THEATRE OF HATE
This post punk group from UK consisted of Kirk Brandon (vocals, ex Pack), John Lennad (saxophone), Stan Stammers (bass), Steve Guthrie (guitar) and Luke Rendle (drums). The inclination of the group towards hard intransigent lyrics, aggressive rhythms and strong live act was the USP of the group. The Band took it's name from the concept of the "Theatre of Cruelty".
"Original Sin" was the first release by the group, in November, 1980 and reached #5 on the UK Indie Chart. A live concert recorded at the Warehouse, Leeds resulted in the album, "He who dares wins", followed by "Live at the Lyceum" in the August of 1981. The first non live album, "Westworld" with the producer, Mick Jones (Clash) was released on 19th February 1982. Westworld reached UK Top 20. The single, "Do you believe in the Westworld?" gave them their only top 40, single.
CLICK HERE FOR EVEN MORE UNIQUE THEATRE OF HATE VIDEOS
The group was marred by constant movement of the members to and from the group. After, the release of Westworld, Billy Duffy joined the band and Luke Rendle the drummer was replaced by Nigel Preston. Stan Stammers joined Bass and John Boy Lennard took over saxophone. By the time Westworld was released, Brandon was the only original member left.
Theatre of Hate reformed in 1991 for the Return to 8, which included Brandon, Stammers and John Lennard. The group was periodically revived by Brandon and Stammers. In 2007, the Theatre of Hate, re-formed to commemorate the 25th Annivesary of Westworld, without Stammers.
Albums:
Click here for an extremely rare interview with Kirk. This interview is totally raw and uncut. What that means is as it was recorded at the time without edits, so it contains everything from screw-ups, intro’s to tracks with no subsequent music, strange background noises, pregnant pauses and idle chatter but that is what makes it so unique. This interview has not seen the light of day in this format since it was recorded nearly 30 years ago.
This information is provided as a brief overview and not as a definitive guide, there are other sources on the net for that. If however you have a story or information that is not generally known we would love to hear from you. Content@rokpool.com.
