The Androidss

ANDROIDSS THE ANDROIDSS WERE FORMED IN LINCOLN ROAD CH CH. THE HOUSE HAS LONG BEEN DEMOLISHED . IT WAS A PARTY HOUSE IN WHICH I JAMMED AFTER HAVING PLAYED WITH “THE BASKET CASES” FORMERLY “THE DETROIT HAEMORRHOIDS” LINED UP BY THE DECEASED NICKY CARTER(PLAYTHINGS), OLLY SCOTT, PAUL KEAN (TOY LOVE) , JANE WALKER(TOY LOVE) AND MYSELF. THE GUYS (FUTURE ANDROIDSS) USED TO COME AND WATCH US PLAY AT THE OLE GRESHAM TAVERN IN CASHEL ST BEFORE IT BECAME A MALL. THESE WERE MARK SPENCE , NEIL SPENCE (WHOM I HAVE KNOWN SINCE PRIMARY SCHOOL DAYS), FRANK STENJES, ERIC& STEVE MARSDEN(IDENTICAL-TWINS) AND AURTHUR MANAWATU WHOM SANG WITH US FOR A SHORT TIME BEFORE LEAVING US TO EXPLORE HIS ART OF PAINTING. WE BEGAN AS A 3 PIECE WITH ME ON GUITAR, FRANK ON BASS AND ERIC ON CARDBOARD BOXES! BEFORE HE ACQUIRED A BLUE SEE THRU RODGERS KIT WHICH GOT STOLEN . I TAUGHT ERIC WHAT I KNEW OF PLAYING DRUMS WHICH WAS LIMITED BUT WAS ENOUGH TO GET US STARTED! WE JAMMED ON SOME IDEAS I HAD FOR ORIGINAL SONGS AND SOME COVERS OF STUFF WE ALL LOVED AND GOT ABUSED BY THE REST OF THE HOUSEHOLD FOR EXCESSIVE NOISE. THIS CAUSED A RIFT AMONG US. BUT ERICS DRUMMING GOT BETTER AND NEXT THING TWIN STEVE JOINT OUR RANKS ALONG WITH NEIL AND SOON THE RIFT WAS UNBALANCED SO IT WAS ONLY NATURAL THAT MARK AND AURTHUR JOIN TOO! AFTER ALL MARK SPENCE HAD TEN YEARS OR SO OF CLASSICAL PIANO TRAINING TO HIS NAME AND IF ANYONE HAD MUSICAL LICENSE IT WAS HIM ; ALTHOUGH HE NEVER EVER MADE THAT EVIDENT IN OUR JOURNEY INTO ROCK MUSIC BUT TO HAVE HIM THERE GAVE ME MUCH NEEDED ENCOURAGEMENT. I HAD SPENT YEARS AS A YOUNG BOY AT HIS HOUSE REVELLING IN THE RECORDS HIS GRAND MOTHER BOUGHT FOR HIM . SO THE BOND WAS FORMED AND THE MUSIC CAME OUT IN ITS UNTAMED FASHION BUT WITH AN ENERGY THAT BECAME A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH! WE WERE A 7 PIECE BAND OF STONED YOUNG MEN WITH A GREAT LOVE OF GOOD ROCK MUSIC AND WE WERE BROTHERS THROUGH THICK AND THIN! WE PLAYED OUR FIRST GIG AT DUX DE LUX AS A SUPPORT ACT AND WE WERE LOVED BY LOTS OF FRIENDS AND SOON HAD A SMALL FOLLOWING OF FOLKS WHO WANTED TO BE PART OF OUR GROWING CULT CENTRED AROUND BOOZE, DRUGS,SEX AND ROCK “N” ROLL. PUNK WAS THE NEW TREND , AND WE INTER LACED MY WEIRD ORIGINALS WITH IGGY POP STOOGES CLASSICS BOWIE ANTHEMS, LOU REED ANGST ETC. WE DID A FEW GIGS AROUND TOWN AND ONE NITE PLAYING AT THE SLEAZY OLE BRITISH IN LYTTELTON I NOTICED THE WIREY FIGURE OF A MAN WHO LOOKED LIKE IGGY HIMSELF. THE REST IS HISTORY. PRINTED IN THE PAPER THE NEXT DAY AND I QUOTE FROM JAMES OSTERBURG (IGGY POP) WHEN ASKED WHAT HE THOUGHT OF THE ANDROIDSS “ THERE TOUGH AS BITCHES BUT THERE BEAUTIFUL”. ILL NEVER FORGET SITTING DOWN WITH HIM AND STEVE TO HAVE A WHISKY. HE HAD ON HIS FAMOUS LEATHER JACKET WITH THE TIGER ON BACK. WE ASKED HIM TO GET UP AND SING TO THE REPLY OF “ ITS YOUR BAND MAN GO FOR IT!” SO WE DID IGGY SONGS TO IGGY!I WAS BLOWN OUT BY THIS AND THE PUBLICITY WAS GOOD FOR US. SO NEXT WAS OUR STEP UP TO PLAYING SUPPORT FOR KIWI TOURING BANDS SUCH AS TOY LOVE , THE DUDES, THE SWINGERS ETC AND THEN MIGRATION TO AUCKLAND THE BIG SMOKE TO SEEK OUR FORTUNE AND FAME . CIGARETTES FLICKED IN OUR FACE MEAN LOOKS FROM HARD CORE PUNKS AND SKIN HEADS YELLING ANDROIDSS SUCK SHIT WAS OUR INITIATION AND WELCOME TO THE AUCKLAND POST LATE 70S SCENE! SO WE ALL SHAVED OFF! TO THE SCALP! WE HUSTLED UP GIGS WHEREVER POSSIBLE WENT ON THE DOLE AFTER BEING EVICTED FROM THE HOUSE WE LIVED IN . WHICH ORIGINALLY BELONGED TO CHRIS KNOX(TOY LOVE) AND HIS ASSOCIATES .I THINK THEY HAD TO MOVE BECAUSE WE TOOK UP SO MUCH SPACE . WE HAD ROSIE RAMPAGE WITH US ,MY GIRLFRIEND, A CLAYTONS MANAGER AND A SHAGGY DOG WE NAMED IGGY. ACTUALLY HE WAS ERICS DOG AND THERE WERE 2 OTHER DOGS TO BOOT! SOON STEVE AND ERIC MADE LOTS OF FRIENDS DEALING IN MIND ALTERING SUBSTANCES AND SOON ANDROIDSS HAD FORGED A NAME IN AUCKLAND AS A DRUG PUNKISH CULT BAND AND WE STARTING PACKING OUT THE RHUMBA BAR CHARLIE GRAYS PUB. WE GOT OUR PHOTO IN CITY GIRL MAGAZINE AS WE ALSO HAD A PRETTY BOY IMAGE SYNONYMOUS WITH A LOT OF NEW WAVE BANDS. ANOTHER CLUB WE PLAYED IN WAS X.S. CAFÉ RUN BT BRYAN STAFF WHO STARTED A RECORD LABEL CALLED RIPPER RECORDS . HE APPROACHED ME ABOUT MAKING A SINGLE WITH 2 SONGS HE THOUGHT WOULD DO OK. THE SONGS WERE ARE YOU GETTING JUMPY ? AND AUCKLAND TONIGHT. BRYAN WITH THE HELP OF THE TV CREW FROM “DROPPA KULCHA” MADE A VIDEO OF US CALLED AUCKLAND TONIGHT. THE SINGLE WENT FROM NO 48 UP TO NO 18 IN 2 WEEKS AND THE TV CLIP WAS QUITE COOL WITH US SHOT AT DIFFERENT SIGHTS AROUND AUCKLAND. WE PLAYED HEAPS SAW LOTS OF BANDS OVERSEAS ACTS AND GOT 2ND IN THE AUCKLAND BATTLE OF THE BANDS. WE TOURED DOWN TO CH CH WHEN JIM WILSON BOOKED US AND WE HEADLINED OUR OWN GIGS DID DOUBLE BILLS AND HAD SUPPORT FROM PEOPLE LIKE JAY CLARKSONS PLAYTHINGS WHO INCIDENTALLY TAUGHT ME CHORDS ON THE GUITAR AFTER I DROPPED OUT OF PSYCHE NURSING AND WENT FLATTING LONG BEFORE THE DETROIT HAEMORRHOIDS! THEN ERIC GOT BUSTED FOR DRUGS AND WE DID OUR NOT GUILTY TOUR DOWN TO CH CH ! MARK AND I FLEW BACK TO AUCKLAND . ERIC WENT TO PRISON FOR 3 YEARS AND CHARLIE GRAYS SON AUDITIONED TO TAKE HIS SPOT BUT I HAD LOST MY ENTHUSIASM FOR IT AND THERE WAS THE INEVITABLE END OF THE ANDROIDSS. THE GUYS FORMED ANOTHER BAND WITH REX VISIBLE OUR SOUND GUY CALLED THE COLORED PENCILS. LATER ON THEY BECAME NOT REALLY ANYTHING AND I JOINED UP WITH THE BELLE MOTIONS AFTER MOVING BACK TO CH CH. I ALSO PLAYED WITH THE MAU MAUS , VORTEX AND VERTICAL SMILES BUT NONE OF THESE VENTURES MOUNTED TO MUCH. I WENT THRU DRUG AND ALCOHOL REHAB AND IN 1987 MARK FLEW OUT FROM LONDON STEVE FROM AUCKLAND AND WE PLAYED 2 NIGHTS AT THE JET SET LOUNGE IN CH CH IN THE WAY OF A REUNION. THE FRI NITE WAS ROUGH ,THE SAT A LOT BETTER AND I AM STILL TRYING TO HUNT DOWN THE RECORDINGS THAT WERE MADE OF A PRACTISE SESSION WE HAD AT AUDIO ACCESS STUDIO. I BECAME A FAMILY MAN , MARK SPENCE LIVES IN ENGLAND ,STEVE STAYED IN AUCKLAND ,FRANK NEIL AND ERIC ALL MOVED BACK TO CH CH . IN 2005 I GOT A RATHER SURPRISING CALL FROM JIM WILSON ABOUT THE RELEASE OF “GETTING JUMPY” ON THE CH CH THE MUSIC CD . APTLY THE SONG WAS FIRST UP ON THE BLACK CD. THERE IS A RED CD AS WELL DENOTING CANTERBURY COLORS. WE GOT ASKED TO PLAY SO WITH THE HELP OF ISACC SALEK FROM CHICKEN YARD ME NEIL AND ERIC PLAYED THREE SONGS AT THE RELEASE PARTY. WE WERE AMONGST PEOPLE LIKE RAY COLUMBUS , JORDAN LUCK, SIMON DARK,AL PARKS , ETC KAREN HAY DID MC FOR IT AND WE DID OK. I GOT EXCITED ABOUT IT HAVING FELT DISAPPOINTED THAT WE DIDN’T GO FURTHER WAY BACK IN THE 80S . SO WE HAVE FORMED A NEW LINEUP WITH ISAAC AND PAUL MCARTHY FROM THE KNACKERED AND A KEYBOARDIST. WE HAVE PLAYED PUNKFEST 2007 SUPPORTED THE ANTI –NOWHERE LEAGUE AND IRONICALLY DUX DE LUX 30 YEARS AFTER OUR 1ST GIG . ROB MAYES HAS KINDLY MADE REASONABLE RECORDINGS OF THESE GIGS AND I AM WRITING SOME NEW MATERIAL TO FILL OUT OUR SETS AS I CANT REMEMBER A LOT OF THE SONGS I WROTE BACK IN THE EARLY 80S. THE SOUND IS FULL AND FITTING OF THE ANDROIDSS GENRE WITH PAUL’S GANK GANK BASS SOUND, ISAACS BEEFY DRUMS, NEIL AND MY RIPPING GUITARS AND ERICS RAW VOCALS. WE HAVE HAD CHARNI SILK DIOING SOME KEYS BUT SHE IS NOW IN TEXAS/LONDON SO WE HAVE IRONICALLY ANOTHER MARK COMING ON BOARD TO PLAY . - BY MARK ANDROID