Dark Halloween with The March Violets
Venue: The Abbey
3420 W Grace St,
Chicago, Illinois 60618
Doors at 6:30pm and show at 7pm
$15 advance and $18 door
17+
Y-Not, Last Rites & DJ Scary Lady Sarah Present...
Support from New Canyons - DJ Scary Lady Sarah
Tickets at: Click here for tickets
The March Violets
http://www.marchviolets.com/
https://www.facebook.com/TheMarchViolets
The first alternative band to have equal male and female vocals, The March Violets were formed in Leeds in the post punk era at the very start of the 80s. Alongside The Danse Society, The Sisters of Mercy and The Southern Death Cult, they were one of the 4 dark British Northern Bands that are often blamed for starting the Gothic scene. The Violets released a series of singles that still fill the darker dance floors around the world, the most played being "Snakedance" and "Walk into the Sun". They imploded in 1985, just before the rise of "Goth Rock" made the Mission and Sisters household names.
Three original members reformed in 2007 for a remarkably successful reunion, and since then the Violets have done a few rare concerts, headlined some festivals, survived throat cancer, and finally managed to write and record their first proper album 'Made Glorious'. The Violets are a rare thing, a legendary band that has actually managed to evolve, yet retain their original dark brilliance.
I’m honoured – my essay ‘Don’t Fence Me In’ is included in this wonderful collection! (Nine Arches Press, ed Ian Humphreys)
‘What motivates poets in the 21st century? How do they find their voice? What themes and subject matters inspire them? How do they cope with set-backs and deal with success? What keeps them writing?
In Why I Write Poetry twenty-five contemporary poets reflect with insight, wit and wisdom on the writing life, each offering their distinctive take on what inspires and spurs them on to write poetry. Also - individual writing prompts to help you create your own new poetry.’
https://ninearchespress.com/publications/poetry-collections/why-i-write-poetry.html
A wonderful way to end a difficult year – ‘What Girls Do in the Dark’ selected by Pippa Hennessy as a Poetry Society Best Book of the Year!
https://poetrysociety.org.uk/poetry-news-best-books-of-the-year/
“Finally, Rosie Garland’s What Girls Do in the Dark (Nine Arches) – Garland is a true gothic polymath. This is reflected in her poetry, which roams through astrophysics, war zones, quantum theory, human biology, history, relationships and non-relationships, and more. The poems in What Girls Do in the Dark take this variety to extremes, yet somehow manage to bring concrete details and abstract ideas from all these areas together into a coherent, explosive, dazzling, gorgeous whole.”
– Pippa Hennessy is a bookseller at Five Leaves Bookshop, Nottingham.
Thank you Henry Normal for selecting What Girls Do in the Dark for Northern Soul’s Best Reads of 2021!
Books: Northern Soul’s Best Reads of 2021
Henry Normal, poet and writer
What Girls do in the Dark (Nine Arches Press) by Rosie Garland is my favourite poetry book of the year. Garland was a singer in the 1980s post-punk/goth band The March Violets. More recently, she’s established herself as a poet and novelist with several titles. I had the honour to read with her in Birmingham a while back, so when her new collection was released I was already interested. From the first poem I was captivated. She has a way of keeping one foot tentatively in the world we know with the other searching for a foothold in an unseen or imaginary world. I was inspired and transported by these poems in a way I’ve not experienced since first getting excited by the possibilities of poetry in my teens. I suspect it would not be good form to choose one of my poetry books for this feature but even if it was, I would choose Garland’s What Girls do in the Dark.
https://www.northernsoul.me.uk/books-northern-souls-best-reads-of-2021/
Thank you Vive le Rock magazine, for the great feature on The March Violets!
https://vivelerock.net/product/vive-le-rock-84-motorhead-girlschool-preorder/
Well, look at what happened on Record Store Day UK on July 17th 2021!
The March Violets ‘Big Soul Kiss’ - all the 1980s BBC Sessions in one place.
And PURPLE vinyl too #RSD21 #rsddrops
UPDATE – the entire pressing sold out in 24 hours. Jungle Records are releasing a CD version in 2022… plus more releases planned. Watch this space!
https://www.facebook.com/JungleRecords/