COMMUNAL LEISURE Issue 4 Free

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COMMUNAL LEISURE Issue 4 Free
Issue 4

COMMUNAL
 LEISURE
    Free
COMMUNAL LEISURE Issue 4 Free
COMMUNAL LEISURE Issue 4 Free
HELLO
     ...and welcome to the fourth       clever here about the way this pan-     for those of us in the ‘precariat’
issue of Communal Leisure; the          demic has had complex effects           who feel (perhaps subconsciously)
open submission, free newspaper         on our ideas about work, leisure        wedded to such markers.
for music, art and politics in Glas-    and the state - but to be honest             We chose to write this issue
gow.                                    we’re all just really exhausted and     in the midst of the pandemic part-
                                        spent. Maybe better is to recom-        ly because it felt hard to find other
      Can you believe we launched       mend three books that came out          ways to get together, share ideas
Issue 3 in March 2018?! That time,      in the last three years that speak      and enjoy the often fleeting (but no
we had a party in the upstairs of       to a particular idea of organising      less affecting) relationships that
McNeils Bar, with various friends       that could inform such a discus-        come from gigs, clubs, readings
playing tunes: Cucina Povera,           sion: AngryWorkers, ‘a small po-        and hanging out (in groups of more
Horse Whisperer, Boosterhooch,          litical collective’ (who featured in    than 4). For some of us, the strange
Quinie, DJ Lanyard, plus some           previous issues of Com Les) who         new work-setups of the pandem-
lads downstairs banging out coun-       published Class Power On Ze-            ic left us with time we wanted to
try rock covers. It’s hard not to get   ro-Hours, an amazing insight into       use, or experiences of work and
nostalgic.                              six years of workplace struggle in      ‘culture’ that we wanted to reflect
      This time, we’re still in the     logistics and warehouse spaces on       on. We hope you can find within
midst of a ‘lockdown’ we’ve all ex-     the outskirts of London; Feminism       these pages some of the forms of
perienced in a differentiated but       Interrupted, Lola Olufemi’s in-         connection, amusement and (may-
familiar blur - whether grafting in     credible and very readable vision of    be even!) transcendence that such
essential work, blurring all divi-      a feminism that fights back against     activities have often offered. Or at
sions of the domestic / workplace,      structural violence and injustice,      least, it’s something to pass all this
furloughed but nowhere near at          and D. Hunter’s Chav Solidarity,        time we’ve not really worked out
‘leisure’- anxiously waiting to         an autobiographical meditation on       how to process.
see what will come from the next        trauma, class and identity that was          Either way, let’s all look after
round of ‘easing’.                      produced as part of the Class Work      each other, and maybe see you in
      We’d like to apologise to an-     Co-operative project, who also put      some strange pub backroom again
yone who submitted stuff back in        out Lumpen, a Journal of Poor and       sometime soon, or for another is-
2018, or this time a few months         Working Class writing.                  sue of this very infrequent maga-
back, for being so slow. It turns out         Such works unsettle a certain     zine (in 2024? Or before!).
doing a magazine in our spare time      variation of ‘leftism’ that tends to-
with everyone unpaid isn’t always       wards the academic, the exclusion-      Take care, Communal Leisure
that sustainable.                       ary and the ‘culturally superior’
      We’d wanted to say something      - whilst raising serious questions      Illustration O.P
COMMUNAL LEISURE Issue 4 Free
LONG LIVE                            like to continue GAS and all that its       green shipping container on 26 Civic
                                            community have built together. They         St, Glasgow G4 9RH. People can sign
     BOABY’S BOTHY                          have an open call-out for groups that       up online to become a member, make
                                            could work independently of current         tool reservations on our website and
Living Rent tenants union have been
                                            GAS crew to take on the lease, insur-       pick them up on a Saturday when we
busy across the city, leading tenant-led
                                            ance and bank account, manage bills,        run a door-stop click and collect ser-
consultation on rent rises, fighting
                                            run the social centre, and take GAS         vice. Currently, we are looking for
cuts to services in their Lanarkshire
                                            on as their own while honouring the         donations to help us to expand the
branch, campaigning for better close
                                            ethos under which it was started and        library into a wider group of objects,
cleansing in Govanhill, campaign-
                                            running the space collectively. There       including event & catering equipment,
ing for rent freezes and reopening of
                                            is a timescale of 6 months for this         games, drones, textiles, camping gear,
libraries in Pollokshields (see the ar-
                                            transition (starting January 2021). If      and any other misc stuff that falls into
ticle later in this very issue), fighting
                                            no group is able to take this on, GAS       our laps.!
GHA for new windows to offset terri-
                                            as a space will be closed, but GAS as       With many people using furlough,
ble damp and mould in Castlemilk and
                                            a “spirit” will continue, and maybe         or the long dark nights of 2020 to re-
Knightswood, campaigning against
                                            rise again in another form one day….        paint that DISGUSTING hallway, the
dereliction using a community app
                                            Continued monthly donations will            tool crew have been in high demand.
in Tradeston, and launching a new
                                            help GAS in any potential transition,       As they go onto explain “In Dec-Jan
branch in Partick. At the start of the
                                            and if GAS closes with money to spare,      we took a month out to ensure the
year Wyndford Tenants Union, anoth-
                                            they will donate it to Edge Fund, who       service could be run safely in light of
er Living Rent branch, occupied Colli-
                                            funded them at the start and invest in      the new Covid strain. Now we have
na street aka “the Valley” - vacant land
                                            radical projects across the UK. Email       reopened we want to make sure that
above the Wyndford. They have built
                                            glasgowautonomousspace@gmail.com            the library is serving people primari-
a small hut (Boaby’s Bothy) there and
                                            if you want to discuss the future of        ly within walking/cycling distance of
one person is there at all times. Glas-
                                            GAS. Watch this space!                      us in North Glasgow.” Remember: its
gow City Council aim to sell the land
                                                                                        cool to tool!
to developers, but the union believe it
should be redeveloped using a com-
munity buy-out, to build good quality,
affordable housing. The site has grown                                                      GIVE SOME CASH
and flourished loads since the initial
occupation, with a mural, outdoor ac-
                                                                                              TO SUNNY G
tivities and a flower meadow. Every-
                                                                                        Beloved community radio station Sun-
one is welcome to get involved and
                                                                                        ny Govan are fundraising in the wake
Living Rent are looking for commu-
                                                                                        of limited operating through the pan-
nity members to assist them in their
                                                                                        demic. Sunny G, known for its wide
plans, which if they go ahead, would be
                                                                                        range of incredible community pro-
the biggest ever community buy-out in
                                                                                        jects and radio shows, along with its
Scotland! They need skills and support
                                                                                        infamously banging late-night dance
to achieve this ambitious dream: get in
                                                                                        shows, are looking for donations big
touch with nick.durie@livingrent.org.
                                                                                        and small to help them through. As
                                                                                        they explain: “Since the closure of
                                                                                        our studios in March 2020 as a conse-
       PASSING GAS?                                                                     quence of Covid 19 [...] we were unable
                                                                                        to deliver SQA training, our advertis-
Tradeston’s finest autonomously run              TOOLS APLENTY                          ing and sponsorship income is down
venue, print studio, library, meet-                                                     by approx 70%, we were unable to
ing space and community hub, GAS            Glasgow Tool Library, your friend-          have our regular fundraising gigs and
lease is running out, and COVID has         ly local spot for borrowing tools and       events. This has resulted in a deficit
meant that there isn’t really a GAS         other tool-like things, is expanding!       of approx £20,000.” The team are well
collective anymore and, quote, “ener-       As they explain: “The general prem-         on the way to making that target, but
gy is looooow.” The individuals that        ise of GTL is that we lend tools like a     could do with a boost from any not-
are legally bound to GAS (named on          traditional literary library lends books,   too-skint Communal Leisure readers.
lease and bank account) would like          we try to make projects and hobbies         You can donate to the fundraiser at:
to step down. The lease is under an         more affordable and reduce waste.           https://uk.gofundme.com/f/lets-keep-
individual’s name, and GAS is not a         We are currently open from 11.00-           sunny-g-radio-on-air
legal structure that could take on the      1.00pm on Saturdays (with the hope of       And tune in to listen at 103.5 FM or
new lease itself. GAS is hopeful that       opening another day mid-week come           www.sunnyg.com
there are people out there who would        next month). We are based in the big
DELIVERPOO                                from prisons, whilst supporting those      NO EVICTIONS: TEARS
                                                    affected by the harms of prison and
Rumours abound about human poos                     criminal justice. The group are doing          FOR MEARS
being posted to various businesses in               Prisoner Pen Pal writing, explaining:
                                                    “Glasgow Prisoner Solidarity is a com-     Glasgow No Evictions Network started
the southside area of Glasgow. Appar-
                                                    munity-based group formed to offer         off April with a week of action against
ently some targeted parties fear this is
                                                    non-judgmental support, solidarity         housing company Mears, as part of a
part of an effort to literally shit on the
                                                    and friendship to people in any prison     nationwide week of action protesting
more middle class bougie businesses
                                                    in Scotland. It is launching a pen pal     against the use of institutional accom-
that have opened up in the Queens
                                                    project matching up people inside and      modation and the inhumane treatment
Park vicinity, with one source (who
                                                    outside for monthly letters of mutual      of asylum seekers in the UK.
heard it from a pal) saying they thought
it might be about getting revenge on                support. The project came together
                                                    out of a shared sense that the prison      The network, which supports people
gentrifiers. Less fun for the harried
                                                    system can isolate people and cause        in asylum accommodation in Glasgow
barista who already has a queue of flat
                                                    harm, and a desire to do something to      against evictions, planted a commem-
white afficiados waiting at the door at
                                                    fight this. One member of the group        orative tree and at a vigil for Adnan
opening time to have to deal with bags
                                                    said: “We have no agenda beyond of-        Walid Elbi, Badreddin Abedlla Adam
of shite through the letterbox, but hey,
                                                    fering support, keeping people con-        and Mercy Baguma, who all died in
this is the news not comment section.
                                                    nected to what’s happening in the          2020 while in Mears accommodation
We’ll leave it to you to decide if this is
                                                    world, and learning how people are         in Glasgow. The action comes amidst
an hilarious piece of direct action, a
                                                    getting on inside.”                        increasing scrutiny of Mears’ role in
complex revenge plot, a misspent job-
                                                    GPS is open to new pen pals, and en-       the asylum system, and is organised
bie, or simply made up.
                                                    courages anyone inside who is inter-       as part of a national action alongside
                                                    ested in learning more and potentially     SYMAAG (South Yorkshire Migration
    HERE TODAY, GUM                                 in being matched up to write to this       and Asylum Action Group), Sheffield
                                                    address: GPS Pen Pals, c/o Category        Against Asylum Evictions and MAJF
      TOMORROW                                                                                 Tyneside (Migration & Asylum Justice
                                                    Is Books, 34 Allison St, Glasgow G42
                                                    8NN. Include your name, address and        Forum), in a united display of anger at
Happier news here, from the world of
                                                    prisoner number.”                          the despicable conduct of Mears and
community facebook posts, where a
                                                    The group is also working on research-     other privately contracted companies.
local man was reunited with a lost pair
                                                    ing and building campaigns against         The actions also include a tweetstorm,
of dentures after a walk:
                                                    prison building, and has been writing      banner drops and a satirical property
“FOUND TEETH                                        about policing in schools (see this is-    website drawing attention to condi-
*Update* The lost teeth have been reunited          sue for an article they wrote with the     tions in Mears accommodation which
with their owner in exchange for a bottle of red!   Anti Racist Educator). If you are inter-   can be viewed at: www.asylumland-
Poor guy lost them on his daily walk and has        ested in getting involved with any of      lords.co.uk
been looking for them ever since! Sounds like a     this you can get in touch with GPS via:
joke but I’m dead serious. Thanks ....... commu-                                               Among the groups’ demands are calls
                                                    glasgowprisonersolidarity@proton-
nity for helping reunite an old man with his lost                                              for the Home Office to: allow people
teeth :D”
                                                    mail.com
                                                                                               in the asylum system to live in safe,
                                                                                               own-door accommodation, in the
                                                          PINK PEACOCK                         community; end the use of so-called
                                                                                               ‘institutional’ accommodation such as
                                                              READY                            hotels and barracks; stop running asy-
                                                                                               lum accommodation for private profit;
                                                            TO PLUME                           and fund local authorities to properly
                                                                                               support housing & services for asylum
                                                    pink peacok “a queer, yiddish, pay-
                                                                                               seekers.
                                                    what-you-can café in glasgow’s south-
                                                                                               Find out more and get involved at No
                                                    side” is on its way to being ready to
                                                                                               Evictions’ facebook page: https://www.
                                                    open, with a premises on Victoria
                                                                                               facebook.com/noevictions
                                                    Road and an amazing menu and set
                                                    of events in the pipeline. The cafe has
                                                    been keeping up various activities
                                                    through the Covid-19 crisis, including
                                                    pay-what-you-can meal deliveries for
                                                    the queer community and various on-
                                                    line events, including a peysakh party
                                                    with a ‘fuck visibility’ liberation sed-
                                                    er on trans day of visibility. The cafe
                                                    will provide an alcohol free late-night
     GPS START THEIR                                space with 100% vegan, kosher, and
        JOURNEY                                     halal food, in yiddish and english and
                                                    “focused on solidarity, accessibility,
A new prisoner solidarity group has                 and queer liberation.” Any last bits of
formed in Glasgow, with a particu-                  donation or support would be really
lar focus on supporting people inside               welcome to get the cafe ready for open-
prisons around Scotland, and raising                ing, with a donation page (and shop) on
awareness about the proposed new                    their website: https://pinkpeacock.gay/
HMP Glasgow. The group is meeting
twice a month and welcomes anyone
to get involved if they are interest-
ed in working towards a future free                                                            Illustrations S.M
HOLD TIGHT                                  ravages of colonialism). apocalyptic lit-
                                            erature, writes one author i’ve recently
                                                                                        going to have to report you, it is the
                                                                                        rules after all. What will people say?
                                            been reading, “is resistance literature,    Going to your room, or the break
 TO YOUR                                    a coded attempt to envisage some out-
                                            side in a political present that has be-
                                                                                        room, crying about something that has
                                                                                        no real consequences outside the walls

  DOOM                                      come unbearable, even if it means the
                                            death of the known world.”
                                                   Sometimes i stop and wonder
                                                                                        they have built around you- maybe
                                                                                        only to your psyche.
                                                                                        Certainly there is always someone that
                                            what if i am wrong about climate ca-        you even slightly get along with, but
it’s been a really lonely lockdown. I       tastrophe. i know i’m not. the science      it would cause too much distraction
spent the first lockdown, in the spring,    is in! but i also know that i’ve come to    to keep you together, so you can work
in the countryside where doom and           need my climate doom. capitalism is         different shifts, sit at the other end of
despair suffused everything. i went         unbearable and if it were not causing       the table. Peace restored.
for long walks and cycles, read about       the destruction of the planet im not        Semi-mandatory gatherings that you
states and corporations seizing the op-     sure how i would cope with it. there’s      are forced to attend and mingle with
portunity to increase surveillance and      comfort in knowng that capitalism -         people you wouldn’t even say hello to
policing, and felt a loss deeper than i     work, rent, bills - is not just unbeara-    otherwise- and can only get through
could express in words. this was not        ble for me and most the people i know       when drunk. Trying to avoid the
just about covid; covid was the disas-      but is unbearable for the planet too.       creepy coworker/ uncle who insists on
ter we knew was coming. it was some-        i need to hold tight to my doom and         telling you how things “were better in
what affirming, the veil lifted and the     dispel any notion of a ‘stable future’      my time” and maybe “women have too
brutality of our ruling institutions laid   where i need a ‘stable job.’ there is no    many freedoms nowadays” but he was
bare for all to see. this was the clos-     such future. what a relief.                 just drunk, it was just a joke, please
est i’d felt to the climate catastrophic                                                don’t take it personally- maybe you’re
future we’ve been barreling towards         - JV                                        just too sensitive, too..delicate, have
(personally i mean; climate catastro-                                                   you ever thought about that?
phe is happening every day for some-                                                    And we do care about your mental
one somewhere).                                                                         health, as long as you do not ask us to
       This time around lockdown has
felt different. im not in the country-
side anymore i am back in the city. un-
                                                   MINIMUM                              do anything about it.
                                                                                        Putting on your fakest smile- No wor-
                                                                                        ries, everything is going great, see you
til recently climate doom had retreated
again, as it tends to do, while i am con-            WAGE                               soon or later, thank you for waiting,
                                                                                        thank you, thank you- I forgot about
cerned with how to survive in the city.                                                 what but thank you.
i’ve gotten caught up again in thinking
about jobs, about how i will secure
                                                    FAMILY                              Surely you can do some unpaid over-
                                                                                        time for your family, you are depend-
some kind of stable paid work that will                                                 ent on us.
allow me to eat and rent a decent place     ‘We are all a family here’                  Yes absolutely do not forget to smile,
well into the future. these bread-and-                                                  why would you be sad? Have a treat.
butter anxieties rely on my projection      Classic pep-talk phrase your manager
of the present into the future. i am not    utters; usually when they want you to       - AS
imagining a future absolutely different     do something you are definitely not
from the present, but a future where        getting paid enough to do.
capitalism, as it does, absorbs crisis      At first you think- how can they be so
after crisis and emerges looking more
eternal and inevitable than it did be-
                                            vile and compare work, which more of-
                                            ten than not you hate and only do be-
                                                                                                PENPAL
fore.                                       cause you need to survive, with family,     Lewis Prosser, a 28 year old public sec-
       I hate being anxious about work.     something supposedly safe and warm?         tor worker and freelance florist living
i hate work. i want a world without         But then you think, maybe work is ex-       in the coastal town of Penarth, Wales,
work (you know what i mean). i actu-        actly like family.                          seeks correspondence from like mind-
ally don’t live in glasgow now, i live in   Managers, cruel mother and father fig-      ed individuals. His interests include
a city by the sea. i go to swim as often    ures that “understand you”, “have been      folk crafts, film, gardening and food.
as i can because in the ocean these dis-    in your shoes” and                          Any mail addressed to 7 hill terrace,
mal everyday anxieties wash away and        “just want to be your friend”, while al-    Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan CF64 1HA
i become more attuned to the world          ways telling you what to do and how         will be answered happily and quickly.
roaring all around us. there’s fight in     to behave, expecting nothing less           (Physical post only please)
everything. some people (white men)         than perfect (of course!). Then comes
created this system that forces most of     the unexplainable fear of letting them      Mae Lewis Prosser, gweithiwr sector
us to labor, the world is much bigger       down, even if you do not care. Do it my     cyhoeddus 28 oed a deliwr blodau ar ei
than this system; the past stretches far    way or the highway they think, while        liwt ei hun sy’n byw yn nhref arfordirol
beyond it and there are many presents       telling you they value your opinion         Penarth, Cymru, Yn ceisio gohebiaeth
aside from it. as soon as i get home i’ve   and will take it under serious consid-      gan unigolion o’r un anian. Ymhlith
usually forgotten this.                     eration.                                    y diddordebau mae: crefftau gwerin,
       I decided - just a few days ago -    Can’t leave out opinions about your         ffilm, garddio a bwyd. Bydd post a gy-
that my shortsightedness wouldn’t do.       appearance- it is a given. Maybe about      feirir at 7 Hill Terrace, Penarth, Bro
like i said, i hate being anxious about     your weight or your hair, maybe about       Morgannwg CF64 1HA yn cael ei ateb
work. so i decided to get back into         the way you dress- the fatal mistake        yn hapus ac yn gyflym! (post corfforol
reading ‘apocalyptic literature.’ apoc-     of wearing another brand’s cardigan         yn unig plis)
alyptic literature is nothing new. col-     because you live in Scotland and you
lapse and catastrophe has happened          were cold and your uniform did not          - LP
countless times to countless commu-         have one. I am deeply sorry, but I am
nities already (see, for example: all the
SOME                                     One customer talks at me about how
                                               it is so hard for young people these
                                                                                            top and reading books, pausing occa-
                                                                                            sionally to chuck some pre-prepared
                                               days, how getting a job is so hard.          dishes through a conveyor belt oven
   THOUGHTS                                    What should I do? Why is she telling
                                               me this? She continues the conversa-
                                                                                            food-heater thing. The reason I got
                                                                                            fired that time is too long and compli-

       ON                                      tion on her own, unaided, and begins
                                               telling me about how her son has just
                                               bought a place. She tells me how much
                                                                                            cated to put down in detail here. In any
                                                                                            case, it was a pretty high-octane affair
                                                                                            that involved a full-on shouting match
    RECEIPTS                                   it cost him. He is about my age, she
                                               says. My hands are freezing cold and
                                                                                            with the head chef in the middle of the
                                                                                            restaurant. It was a very cathartic ex-
                                               red raw from the nasty chemicals that        perience.
                                               we use to wash our utensils, and I am
This piece has been written entirely on        utterly exhausted. Another custom-                             ***
discarded receipts while at work. I do this    er - an old university tutor of mine         On my days off I sit in the kitchen and
so that I can get away with writing while      from my undergraduate days - tells me        listen to radio call-ins talk about how
making it seem like I am working. So if this   I should be doing a PhD rather than          they were made
piece seems a bit weird and disjointed and     working here. I am wasted in a place         redundant because of Covid. One man
directionless, that’s why.                     like this, he says. It is just small talk,   begins to cry. Outside grey sleet is
                                               but he should mind his own business.         pouring down from the sky.
                   ***
I work in a fancy deli/wine shop/cheese        ***                                                              ***
shop. We are still open. We never              Yesterday my boss threatened to fire         My boss is back and she is flitting fran-
closed for the                                 me because I told her I have to self-iso-    tically around the shop in really expen-
pandemic. This is because we are clas-         late with my girlfriend for ten days.        sive-looking fitted designer clothing.
sified an ‘essential business’ - because       She says that if I voluntarily go into       I’m not really sure what is going on. I
we sell bread, eggs, flour. Most of what       quarantine then I am voluntarily not         don’t want to speak to her, so I say I
we sell though is about as essential as        going into work. My girlfriend lives in      need to go to the toilet and sneak into
designer clothing: truffle flavoured           the US, and has to return to the UK to       the staff room to make myself a cup of
crisps, expensive charcuterie, pâté,           renew her visa. She has nowhere else         tea. I sit on the toilet and quickly down
insanely-priced fizzy water. Some              to stay, so it isn’t much a decision as it   it, scalding my mouth in the process
customers spend over £100 pounds               is a necessity that she stays with me. It
on such stupid things. Some of them            is also Christmas, and we haven’t seen                         ***
spend it and don’t ask for a receipt.          each other in a year. Give me a fucking      Since March my wages have been
Maybe it is silly to get annoyed about         break.                                       increased to £9 an hour, up from the
things like that but I do.                                                                  previous £8.70 or
                                               I’ve been fired from jobs before. One        whatever it was. I have been told that
                   ***                         place, a chippy (or ‘Fish Bar’, as they      this is as a thank you to all the staff
My Boss, boss (my manager’s boss, the          called themselves), low-key fired me         (‘essential workers’) who have put
shop’s owner) is here and for some rea-        by ghosting me after I fractured my el-      themselves at risk during Covid, but
son she is painting the door frame. I’m        bow. Another place, a posh gastro pub,       the word on the shop floor is that this
unsure why; the shop is very busy, and         fired me because I was terrible at my        generous wage rise will simply mean
the door doesn’t need painted, at least        job. That was fine by me.                    no increase next time the national
according to my standards for doors. It                                                     minimum wage is raised.
is the start of the Christmas rush, our                           ***
busiest time, and the only explanation         The third time I got fired was from                             ***
I can come up with for her door paint-         this dodgy* restaurant over on the           What is the point of this piece? I’m
ing is to make it look to us that she is       west end of town. I had been hired as        not really sure. As I said, it was written
also getting involved in ‘the graft’, as       a chef, which seemed pretty cool at the      entirely on discarded receipts while at
an act of solidarity or something. She         time. But in reality it was unbelievably     work.
is getting in the way.                         dull. I spent most of my days sitting
                                               precariously atop my station work-           - JG
                   ***
SELLING                                     all projected. Homes were supposed to
                                                  be clean, off limits, and obscurely ‘nor-
                                                                                              area looked like a dystopian EasyJet /
                                                                                              Clockwork Orange waiting lounge,
                                                  mal’ – only a false friend could really
      SUNSETS                                     upturn this. The fact that the vast ma-
                                                  jority of people at school had very lit-
                                                                                              all sparkling plastic and glass, huge
                                                                                              brightly coloured sofas, soft lighting,
                                                                                              breakfast stools. But the novelty of the
                                                  tle money was a contributing factor to
                                                                                              ‘home makeover’ was contagious: blow
My first real memory of a reality tele-           such discernments, not a logical issue:
                                                                                              up armchairs and lava lamps became
vision debate is when some friends at             to be a ‘townie’ as we framed it (never
                                                                                              the top items on friend’s Christmas
school started arguing about whether              a ‘chav’, which was only ever used as an
                                                                                              lists, sponge-based wall stencilling
it was ok to piss in the shower. This             accusation that served as a distancing
                                                                                              started happening all over the place. It
was in 2002, after a contestant on Big            tool), meant a conspicuous newness of
                                                                                              didn’t really matter that much of this
Brother Series 3 did just that, much to           clothes, shoes and accessories, along-
                                                                                              interior novelty was, as with the Pop
the annoyance of some other house-                side pride in local and working class
                                                                                              Idol music that soundtracked the era,
mates. I had to look up the episode               roots. A rejection of poshness was so
                                                                                              forged in a sanitised palette of 60s
just now, to check the facts against              implicit it didn’t really need stating,
                                                                                              nostalgia (See Will Young’s Light My
my memory. The main protagonist                   though there was a memorable episode
                                                                                              Fire video, a full Twiggy / Sgt Peppers
was Jonny Regan, a county Durham                  where a history teacher was ripped
                                                                                              homage). Like a Sims expansion pack,
fireman with sopping gel-spiked hair.             apart after telling us that she’d ‘had to
                                                                                              houses started to feel somehow more
The main complainant, Alex Sibley,                come to this school because you can’t
                                                                                              upgradeable and customisable, from
was a male model from Essex (favour-              just do private for a good teaching CV.’
                                                                                              kitchen to teen bedroom, as part of a
ite band? Spiller, of ‘If This Ain’t Love’        At 13, most of us wore fake Rockport
                                                                                              confusing blur of middle class aspi-
fame - yes, it still bangs), who managed          shoes, discount designer brands, and
                                                                                              rationalism. Surly teens could join in
to leverage his anger at ‘piss-gate’ and          ‘Dirty Donnay’ boxer shorts - and oc-
                                                                                              weekend B&Q trips to get the kind of
general fastidious cleanliness into               casionally these were drawn upon in
                                                                                              practice run at adult home-making
an advertising deal with Domestos                 accusations of fakeness, but the point
                                                                                              many of us would go on to be decisive-
bleach, after leaving the BB house.               was more to hold yourself in such a
                                                                                              ly denied through the tight confines of
This was the season where Jade Goody              way that the this didn’t matter, and
                                                                                              perpetual rental tenancies.
first made a dent on the public con-              wouldn’t be challenged in the first
sciousness, ridiculed and belittled by a          place.
                                                                                              The gradual death of interior design
rabid tabloid press. It was also the year                                                     shows (RIP Changing Rooms in 2004,
where the house got split into ‘Rich’             I was never very good at that, and
                                                                                              DIY SOS in 2009) was simultaneous
and ‘Poor’, with housemates separated             found myself around this time making
                                                                                              with the final melting of ‘Cool Britan-
by a see-through Perspex shield, and              the seemingly vast journey from the
                                                                                              nia’ pretences in the years between the
denied or granted luxuries depending              ‘townie’ football pitches at the front of
                                                                                              Iraq War in 2003 and Financial Crash
on each other’s whims. The producers              school, to the small enclave of ‘mosh-
                                                                                              of 2008. House buying shows took on
rebranded this as ‘heaven’ and ‘hell’             ers’ who hid around the back, near the
                                                                                              the ascendancy, location over interi-
in later seasons, presumably because              ice cream van where everyone would
                                                                                              ority. Newlyweds and urban families
pseudo-biblical damnation felt a lit-             spend their entire lunch money on
                                                                                              were replaced with retirees, small scale
tle less on the nose. The writer Jason            shortbread fingers and sour sweets.
                                                                                              property developers and rich people
Okundaye characterises this era as one            Moshers (the equivalent to Sweaties
                                                                                              ‘escaping’ to the country, with our own
in which:                                         in Scotland) cultivated a certain dirti-
                                                                                              ‘generation rent’ condemned to the
                                                  ness, and sometimes this was formed
                                                                                              odd sanctimonious news report. This
   Gameshows, reality television, and com-        through expensive shopping trips to
                                                                                              was also an era when the overt cruelty
   edies were the central genres of main-         fabled epicentres like Leeds Corn Ex-
                                                                                              of early 00s reality TV became a point
   stream public broadcast which offered up       change or Manchester Affleck’s Palace,
   those seeking fame, financial prosperity,                                                  of discussion and push back in itself,
                                                  and the kind of zealous ‘second hand’
   or interventions in their personal lives for                                               though brutally exploitative talkshow
                                                  clothes that hint middle-classness. But
   ritual humiliation to gratify middle-class                                                 formats like Jeremy Kyle barrelled on,
                                                  the moshers were a wide mix of kids -
   attitudes towards lower social classes.                                                    only cancelled in 2019, following the
   Blairism’s regular attacks on ‘scroungers’,
                                                  many just ‘didn’t quite fit in’, or came
                                                                                              suicide of former participant Steve
   ‘chavs’, single mothers, asylum seekers, and   to mosherism through ex-punk rela-
                                                                                              Dymond. The sneering faces of Simon
   hooded youths provided a sheen of respect-     tives, second hand guitars and the fact
                                                                                              Cowell, Anne Robinson and Super-
   ability to TV executives who made a career     that System of a Down were actually
                                                                                              nanny became steadily eclipsed by the
   out of mocking Britain’s most marginalised,    really good. Visiting both mosher and
   allowing it to become a pursuit of popular                                                 sort of hokey, mum-friendly reality TV
                                                  townie friends for sleepovers showed
   culture.                                                                                   epitomised by Bake Off, and the dom-
                                                  how similar most of our houses were,
                                                                                              inance of ‘scripted reality’ shows like
                                                  across the subcultures that I had sus-
We all sensed this during the play-                                                           Geordie Shore and The Only Way is
                                                  piciously traversed. Mosher bedrooms
ground ‘piss-gate’ and Big Brother de-                                                        Essex. The latter provided glimpses of
                                                  might have fraying Kerrang posters
bates, even as crushingly self-involved                                                       domestic space characterised by ‘glam’
                                                  of Brody Dalle from The Distillers,
teenagers. Around this time one par-                                                          and shining newness that tack onto
                                                  or a few postcards demonstrating the
ticularly nasty kid at school told every-                                                     the Changing Rooms era, but appear
                                                  obsession we all had with being ‘ran-
one that on a visit to a friend’s house                                                       to the viewer perfectly formed and
                                                  dom’ (‘The badgers stole my spoons!!’),
he’d found the family’s toilet seat                                                           sculpted, like their inhabitants. This
                                                  but otherwise the interiors were sim-
‘covered in shit’ and they ‘didn’t even                                                       culminated by 2015 with the Love Is-
                                                  ilar. Neat, minimal living rooms and
have a toilet brush’. This was the kind                                                       land villa, an airbrushed vacation-pho-
                                                  kitchens with framed family photos,
of accusation you couldn’t get away                                                           to backdrop full of plush blankets,
                                                  soft palettes of magnolia and beige,
from through denial, or even violence,                                                        pebble fire features and spaces to ‘pull
                                                  concaving sofas, big hefty TVs: this
because it came from the intimacy of                                                          someone for a chat’, in contrast to
                                                  was before flat screens and full IKEA
having let someone into your house in                                                         the way Big Brother designers would
                                                  hegemony. Big brother, along with the
the first place. It built on the general,                                                     build surreal tasks, proximity and ob-
                                                  lurid colours and DIY luxury of Chang-
crushing accusation of being ‘dirty’                                                          stacles into the domestic environment
                                                  ing Rooms, served as a shock to the
and the wrong kind of poor, punctur-                                                          itself. Love Island’s genius is to posi-
                                                  domestic system. BB season 3’s living
ing the visions of material comfort we                                                        tion the drama firmly within debates
around relationship etiquette and per-      tions and allows Adnan to publicise          their bad taste. Selling Sunset is a land
sonal transparency, in opposition to        that fact that he is choosing to live in a   where people argue over the biggest
the overt ridicule and exposed social       constantly ‘on sale’ home, demonstrat-       square footage and longest infinity
difference of earlier eras, reflecting      ing a wealth and domestic liquidity          pool, but its interiors are remarkably
this in the design of the villa. Rather     that is never acted upon. As of January      dull, in that way that only gleaming
than attempting to document a con-          2021 you can still check the Oppen-          white and glass can be. They offer a
structed ‘private’ sphere, Love Island      heim Groups real, functioning web-           compelling mirror to our own hastily
creates a curated, blemish-free public      site and see the house on sale, browse       moveable collections of chipped mugs,
space, with the villa functioning as a      through its pictures, check its pin on       colour-ordered books, and wilting
kind of constant holiday smoking area       the google map. This is a strange prox-      houseplants. Sometime’s the show’s
(cigarettes not allowed), rather than a     imity to reality, completely removed         weirder properties feel haunted by the
home. Viewers are invited to join in,       from most people’s lives, yet available      spirit of an early Big Brother house,
as many thousands apply to do, if they      at a price.                                  with a ‘Real Wives’ splash of bad art
can demonstrate social media ‘graft’                                                     and Gucci bedspreads, but this is usu-
and gym-honed bodies, or even tempo-        There is a peculiar attraction to see-       ally muted or painted over for sale.
rarily through popular tourist ‘Love Is-    ing people choosing to position their        Most have pool gardens straight out
land’ trips to the villa itself. The show   domestic lives as constantly for sale,       of Love Island, and ‘home offices’ that
still seeps into our domestic interior      especially for those of us who don’t         look like a miniture Google HQ: per-
designs, but through vision of polished     get much say in when the next land-          manent vacation, permanent work. In
escapism, rather than processes of          lord house inspection might come.            a distorted symmetry, we watch from
DIY or gradual ‘home improvement’.          This is property, even in its domestic       locked-down bedroom offices, in rent-
                                            form, as pure asset, shorn of the indi-      al flats that always prioritise the next
Such a partial, broad-brush reality         vidualised interior design of the early      buyer, over the current occupant.
TV history leads neatly to
the surprise Netflix hit of                                                                      Great reality television has al-
2020, Selling Sunset. A clas-                                                                    ways invited the viewer to ques-
sic scripted reality setup                                                                       tion ‘what about this is real’?
focused on the statuesque                                                                        Selling Sunset never hides that
employees of LA real estate                                                                      its interiors are completely con-
brokerage firm the Oppen-                                                                        structed, temporary – or that
heim Group, the show adds                                                                        many of its protagonists are pre-
two conceits to the format:                                                                      cariously renting these opulent
people are filmed at work, in                                                                    properties themselves, trying to
contrast to the majority of                                                                      maintain all the right veneers of
‘real wives’ and TOWIE-es-                                                                       wealth and lifestyle. In this way
que shows, and a spotlight                                                                       it feels weirdly resonant of my
is put on the multi-million                                                                      teenage school playground dis-
dollar Hollywood proper-                                                                         cussions, of keeping alive the
ties being put up for sale.                                                                      idea that we all had nice, nor-
These become characters in                                                                       mal homes, without revealing
themselves, referred to by                                                                       what any of us meant by that. A
their ‘price tag’, occasionally                                                                  few of my old friends went on to
linked to human sellers but                                                                      get mortgages, buy houses, get
more regularly anonymised                                                                        married. Many of us continue
through celebrity non-dis-                                                                       to rent, spending as much time
closure agreements. While                                                                        documenting issues of mould,
the fallouts and rivalries of the vari-     00s. The showroom becomes the end            damp and broken furniture, as we do
ous characters make up the drama of         point. This isn’t to romanticise that        on making the spaces we live in feel
the show, it’s the mixture of this with     earlier era, with its ‘wacky’ design and     like a home. No doubt the interiors of
a kind of obscenely wealthy proper-         ‘wacky’ people being subject to all          Love Island, TOWIE and the rest con-
ty speculation that hooks you in. One       kinds of strange cruelties, but to notice    tinue to creep into these attempts to
main job for the estate agents is ‘dress-   a shift in ideas of domestic space, even     personalise and improve these spaces,
ing’ the houses for viewings, with          in the narrowest realms of mainstream        as do the judgements and hang-ups
emphasis put on attracting particular       pop culture. The surreal playgrounds         we have about bringing someone else
clients: ‘bachelors’, ‘young creatives’,    and DIY experiments of early reality         into ‘our’ homes, of being seen in the
‘tech bros’, through the right contem-      TV have been replaced by a homoge-           frame of the domestic. It turned out
porary art, rug placement and orna-         nous kind of wealthy house, more fa-         that most people in that playground
mental vases. Other houses are being        miliarly ‘real’ but more removed than        back in 2002 had pissed in the shower,
sold with owners still present, but must    ever from the limited housing options        and I’m sure still do. The overt cruelty
be presented as similarly ‘lived-in’ and    most of us face. Some people try and         and snobbery of early reality TV might
yet untouched. One storyline follows        sprinkle Love Island glamour into            have waned, but such shows remind
resident mean girl Davina Portratz          their Airbnb spare rooms, domestic           many of us that we find ourselves more
attempting to sell the home of Adnan        space as pending sale, in the perma-         contained than ever within the ideas of
Sen, a “real estate mogul” and appar-       nent vacation of a paying other. Rental      beauty and dirt held by someone else,
ent bond villain, who wants to sell his     agreements mandate against interior          someone richer. For all the opulence,
9 bedroom, 12 bath, 18,000 square-foot      changes by those who actually live in        drama, and fun that Selling Sunset
estate for $75,000,000, in three months.    a home, as landlords seek to main-           gives us, the show presents a vision
The fact that this is completely impos-     tain the barest possible basics, punish      of the domestic stripped of life. This
sible at such a price, that and Davina      wear and tear, and ensure future prof-       is the kind of empty cleanliness of a
is told as much by all her colleagues, is   it. Even the stupidly rich end up living     morgue, rather than a home. Do they
beside the point, the story arc serves to   on hold, pending a sale, though we           piss in the infinity pool? Would you?
advance Davina’s ‘high level’ connec-       watch without sympathy and marvel at          - JW (Illustration SK)
SCENE
                          CHECK IN
                                                        Illustration RC

At the end of 2020 we set up a Goog-         soundtrackings of Daniel Dafoe’s jour-     The opening of new queer spaces like
le Form and link for people to answer        nals of the 1772 plague outbreak to a      Bonjour and Quto along with some
some basic questions about ‘DIY’ arts,       series of New-Age mixes from Japa-         rumblings from others looking to open
music and organising in the midst of         nese record store owners. We’ve also       venues gives me a lot of hope this
the pandemic The following answers           taken on around 15 new shows and           could happen.
are presented basically verbatim from        about 10 new team members over the               I think open-minded music spac-
everyone who filled it in and got in         last couple of months. I think as peo-     es will play a big part in the next wave
touch. We don’t pretend that it is in        ple have gotten better at adapting to      of talent that will also be needed for
any way representative of the ‘scene’        everything people have begun to feel       this to happen. Subcity Radio, along
as a whole, whatever that may be, but        a bit less anxious and a bit more crea-    with the several other stations that
think it is nice to see what people have     tive, so that’s been heartening.           have popped up this year could be a
been up to and start thinking about                Club nights were Subcity’s sole      big part of this and that makes me re-
what comes next. Thanks so much to           source of income which has obviously       ally excited.
all the respondents!                         vanished for the foreseeable. Luckily
                                             we have enough in the bank for now
                   ***                       and with some plans for merchandise
                                                                                             JULES AKA JOEY
                                             we should keep ticking into 2022 if               MOUSEPADS
                                             needed.
         TOM WILLIS                                                                                 FAST MUZIK
   Subcity Radio / Body Parts                How are you feeling about 2021, and a
                                             post-lockdown Glasgow?                     HEY! How are you?
HEY! How are you?
                                             A mixture of wariness and cautious         I am feeling festive simply drinking
                                             optimism. Over lockdown exactly how        bramble wine in my cow print pyja-
Great!
                                             grim, corporate and exclusionary a lot     mas so i guess u could say i am ‘living
                                             of the scene is became more obvious        it large’
What kind of work / music / political or-
ganising / art / writing etc were you do-    than ever. The money that Sub club
                                             raised over summer could have kept         What kind of work / music / political or-
ing before the pandemic?
                                             10 far more valuable community/arts        ganising / art / writing etc were you do-
                                             spaces like GAS or the African Arts        ing before the pandemic?
In June I took over the running of the
local lovely community station Subci-        Centre (RIP) going for years. There’s
                                             hardly a large institution or venue left   I was DJing a lot and mostly focusing
ty Radio. I was also running a sporad-
                                             that hasn’t been embroiled in some         on my party ‘FAST MUZIK’ which is a
ic club night/radio show called Body
                                             kind of racism, sexism, transphobia or     club night dedicated to rave, hardcore,
Parts.
                                             homophobia scandal.                        trance, nightcore, donk etc !
How was this affected by the lockdown?            Recessions, like the one we are
                                             on the verge of, haven’t historically      How was this affected by the lockdown?
It’s been tough! At the station we hav-      been good for arts accessibility or the
                                             wellbeing of working class artists.        Luckily i have been able to keep DJing
en’t been able to safely use our studio or
                                                                                        thanks to streams & radio, but obvi-
have an in person team meeting for the
                                             What’s been giving you hope through all    ously clubs and parties are out at the
last 9 months. So as with every thing
                                             this? What gives you hope for the after-   moment. DJ Tinyhandz and I had been
else post-pandemic, a lot of previously
                                             math?                                      planning a new bassline, bounce &
fun things have been reduced to email
                                                                                        makina party for May which I hope we
shuffling and zoom. We’ve been rely-
                                             I think hopefully more than ever, as-      can still make happen at some point. i
ing on people with shows to pre-re-
                                             suming 2021 will see an end to lock-       love DJing but events are what I’m re-
cord everything at home which is a big
                                             down, there will be a huge appetite        ally all about so it’s been tough! i have
ask and quite a different experience to
                                             for embracing culture in a social con-     so many ideas for themes for the fu-
broadcasting live. But the resilience
                                             text. If the right people can make sure    ture; all I do is fantasize about future
from the contributors has been amaz-
                                             as much money from that as possible        parties. get ur formalwear ready for
ing - we’ve had literally thousands of
                                             goes to the right places, I think 2021     FAST MUZIK “homecoming” !!! with
hours of radio since March and a lot
                                             could ignite something wonderful.          FAST MUZIK, i get to take my fantasy
of it has been incredible. From dark
of what I think a club should be like        tions eh. I’m actually in a really lucky    Any other thoughts or questions you
and make that real for people. i really      position with work and friends so           have for us?
want to make a space where folk can          pretty grand thanks. I mean I do miss
just be themselves. i really think clubs,    old fashioned fun.                          I’d be interested in people’s ideas for
parties, and raves are very uniquely                                                     democratising the scene or different
able to do that!! i love creating this       What kind of work / music / political or-   ways of communicating ideas to each
totally all-encompassing sensory eu-         ganising / art / writing etc were you do-   other. Regular health check ups like
phoric experience. I’m missing the           ing before the pandemic?                    this are needed x
FAST MUZIK community loads, can’t
wait to see everyone again.                  Running parties and events with
                                             Healthy. My day job is for a think-tank
                                                                                                ANDREW MILK
How are you feeling about 2021, and a        and involves trying to improve how de-       Bum Notes / The Pink Pound /
post-lockdown Glasgow?                       mocracy is done in Scotland.                 Spite House / Current Affairs
while i’m not sold on WHEN exactly           How was this affected by the lockdown?      HEY! How are you?
we will be able to come together again,
i’m feeling VERY optimistic about the        Well no gatherings allowed = no par-        I am doing ok
party landscape - I think people have        ties since March. And as much as I
a huge appetite for parties at the mo-       appreciate the efforts of people run-       What kind of work / music / political or-
ment that’s only getting stronger, and                                                   ganising / art / writing etc were you do-
that might bring out people who ha-                                                      ing before the pandemic?
ven’t really thought of themselves as
‘clubbers’ before. i hope we will all re-                                                I work in Music and Cultural Activ-
alise that what’s important about clubs                                                  ism by which I mean I play in bands
and parties is not big name headliners,                                                  and organise queer feminist accessible
but coming together with our friends                                                     events and create platforms for queer
and our communities! sometimes the                                                       performance.
DJ best-placed to bring the perfect
vibe is just a friend. i hope we all start                                               How was this affected by the lockdown?
to realise that everybody at any given
party is a stakeholder in that party, and                                                Everything came to a screeching halt. I
that the crowd is just as important as                                                   moved some of what I do to the online
the DJ - I think usually more impor-                                                     space like my online version of *Bum
tant!!                                                                                   Notes drag karaoke* but pretty much
       the only thing that worries me is                                                 most projects are on hold and I’m fo-
whether the venues to host the parties                                                   cusing on what I can do from home
will still exist by then.                                                                and what brings me the most joy/ sat-
                                                                                         isfaction.
What’s been giving you hope through all
this? What gives you hope for the after-                                                 How are you feeling about 2021, and a
math?                                                                                    post-lockdown Glasgow?
                                             ning events online, for me it doesn’t
my incredible household and our tiny         translate. With work I was (blissfully)     I am cautiously excited about it to be
private raves! also i know a lot of peo-     furloughed for 5 months and then we         honest. I’m sure everyone wants to be
ple kinda got tired of DJ streams but        started back with everyone working          able to get back out to events etc but I
I never did - online dance music com-        remotely.                                   am also looking forward to a renewed
munities have been a proper lifeline                                                     and redefined cultural landscape. I
for me this year. It’s so incredible to      How are you feeling about 2021, and a       think people have had a lot of time
me that rave music can continue to           post-lockdown Glasgow?                      to focus on what matters to them and
lift me up even when we can’t come                                                       what they want to support and see
together , and i’ve met a lot of people      Depends what day you catch me on            grow- I know I have. My hope is that
through streams and stuff that i can’t       but usually it’s positive. I’m hopeful      this will be reflected in the kind of
wait to meet at parties sometime soon.       people will more than ever seek es-         venues, events and groups we support
also i think stream culture has actually     capism and to be close to one another,      and that support us.
done more for my DJ rep than playing         rather than this being a full stop on
in clubs ever has.                           spontaneity and physicality. I’m fasci-     What’s been giving you hope through all
gotta shout out CRUSH RADIO , subc-          nated by how this aberration of a year      this? What gives you hope for the after-
ity, doesitbang? , VIP MIX , clydebuilt      will change peoples’ mentalities for        math?
radio, and the whole HSMMG posse             the rest of their lives, though I’m less
                                             positive about these outcomes. I quite      My solo music as The Pink Pound
Any other thoughts or questions you          like to indulge in fantasising about the    only got to appear on stage twice be-
have for us?                                 past and I’m already wistful for the        fore lockdown but I’m happier now in
                                             past futures that would have come to        what I’ve made and hopeful for *2021
u know i gotta say it .... hardcore will     be before this all happened. I’m not        shows*....maaaybe? Anyway, The Pink
never die                                    sure that makes sense but I know what       Pound will start this year off with a
                                             I mean.                                     new monthly show on Clyde Built ra-
                PHIL                                                                     dio from 21st January.
              HEALTHY                        What’s been giving you hope through all           I play drums in Current Affairs
                                             this? What gives you hope for the after-    and we have managed to record half an
HEY! How are you?                            math?                                       album during this year. I know that we
                                                                                         will finish that record soon and that
Phhht. Starting with the hard ques-          Pals and pipe dreams
Spite House - the events collective I       Any other thoughts or questions you          ly do some good rather than be an ego
am involved with - will be launching a      have for us?                                 stroking exercise.
website soon. Queer-feminist gigs will
be present in the Glasgow landscape         What exactly is this about?                  Any other thoughts or questions you
and this gives me hope. New things are                                                   have for us?
coming and I think a greater strength
of community will emerge, we’ll see
                                                     LEWIS LOWE                          How are you doing?
wont we?                                              Redstone Press

Any other thoughts or questions you         HEY! How are you?
                                                                                              EOTHEN STEARN
have for us?                                                                                  Spite House / Nightshift
                                            I’m okay, mix of being fine and feeling
I feel like Jerry Springer- my final        shite but accepting of it.                   HEY! How are you?
thought. If you spent a lot of this year
playing video games and watching TV         What kind of work / music / political or-    I’m ok thanks
don’t worry about it, me too. It won’t      ganising / art / writing etc were you do-
be forever but if there’s anything that     ing before the pandemic?                     What kind of work / music / political or-
alleviates your anxiety during this time                                                 ganising / art / writing etc were you do-
grab it with both hands I reckon.           Music - djing and record label.              ing before the pandemic?

                                            How was this affected by the lockdown?       I am predominately a visual artist who
            YVONNE                                                                       plays and loves music. I was volunteer-
 Migrants Organising for Rights             Hugely, there is no djing and putting        ing / involved with SPITE HOUSE that
      and Empowerment                       out records that won’t be played in          put on gigs.

HEY! How are you?                                                                        How was this affected by the lockdown?

Contemplative                                                                            SPITE HOUSE is on hold. My art
                                                                                         practice is continuing but in a weird
What kind of work / music / political or-                                                way, more crafts from my house - hard
ganising / art / writing etc were you do-                                                to make a mess and then live in it. I did
ing before the pandemic?                                                                 record an album during lockdown with
                                                                                         band NIGHTSHIFT which actually
I was doing organising around Mi-                                                        was a positive thing. But whole thing
grants Rights and Racial Justice work                                                    is very bad for mental health / wellbe-
                                                                                         ing. Hard to feel inspired!
How was this affected by the lockdown?
                                                                                         How are you feeling about 2021, and a
We are unable to meet in person, this                                                    post-lockdown Glasgow?
has limit our capacity to organise,
learn and grow together significantly                                                    We are back in the lockdown now sad-
On the positive side technology has                                                      ly and I feel very down about it. Winter
enabled to reach a much wider section                                                    is tough also so not good.
of our community and engage with
other communities virtual that would                                                     What’s been giving you hope through all
have been inaccessible otherwise for        their intended environment isn’t any         this? What gives you hope for the after-
example we had several zoom meet-           fun.                                         math?
ing with migrant rights activists and
Climate Justice activists in USA and        How are you feeling about 2021, and a        Music! Friendship, family. Seeing them
Africa                                      post-lockdown Glasgow?                       all again. More social justice being on
                                                                                         peoples minds. People having time to
How are you feeling about 2021, and a       I’m feeling quietly hopeful but the          rest and deal with complex things is
post-lockdown Glasgow?                      reality is that things are going to get      also positive. But there is ultimately
                                            worse (maybe not covid wise but eco-         a-lot of impending doom. I’m worry-
Positive and more self aware of my          nomically) before they get better. I’d       ing about folk that are dealing with so
needs and limitations                       be a lot more hopeful if Glasgow was         much on top of covid - and our govt is
                                            closer to an all night license and was in    a disgrace. Sorry went off, I am gaining
What’s been giving you hope through all     a warmer part of the world to allow for      hope through small acts of kindness.
this? What gives you hope for the after-    lots of open air events haha.                Just the idea of feeling safe again also.
math?
                                            What’s been giving you hope through all      Any other thoughts or questions you
First My Faith God unfailing love has       this? What gives you hope for the after-     have for us?
been my anchor, my strength and my          math?
shield. Secondly the courage of fellow                                                   Thankyou for doing this!
activists during the world wide Black       100% it’s got to be all the wee online ra-
life matter movement and the anti Sars      dio stations. Clyde Built being the main-
protest give me hope because we have        stay of my 2020 and now 2021. Having a
                                                                                             CATRIONA REILLY
not stood on the sideline of history we     place in which to access friends music                 Push It / Stereo
have made history as will be remem-         and be interactive through the chatroom
bered as change makers its an incred-       has given me hope that we are gonna          HEY! How are you?
ible feeling                                bounce back with a new and invigorated       Not bad!
                                            community in Glasgow that can actual-
What kind of work / music / political or-   Optimistic-ish! Feeling like 2021 might     aware existed in my knowledge of con-
ganising / art / writing etc were you do-   be a long slog, but hoping that this        temporary performance theory - from
ing before the pandemic?                    downtime has provided opportunity to        the role of politics and literary theory
I was/am the club booker for Stereo         reflect on making festivals, events and     to that of drama and film making.
and run the night Push It. I also DJ and    communities safer and more inclusive.
perform.                                    I’m hopeful that when we come out the       How are you feeling about 2021, and a
                                            other end people, venues and organi-        post-lockdown Glasgow?
How was this affected by the lockdown?      sations will have survived. It’s been
                                            nice to see charity auctions, fundrais-     As an amateur, very optimistic. But
It all stopped abruptly and I was/am        ers and mutual aid, although a bit de-      rather worried that for professional
furloughed, Stereo is currently shut.       pressing to see this needing to happen      Glasgow artists the road ahead might
                                            and the support not being a given. I’m      be very difficult and lacking in oppor-
How are you feeling about 2021, and a       also feeling very excited to see all the    tunities.
post-lockdown Glasgow?                      faces of people I miss.
                                                                                        What’s been giving you hope through all
Not sure - seems quite difficult to en-     What’s been giving you hope through all     this? What gives you hope for the after-
vision at this point in time but I think    this? What gives you hope for the after-    math?
Glasgow has an incredible fortitude so      math?                                       My faith. My faith.
I can see it bouncing back. Although
I hope not with the same problems           Radio!!! Subcity, Clydebuilt and Ra-        Any other thoughts or questions you
it had to before with inclusivity and       diophrenia have been definite high-         have for us?
crappy politics etc                         lights and a much needed reminder           Thanks for asking me and I hope my
                                            that there’s still life and community       responses don’t sound too egotistical
What’s been giving you hope through all     out there! Mattie and I started a radio     or shallow.
this? What gives you hope for the after-    show on Subcity where we connect
math?                                       with people in and around Glasgow
The vaccine and the fact that people        and play our favourite feel good songs.
                                                                                          MICHAEL KASPARIS
have been doing things like online          This was definitely born from our re-            Night School / Apostille
club streams and radio shows to keep        newed love of radio and the way it’s
going                                       kept us feeling connected to the city/      HEY! How are you?
                                            living in hope!
                                                                                        Still working on still being here.
    ALICE DE BOURG
      Supernormal Festival                                                              What kind of work / music / political or-
                                                                                        ganising / art / writing etc were you do-
HEY! How are you?                                                                       ing before the pandemic?

Hello! OK! Grateful to be in a relative-                                                I was recording an album with my
ly stable position, exasperated with the                                                band, writing another one, had about
UK government and at the feeling that                                                   12 releases lined up with the record
being able to meet my basic needs and                                                   label I run and booking a European
stay safe feels like a privilege.                                                       tour for another band I’m helping out.
                                                                                        Ahhh I’m getting nostalgic for the
What kind of work / music / political or-                                               stress.
ganising / art / writing etc were you do-
ing before the pandemic?                                                                How was this affected by the lockdown?

I’m a co-director of Supernormal Fes-                                                   The band album ended up canned for
tival, and was working freelance on                                                     unrelated reasons. The writing process
festivals in Glasgow and other parts of                                                 stopped as I think psychologically I
Scotland. I’d also been putting on per-                                                 was finding it hard to feel motivated to
formance nights with my friend Mat-                                                     write music if I was just going to sit in
tie and we had plans to make this more                                                  my spare room with it. I realised more
regular.                                           TONY MORRIS                          than ever I do it to connect to people
                                                       Performer / DJ                   and being isolated and bunkered in
How was this affected by the lockdown?                                                  I began to feel it was all pointless. I
                                            HEY! How are you?                           read books instead. As the new norm
Cancellations all round! Supernormal                                                    became the new norm I got back into
wise; months of seemingly endless           Determined.                                 everything again and i’m more excited
back and forth on whether/ when to                                                      than ever for everything.
cancel, trying to imagine a time when       What kind of work / music / political or-
events and festivals can come back          ganising / art / writing etc were you do-   How are you feeling about 2021, and a
without excluding people on their           ing before the pandemic?                    post-lockdown Glasgow?
health status, trying to continue run-      1) Expressing my unconscious mental
ning a largely voluntary organisation       purposes in performance: as a solo vo-      2021 as an entity doesn’t exist yet, it’s
while being stuck in some kind of lim-      calist and electronic noise maker. 2)       just an extension of the mind jail we’re
bo (and all ends of the UK) unable to       Presenting programmes on Clyde Built        trying to survive in for the time being.
do the thing that ordinarily brings us      Radio and before that on Threads.           Lockdown has taught me a lot of home
all together.                                                                           truths though, mostly personal stuff
                                            How was this affected by the lockdown?      but also about this extended scene we
How are you feeling about 2021, and a       In a good way: it allowed me/forced me      were all part of once. Post lockdown
post-lockdown Glasgow?                      into filling the massive gaps that I was    Glasgow still seems so far away, tem-
                                                                                        poraly but also psychologically. It’s
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