Article on 'Colors' magazine

Found this fairly informative write up on 'Colors Motorcycle Magazine' here today. It was a very short-lived (1970–71) thing and is really hard to find these days. I've cited this publication before in terms of precedents for Head Full Full of Snakes. In particular the use of color, the kind of dilettante compositional quality, but also the fact it was a very grass-roots publication that aimed to document something that wasn't going to be dealt with elsewhere, and was made by the people who it was also essentially aimed at... rather than a larger publishing company. It didn't last long but was, I believe, influential in 'Easyriders' being started, and obviously that became fairly huge (while turning into something quite different too, in my humble opinion!).

Auckland Star 1960 (Hells Angels Auckland)

I've been stupidly busy lately and also we haven't had the internet on at our new house for the last month, but I'm hoping to get back to some sort of normality soon? I haven't even been riding much, which pretty much makes me feel like life ain't worth living! Anyway while I haven't been posting much here, I have been collecting various bits and pieces that I do want to put on here...

Since beginning this blog a bit over three years ago now one of the things I've become more and more interested in is the history of motorcycling culture in New Zealand, and of course (because it's played such a large role in that here) the evolution of the club/gang scene. I read Jarrod Gilbert's recent book 'Patched' earlier this year and that provides a fascinating account of the early years of the MC scene in NZ, and then the evolution into the more recognizable 'gangs' of the late 70s, 80s, and 90s

Accuracy aside this is an interesting article, largely because it is very different to most other reporting around these clubs at the time (especially internationally). That the reporter has actually visited and talked to the club stands out, as does his framing them in a very positive light – "... a force for good among lads who might otherwise drift into hooliganism and delinquency."
The article is from The Auckland Star, 1960... I can't actually remember where I found this article but it's been sitting here on my hard drive for a while now.

Counterfeit Colours (or, A Great Way To Get Your Ass Kicked)

I just had to put this up here. Can you imagine this!? Madness, total madness. But hey if you're into taking risks and all here's the link – HERE

Forms of Delirium

"We only have a few years to rescue the soul of holy Russia," Alexei Weitz said. "Just a few years." Weitz is a leading member of the Night Wolves.

David Bennewith sent me this link – HERE – to an article by Peter Pomerantsev about a Russian MC called the Night Wolves, or  Nochnye Volki as they'd say it, and their relationship to political power (Putin has had lots of photo ops with them) and the popular media. It's really worth a read, it's quite mad... "In heaven there is more joy at the 1 per cent of sinners who confess than the 99 per cent who have no need of salvation." Yep they're Christian fundamentalists too!

Above: 'The Surgeon', Pres of the Night Wolves hangs out with Vladimir Putin, President of Russia.

Fragments 2

This has been sitting here for a while 'cause I've been wanting to write something decent about it, but I thought I better photograph it and give it back to Jimi, who got it from Trademe recently.

What it is is a photography/poetry magazine published in Christchurch in the late 60s or early 70s I'm guessing, there's no date on it. At the back it says "Published by Fragments and printed by Designprint Press Limited, Christchurch", and that's it for info really.

Jimi's dad may know one of the photographers involved and I was kinda keen to see if I could talk with him about it.

Initially I thought it was a bike mag when Jimi told me about it, but yeah it's not, it's just this issue – issue #2. The first half of the issue is this "photographic essay" of what appears to all be the same MC. Mostly patches aren't shown but there's an Epitaph Rider in there on the fold out poster that comes with it. I presume they're all Christchurch based?

It'd be cool to know more about this as the design and printing are noteworthy for it's time too. I have to admit I'm not as interested in the poetry part (which I haven't reproduced here), but it is interesting that someone wanted to put all this stuff together? I've been reading the new book on gangs here, 'Patched', and in it the author talks about the relationship between the early MCs here and the hippy counter-culture movement. I wonder if this is an example of that kind of cross-over? It'd be good to get a date on this sucker!?

Robin Morrison Highway 61 photos

I found these photos by NZ photographer Robin Morrison on the Auckland Museum website, here and here respectively. I was working on something else entirely when these came up, not even motorcycle related. These photos, and certain other things that have come up recently in regard to issue #2 of head Full of Snakes, have made me realise how impossible it is to look at the history of motorcycling in NZ without talking/thinking about the motorcycle clubs/gangs that were such a big part of the culture for quite a while. Anyway I'm really interested in what Robin Morrison was doing with the Highway 61s here. Did he do a whole project on them? Had he seen Danny Lyons book? No doubt. Has anyone seen anymore of these? 

New Zealand MC 'calling cards'

 

Jesse Schrader sent me the link to these a little while back. They're all from Cam Stokes website here. I'd put some examples of the same thing from some American clubs/gangs up here last year (see em here), and Stuart and I had used these as a point of departure for our design of HFoS #1, most obviously the cover. They're interesting things these cards. I don't totally understand the point of them, are they like business cards? Seems strange when you're trying to essentially operate 'outside' the law, or 'undercover' in some way? Actually it has just occurred to me that when I joined the Norton Owners Club they sent me very similar cards. They had they same sorta line like "You have just met ______" and the bit there where you are supposed to out your own name. The point though with these cards is, I think, to help spread the word about the club and to maybe attract new members. Why would a 1% outsider club wanna do this? Maybe they just liked having cool cards... I can get that. Stuart and I made some for ourselves (see em here). I particularly like the Vikings one, although the Hell's Angels one with it's "You have just been seduced by..." is pretty good too. I'd never realised until seeing this stuff either, that the in the Highway 61 logo the skull is actually eating the road.

London Hell's Angels 1973

Stuart sent me a link to this a little while ago. It's pretty interesting when viewed in comparison with the NZ one made at roughly the same time (which I posted earlier here).

Good viewing as a precursor to 'Antarctic Angels and the Unknown Blues' which is showing tonight in Christchurch! 7.30pm at The Brewery in Woolston. See ya there...

Together with their biker mates the Antarctic Angels, Unknown Blues thrilled and terrorised Southland audiences in equal measure. Featuring all the Unknown Blues band members and members of the Antarctic Angels, Simon Ogston's 52-minute documentary tells the complete story of the band and the biker gang for the very first time.

Christchurch - Wednesday Sept 26 & 27, 7:30pm, Cassels Brewery (followed by Rumble & Bang"/"Gone With The Weird")

TRAILER:

Late 60s / early 70s NZ biker doco (mainly Hells Angels)

 

Thanks to James McNaughton for sending me this link. I'd heard about this doco but hadn't seen it yet. Watched it lastnight, definitely worth a look. These guys were famously the first legitimate Hells Angels chapter outside the US. This NZ On Screen website is pretty good – a few other bike docos too, like the Britten one and also the Kim Newcombe one!
 

Antarctic Angels and the Unknown Blues

Dylan Herkes had told me this was in the making, and now, it seems, it is out! (Funny cause we were just looking at old photos of the Antarctic Angels HQ on Saturday!)

"Together with their biker mates the Antarctic Angels, Unknown Blues thrilled and terrorised Southland audiences in equal measure. Featuring all the Unknown Blues band members and members of the Antarctic Angels, Simon Ogston's 50-minute documentary tells the complete story of the band and the biker gang for the very first time. Email simon@bellbirdpictures.co.nz for a DVD copy."