Go on punk. Make my day.

Readers from around the world may well wonder what the latest update here is all about, and what relevance it has to them.

Well the answer is that the issues raised in the following post are probably a microcosm of a wider global problem (First world problems of course) that blights all underground/local music scenes and can therefore be transferable.

So what’s the skinny I guess you are asking?

Well it’s an age old problem that raises its ugly head like the mythical Hydra.

You chop off one, and given time, another two sprout forth to take its place.

The problem is of course bands/artists getting all hot and bothered about low attendances at their shows, and the lack of general support they feel they are getting.

It’s Scottish punk bands in this instance.

It could very well be the folk scene, the grime scene, or anything else though.

If there’s an appreciation of potatoes scene then I fully expect those who like theirs baked are having a ding dong with the aficionados of the boiled variety.

In fighting is rife everywhere.  

What we have had are posts appearing on social media berating those who fail to attend shows.

Comments have been made about threats being uttered if anyone attends this show or that show.

There’s been the dreaded – possibly deliberate - clash of bookings meaning shows audiences are diluted as fans decide what one of the many gigs on offer they go to.

In short, the usual, petty and infantile, crap.

In response others have reared up screaming hypocrisy, scabs have been picked at and old wounds are freshly suppurating venom, and in general every teacup has a storm in it.

I’m bored with it to be honest.

Pretty much everyone can see the benefits of unity.

How a cohesive effort by all the bands to promote a scene can be advantageous to all.

Unfortunately understanding that and putting it into practice are two entirely different things.

The lust to be the top dog gets in the way, personal slights are held onto tightly, poor communication is celebrated, and ultimately there are no winners.

Already acts playing a gig have a rather large wall to bang their heads off of.

There’s the economy and lack of pennies floating around to be considered.

Then there are individual responsibilities such as work and childcare that can get in the way.

The myriad entertainment options available to people can’t be ignored either.

One that others often don’t consider is that the cost of larger gigs attended means there’s little left in pockets to accommodate the Friday night club gig.

Here's an example. 

I’ve just shelled out £44 for two Sonics tickets, and I don’t feel guilty in the slightest that I may have to pass on a local bands gig - who will be playing three weeks later anyway.

It’s my choice to go and see The Sonics after all.

Even if it has left my piggy bank squealing about its empty belly.

So with all that to be taken on board, why does the misery have to be added to with the target audience of fans being slagged off, threatened and this negative environment being created?

Seriously?

Is this how anyone attracts people to a show?

In punk circles the claim that there is some sort of unity is mentioned often.

It's a stereotypical delusion that the punk scene has a death grip on.

It reeks of the smell of bullshit every time it is uttered.

There is no unity, or not enough of it to matter, and this is why local bands of any scene stay local.

If anyone in a band is serious enough to want to do anything about it then please do.

Stop all the bollocks and just practice.

Become the best act out there, and when you get to see the benefits of that, then pull someone else up with you.

Every minute spent bitching is a minute lost that could have been used to write a classic, to nail down a bit of music, or to say something positive that has a greater impact than the celebration of negativity.

Right now, right this very minute, I can assure people that there are music fans out there reading some barrage of crap and thinking that they would be better off sitting at home on a Saturday night rather than dipping their toe in the often poisonous pool that is a local music scene.

It’s a huge feckin’ turn off.

It really does seem that some people have shot themselves in the foot so often about this that they could drop a shoe size as their last toe is now gone and aint ever coming back.

And in closing I will say that there may well be some who are thinking I am talking about them.

If that is the case then they should ask themselves why.

I may well not know them at all, but that they can see themselves in the issues raised says a great deal.

Bottom line is that people only go to shows they feel comfortable attending.

Create a negative atmosphere and you reap what you sow.

Now I'm going to go and listen to some music and write some reviews that I need to catch up on.