Museum Monday: Notes From Martin

EXTREMITIES FAQ:

Q1: When do GA tickets go on sale?

A1: I think Tuesday this coming week direct from Reggies

Q2: How much are GA tickets? And how many GA will be available?

A2: GA will be $65, maybe 150 tickets available.

Ultra VIP tickets are low (less than 10)! There are still some VIPs, too. The venue is PERFECT for this with an amazing sound system, balcony and a great staff, but capacity is just 400

Q3: Why would I want Ultra VIP?

A3: Well, seated balcony is a reason for sure, and all of the other stuff. There is a small seated area to the right hand side of the stage, but that’s GA and not guaranteed.

Q4: Is anyone else going to join the Extremities lineup?

A4: Quite possibly! This album has been very important to a lot of people who are coming out to attend – they might end up on stage or just absorbing it all!

Q5: 3 Who is in the lineup now?

A5: Myself, Layla Royale (cello) Tara Busch (I Speak Machine) Justin Pearson (The Locust) Randy Blythe (Lamb Of God) Orville Kline (Pigface) Steven Seibold (Damage Manual/Hate Dept) Steve Silver and more 

Q6: Is there an opening band?

A6: We are looking at this now! Steve Silver (who used to badly tour manage us) will be telling stories, I’m planning one of my ‘memory’ talks with slides from this era, too. There might be a dj. 

Q7: What is the idea behind this?

A7: As you can see in the email I sent (below), a number of things happened to push the album into my head earlier this year. It hasn’t been played in 33 years (apart from Money and Beautiful Dead at some Killing Joke shows). I wanted to celebrate it, and honor those of us no longer here. The fact that this is happening just feet from where we rehearsed, made scenery, hung out and set fire to cash registers – is just the icing on the cake.

Q8: You know you can’t replace Geordie right?

A8: Wouldn’t even attempt to, he is irreplaceable (and Raven), but if you listen to Steven Seibold’s playing on Damage Manual Limited Edition – you’ll know that he is the right person for this. 

Q9: What’s dress rehearsal, people tuning up and making mistakes?

A9: Ha! Probably! One of the reasons I love our events at Reggies is that they GET US! Dress rehearsal happens on Thanksgiving Day, here. For those of you traveling from the UK, that’s Thursday the 27^th. It was actually one of my favourite parts of the 2016 Pigface events we did. Kind of a great show (hopefully), but a bit looser as we tweak things out, and a hang. There will be Thanksgiving dinner, too, although I’m not sure if that’s included or a little extra. The merch booth will be up for this, too, and maybe some pop ups from the museum. Admission is included in your Ultra VIP! 

Q10: I love the idea of $35 in coupons for merchandise – but what do you have?

A10: There will be specific event merchandise and most of the museum gift shop too with vinyl, shirts, art prints, books and more!

Q11: What the fuck is a walking tour?

A11: I know, unusual to include in a gig package, but the blocks around Reggies are rich with post punk/industrial music history – so we will have a wander!

Q12: Is there anything else planned for this week that you haven’t mentioned yet? 

A12: Yes!!

Q13: We just bought VIP – is it still possible for us to come to dress rehearsal – is there a separate ticket

A13: Possibly! The last thing I want is for people to come in from out of town and be sitting in a hotel room while we are just down the street – so maybe – we will see!

Q14: Do VIP and Ultra VIP have to be paid in full?? 

A14: NO! You can split your total into 4 easy payments either with afterpay or PayPal’s Pay Later feature at checkout! 

Q15: Can we bring this to Wolverhampton?

A15: As much as I’d love to be down the street from my mums, this is just a Chicago thing. It is such a huge logistical and emotional undertaking – not to mention I need to be careful with my body (except behind the kit) I hope you understand! 

 

also, FUCK YEAH!!!

HERE WE GO

Right after Geordie passed, I gritted my teeth and decided to go down to the basement and print some shirts, crank some KJ LOUD, and work my way through it and turn the energy into some ART. It did not work like that at all. I made it about 30 seconds and just sat and cried. Over the last two years, I’ve stumbled into bits and pieces. Playing the demos Geordie and I did with Steve Albini at the Museum for interested fans, I realized, “damn, this was me, Geordie, and Steve, and it’s just me now…” That was a moment. And, those of you who have followed my posts or been to the Museum know how connected I was to Raven. That rhythm section thing.

So, I came back to the Extremities album in Feb of this year. I thought I’d listen to a couple of songs. Bang! Termite Mound really got me, I went to sing along (I used to do backups with Jaz) and ‘termite’ stuck in my throat. Ha ha ha. I was slightly astounded by the beats my furious 35-year younger self conjured up. I’ve spent much time dismissing my writing/drumming role just saying that the album was a ‘knife fight’ to get loud, inspirational Killing Joke to the front past the OTG remains. Me and Geordie vs the world for a bit before Raven rejoined. But I listened to the drums and the songs. Found myself dancing in the studio. Breathless of course. I’m old AF. And listened some more.

Then, I thought it would be a good idea for me to play along to some songs – after all, I am a drummer, right? Something strange happened that maybe some people can explain in different ways, but I will go ahead and try. When someone looks at a photo, video or an object that reminds you of someone/something important – then that hits your brain and does whatever it does with memory circuits etc. but, when I drummed the beats that I hadn’t in 33 years, it was like a different, physical, back channel? Visceral pipeline into the space we made the music in? It was JARRING, and I cried a lot, unexpectedly. I think I broke a finger too, which felt totally correct. We were warriors then for sure so it was just like, yeah, deal with it. That was Feb (I posted about it a little) and the germ of an idea started to form. Robby and the staff of Reggie’s have always been super supportive of me (for years and years and years now like family) and conversations with them made this a no brainer. Nicely oversize sound system for the room, balcony, places for friends and family, accessible, A dress rehearsal the day before. And BANG! We put this together. Then, you just fall back into the universe and see what happens.

I chatted with Randy on his recent book tour and asked if he was familiar with the album. He opened his new book to the ‘Money Is Not Our God’ chapter. Next up a few things happened, if you listen to Steven Seibold playing guitar on the Damage Manual Limited Edition you know that there was only one choice of guitarist for this if it was to go forwards. Justin Pearson’s concern to honor Paul correctly on the bass guitar (then the arrival of Paul’s bass case at the museum from the UK via Texas) sealed that. Then I see that Steven was at The Anson Ford Theater Extremities show in 1989/1990? (one of my most favorite) being led onstage by a phalanx of ski torch bearers in the open-air venue. Triumphant. KJ AF.

Then some other things; I’d forgotten that Invisible used to be at 2024 south Wabash, just FEET from Reggie’s, I printed the MINOG backdrops there with Steve Silver and Matt Schulz, Paul Raven spray painted them, we rehearsed there, Jaz poured gasoline all over a cash register under the L tracks and set it on fire stopping the L trains and alerting the cops. PERFECT. Steve Silver walked me across to the sketchiest Western Union EVER to pick up a $10k deposit from a promoter. Steve says he will tell some stories, I will too during the evening. Then, for some reason I crossed paths with the ferocious Tara from I Speak Machine, Leyla Royale will join on cello, and Orville Kline at the sampler and boom!

So here I am once more, falling backwards into the universe. My body is older, by far. I have a new hip that seems to be ok now. I dropped a lot of weight this last year, maybe 50lbs. My hands hurt. A lot. My legs? We will see. My heart? Full. Listening to the album a lot has made me fall in love with it all over again, or, maybe more accurately, for the first time. It was a painful, triumph when we made it, our bodies too tensed as we pushed through the wall, to relax and absorb where we were. Now, I can listen and feel it. And try my best to honor it. 

I am a drummer, 
I love Killing Joke 
and what we did. 

So, here we go. 

Martin Atkins