visit a range of venues, look through shops flyers/posters, listen to mp3s on web sites and decide what bands you like for yourself”.

Is there a ‘DIY Scene’ in Leeds?

yes, very much so. DIY is best defined as follows (taken from www.copsandrobbers.net, a monthly guide to DIY gigs in Leeds) “money made from the gigs is used to cover the costs of the bands and the promoters costs. These events don’t exist to make a profit for anyone involved, they are organised for the sheer pleasure and enjoyment of playing, organising or attending a gig. In a society where most people are happy to be spoon-fed their entertainment, accept the prevailing tastes when choosing what music they consume and expect all artists/promoters to crave fame and fortune this may seem like an odd concept. As far as Cops and Robbers is concerned though organising or playing a gig for the pleasure of itis the only reason to do it. “ If you visit the web site there’s loads of gigs on each month, and it’s where I list all my gojonnygogogogo gigs. There seems to be more bands each month so there’s obviously a DIY scene in Leeds. There are lots of other DIY events other than gojonnygogogogo / Cops and Robbers in Leeds, but you’ll have to hunt them out yourselves.

What do you like most about the DIY Scene then?

The fact that people put on gigs for the love of music and not to make a profit. I know loads of people who play / put on / come to gigs and I really enjoy meeting and talking to people and sharing the enjoyment of the bands together, and the general atmosphere -particularly at the Brudenell - provides a real sense of belonging to me personally. I also enjoy the heckling, favourites include “not bad”, “oh yeah”, “that’s more like it” and “don’t give up your day job”, as well as the recently fashionable “stonking”.

Why is it so important to you that the Brudenell stays open?

To me the Brudenell Social Club represents everything that’s great about Leeds’ DIY music scene. Its cheap to hire, a fantastic venue inside (its basically like the Phoenix in Phoenix nights for anyone that’s not been), the sound’s good (I always work with Moz and Stu who are well integrated in the DIY scene and therefore share the same views on music). It’s currently run by Pat and Nathan - and other friendly staff - who I’ve developed a sound friendship with over the years are who are always extremely supportive and helpful. The venue seems to attract nice mannered audiences where everyone’s welcome and there’s a diverse range of music/cabaret on offer.

How far are you away now from raising all you need to do the work?

We have raised over £6000 which should be enough for the doors and delivery, but there is work to be done to allow installation. Any money after that will be used wisely to update the current facilities in the music room. Once the doors have been implemented we will then carry out further tests to see where else the sound could be leaking.

Has people rallying around to ‘Save The Brudenell’ helped create a sense of community?

The fundraising has definitely brought people from different musical scenes together physically, although from the feedback I’ve received its highlighted how diverse the scene is in Leeds and how far apart promoters are in the style of bands they put on - which is a healthy thing I think. The events committee (which I am part of) really appreciate everyone’s support with the fundraising, especially the bands that have played for free and the public for their donations- thank you!

Which recent bands are your particular favourites at present (both locally and nationally)?

Locally: QuackQuack, Sailors, downdime, Woman, Hands and Fingers, The Cribs, That Fucking Tank, Printed Circuit, Bilge Pump, Benjamin Wetherill and ¡Forward, Russia!Nationally: International Karate Plus, The Ape Drape Escape, The Yell, The Hipshakes, Smokers Die Younger, Umlaut, The Lovers and Kaito.

Finally, what are your longterm ambitions?

I’d like to organise an outdoor festival, release more records, appear in the Guinness book of records (I’ve got some ideas in mind but its top secret), grow a 6” beard and to do at least 37 gojonnygogogo festivals before I retire or become bankrupt.

To get a better idea of what gojonnygogogogo and Strangeways are all about, why not try heading down to one of these events? 12/10 gojonnygogogogo 7 at Josephs Well (theres lots about this on the web site) 13/10 Jeffrey Lewis + Schwervon at Brudenell Social Club Strangeways is the 2nd Friday of the month at Bar PhonoIf anyone would like to email/comment/join the mailing list please email : jonny@gojonnygogogogo.co.uk or visit the web site at www.gojonnygogogogo.co.uk