interview from PUNK LIVES issue 8

The demise of Vice Squad was a sad loss to Punks everywhere. The fast songs, all tuneful, most meaningful, would be witnessed live no more. Vice Squad really put Bristol on the Punk map. One person though, ruled supreme, keeping the audience in tine with lashes of her whip. That person was Beki Bondage.

So what would happen to Beki now? The idol of thousands. Was she going to settle down? Mortgage, car, TV, kids, divorce. You know the way these things work. Welt I'm here to find out Where is here? Here, is one of the rock 'n' roll empires, where all the money goes. This particular empire had a set-to with none other than the Sex Pistols themselves. Who... EMI.

A luxurious building indeed, just off London's Oxford Street. Up the stairs, the walls lined with EMI's latest prodigies, Kajagoogoo. Through the swing door. The walls now display a fine selection of gold discs; The Shadows, Duran Duran. Through another door and into an office. The office belongs to Suzy. Who handles Beki's EMI side of things, and also Duran Duran's, A fine contrast. Beki is late. A phone call notifies us she is on her way, so we decide to meet her in the nearest pub. Where else? Just as we are leaving EMI, Beki appears.

She is dressed kinda casual like. Black shiny, laced up front top, black shiny mini skirt, and the never-to-be-seen-without fishnet tights, with the pencil line down the back. The hair is greenish. As usual she looks stunning. She is with a few members of the new band, but, my eyes transfixed on Beki, I can't quite see Who they are.

We arrive at the pub, slightly wet due to a spot of rain. We bolder in. The smartly attired city gents took up. "I say 'ello chap, what are those ruffians doing in our pub? Is nowhere sacred these days? Bloody Punks.' We crowd round the bar. Beki breaks the silence. "Bit trendy 'ere innit!"

Beki elects to sit downstairs. A nice spot in the corner is found, and we all crowd around. The tine-up is as follows, reading from left to right. A friend of Steve's. Steve Who? Hold on, give us a chance! Next is Steve. Steve Roberts in fact, ex-drummer with the UK Subs. "I used to do their ironing as well." He is the sticks man in Beki's new band. Next along is Mo MO Sex. Great name! He is the guitarist. Next is the great lady herself, and after it's the bass player, Line. If the name isn't familiar to you, the face should be. He used to be in Chelsea. Next up is the manager, Igor. Oh yes! Tucked away, just visible is a certain Alf Martin, Who was deep in idle banter with Igor. The other three lads talked amongst themselves, leaving me, Beki and Line to get on with the interview.

The obvious starter for six, is why did Vice Squad split. Beki; "It was a few things. I was into animal rights, and the rest of the band weren't. They were always taking the piss. That son of thing. We differed musically as well. The type of lyrics we were doing didn't fit the music." In Vice Squad's four year career, I thought they were one of the best Punk bands about, and improving all the time. Beki's tone indicated the band split with a certain amount of bitterness. "They just wanted to be like rock stars. I didn't. I wasn't interested in any of That" Beki in fact, wasn't particularly impressed with how the band went. "We didn't do so well at all. The records went downhill after the first two singles."

I certainly can't agree with That But fair enough. You don't argue with the lady of bondage! What could Vice Squad have improved on? "I always wanted to do charity gigs. We had calls from organizations asking us if we'd play a charity gig. The manager said no, without even asking us. He'd say a pile of shit, like we were too busy. We didn't even find out about it until later." Beki also endorsed the popular opinion That the first LP was "awful"; and her opinion of the Vice Squad manager was much the same! "We had bad managers. I didn't even want to sign to EMI. I wanted to stay on an independent label. Now That I've signed it's OK. So far EMI have been good."

I think it's a shame That a band as good as Vice Squad never got any TV coverage. Beki, however, wasn't too worried. "I know all That about how you can reach more people, but I've never been too bothered. We did go on a local program in Bristol, called RPM. I had laryngitis so it wasn't too good. I suppose we'll have to do it sometime." Line chips in. "I'm vain. I'd like to do TV so I can say to mum, 'look that's me'." Steve Roberts proudly points out That he is the only one to have done TV, the Subs having done TOTP a few times. Sticking to the subject of the world's most boring music program, Beki takes us on a mini tour through her mind. "I remember in '78 you'd get Generation X and X-Ray Spex on TOTP, it was really good." "It's good when you get someone like Twisted Sister on TOTP, they're so over the top," says the cap-wearing Line.

Back to Vice Squad. What were your favorite Vice Squad tracks? '"Last Rockers', 'Humane', 'Coward', 'Out Of Reach'. Punks were the last rockers, that's what the song's about"

It must have been a hard decision for you to make, splitting up the band. "Yeah, obviously, if you've been doing something for four years, it is a hard decision. I'd been contemplating it for ages. I'd Just had enough."

How about the old members? What are they going to do? Do you still see them? "No, I don't see them any more. I didn't want to move back to Bristol. The rest of the band wanted to stay put, they were stuck in old ways. It was pointless. The record company and agents were in London, so it just made sense to move, The others are probably getting a new band together. There was a lot of bad feeling when we split, mainly caused by the management."

It's a pity such a good band had to split in such a way. I don't think any blame could be attached to Beki. Still, it's over now. Water under the bridge an' all That

So, Beki, what have you been up to since the band split? "Getting pissed, and lazing about in bed." I think she was Joking, but I wouldn't put any money on it. "I've been trying to get the new band together. I've been writing some songs with MO Mo. He's a good songwriter. We've done a few demo tapes, and there should be vinyl out soon."

It strikes me That Beki was fortunate That two good bands were mucking about with their lineup, just as she was on the lockout for new members. "Well, I've always admired the Subs, so I got Steve to join, and I knew-^Linc when he was in Chelsea."

Vice Squad were of course on Riot City records. Just before the band split it was announced That Vice Squad would be trying to help other new bands. Beki; "That was just Dave and Shane from Vice Squad. I want to help animals. All the records I do, I just want to make enough money to live, and give the rest to animals."

Beki always reminds me of Siouxsie. Not really musically, but certainly in appearance. The similar hair style, leather skirt, fishnets. Was Siouxsie an influence at all? "I don't think I'm really like Siouxsie. I wear the same clothes all the time. Siouxsie's always changing. I'm too lazy; I can't be bothered. She was an influence in That it was a girl, getting up and doing something. No one really influenced me musically. I don't want to sound like other bands. There are bands I like, but they're not influences." The Subs have already been mentioned, and Beki also mentioned The Cure and Lords of the New Church.

As Beki said, the new bands' debut release should be out soon, a single titled 'Curare', one of the tracks off the demo. Curare is a poison found in some South American plants. It paralyses the nerves, and the Indians used it to put on the end of their arrows. Beki; "It's an antivivisection song. The poison increases the agony, but you cannot scream out." Another single will follow, and then an LP, probably produced by Del Griffin.

So what is Beki going to call the new band? Wilt it be a nice bland, meaningless name? 'eck as like! I'm proud to announce Beki's new band will go under the heading LIGOTAGE Cor blimey, what the.. Knock it on the 'ead', I hear you cry, with some justification. Well 'liga' means bound, tied up, knots, get the picture? So Beki is still going to be the same whip-waving girl we all love so much.

I turn my attention to Line. When will this party of Bondage, leather and whips hit the road? "We hope to be doing a tour in the autumn."

So Beki, when you're not rehearsing, recording, or gigging, what are you doing? "Getting pissed. At the moment I'm looking after a thrush That we found. It's got no tail, so we call it Stubblebum! We're trying to feed it up. It lives on cat-food. I've also got a Jack Russell and two cats. One is a torn. It pisses everywhere.!"

Beki's concern for animals is well known. It is genuine, and something she feels very strongly about. "People Who hurt animals should be shot. They should be put in satellites. That includes Prince Charles for fox hunting."

Beki has obviously done some research into it. She knows exactly what she's talking about, and presents a very strong case in favour of everything she says. The science argument is That animal experiments will eventually lead to medicines, and possible cures of diseases. Beki whips back. "There was a German firm making some medicines or drugs. The children born of parents taking these drugs were badly deformed, ingrowing genitals, That sort of thing, and the parents went mad. And That firm made millions."

Beki's voice was full of disgust. She's in full flight now. I try to cool her. It's useless. She's off again. "When they used to experiment with Ether it would kill animals, so they didn't use it on humans. It's only now they use it, so what works on animals doesn't always work on us anyway. Also it's morally wrong. They were testing the impact of crashing cars into a wall. They strapped baboons in and drove the car straight into the wall. Do you know what they concluded?" No, said I. "They concluded the greater the speed the car hit the wall, the more damage would be inflicted on the driver. How ludicrous, anyone could tell you That" I nod in agreement, chuckling at the stupidity of it. Beki snaps: "It's not funny." No, no. I know it isn't. I try not to laugh any more for fear of a good whipping. Beki turns her anger towards Cancer Research. Is no one safe from the tongue of this woman? "They use electric shocks and torture animals. They've been doing it for years, and still haven't found a cure. The chemists and doctors just keep getting loads of money. The only way to avoid Cancer is to exercise, eat a proper diet and not to smoke." I agree once more. Do you approve of the Animal Liberation Front ' wrecking farmers property and breaking into laboratories to smash equipment? "Yeah. What's the biggest sin? Being locked up for trying to do something worthwhile, or torturing animals?"

Beki is. Of course, a vegetarian, and trying to go vegan, which is cutting out cheese and dairy products. She did admit to giving into a cheese sandwich occasionally on tour. I thought it best not to mention the two lots Of British Rail ham sandwiches I had coming down on the train, for fear Of recrimination.

We've had a lot Of letters about Beki's skirt. If she's so keen on animals, why does she wear leather? The truth is, That the skirt Beki wears is no longer leather, it's plastic. "I bought some leather stuff, like wristbands, before I got into animal rights. It's stupid to throw it away now. It wouldn't do anyone any good."

The second single, 'Resurrection', had a picture on the back Of a rabbit being injected. Beki wanted to get some larger ones printed, but the rest weren't too keen. An advantage Ligotage has over Vice Squad from the off is That all Of the band echo Beki's animal views.

I try to keep calm, as Beki rearranges her skirt. Don't you think some people may just go to your gigs to look at your body? "What's wrong with the human body?" Well there's certainly not a lot wrong with Beki's!

"People will always look at your body. There's nothing you can do about it. The media build up my image." I point out That it is her, and not the media, Who poses for the pictures. "I like wearing what I wear. People can think what they like. It's only sort Of showing off, dressing up. Like That picture Of me in Sounds, topless. That caused a stir, but I don't see what the fuss was all about. Just because I'm in magazines people say I've sold out, and that's bollocks. What am I supposed to do, wear trousers and a long overcoat? It's not a frilly, girlish skirt, it's got studs in it. I wear the fishnets to cover up the hairs on my legs, and because it lets the air through! The thing That pisses me off, is old men going," imitates an old man grunting, quite funny actually, "at girls in the street. It's pathetic."

Beki, continuing the sex theme: "MO MO is going to play naked. He'll just keep his hat on!"

I can take no more, and quickly change the subject. Vice Squad was quite a political band, wasn't it? "I was, but they weren't. I suppose Labour are best. Humans aren't perfect, so we can't expect politicians to be perfect either. They make mistakes. With Thatcher though, it wouldn't surprise me if we got World War III."

Beki reverts her attention to animals once more. "You get scientists and That, and they take babies off their parents to torture them for experiments. Might is right! That's their attitude."

Beki turns her criticism once more to Vice Squad, speaking mockingly Of the lyrics to 'Young Blood', one Of my favorites! 'Oh Young Blood everyday, life down the drain. Oh Young Blood everyday, isn't it a shame.'"When I said I wanted to do more animal songs, they said, 'we're not interested in That, tough shit'. The songs had no emotion, they weren't personal enough. A lot Of bands these days think they just have to say 'F--k That, F--k That, F-k Thatcher!' They've got no vocabulary."

When Vice Squad emerged, a lot Of good bands were just coming through at the same time. The Exploited, Discharge, Chron Gen, and Anti Past!. How did you feel about all That? "It was good, like a resurgence. It didn't have the same impact as '77 though. I think Punk is becoming really stale. Just ranting and raving."

So what does Beki suggest? "We've got to get more Punk on the radio, and bands on TOTP". OK Beki, are Ligotage just going to be a stale, ranting and raving Punk band? "On no, we can all play Our instruments. We're gonna be faster than Vice Squad and more powerful, with great endings to all the songs! The single starts really slow and then it bursts into life." Hardly original, I think to myself, but I won't criticize until I hear it, and I reckon it'll be excellent anyway!

The songs will be written mainly between MO MO and Beki, Who says That Line will be providing the "amazing bass lines."

So what ambitions do the band have? Linc: "I want to marry Kim Wilde,"

Beki wants enough money to buy a mansion, and fill it with animals rescued by the A.L.F. Steve joins in, or should I say butts in, with a point totally separate from animals! "I'll tell you this, Beki is a lot nicer to look at from behind than Charlie Harper." How does Beki expect the new band to compare to Vice Squad? "It pisses all over it." So there!

Linc brings up That word ... Anarchy. He says it's human nature that's got to change. Beki: "Flux Of Pink Indians have got the right idea. Strive to survive causing the least suffering possible."

Beki changed the flow Of the conversation, and moved onto drugs. "Alt That rock 'n' roll and drugs is a myth put around by the government. All these glue sniffing, drug taking punks, they're playing right into Thatcher's hands.

They're so far gone, they don't know what's going on." Here, here.

Steve (in between pulling his trousers down!) was trying to convince me Of the merits Of his 12" debut single. It's a cover version Of 'Working Class Hero'. (See singles reviews).

Do the man a favour, buy it. He did it when he left the Subs, but before the 'Beki Connection', "just for a laugh."

MO MO told me to ask Igor what he does for a fiver. I did, but this being a clean paper, I'm not telling you!

And there we must end. Ligotage's debut single is eagerly anticipated, as are their debut gigs. Beki having now got some very experienced musicians to work with. And as for Beki... Well, what can I say. You can't fault her looks, that's for sure. But don't go away thinking she is just a dumb blond, or, to be correct, a dumb green. She is not. She cares deeply about several things, and has got the good sense to do something positive with her ideas. So when they come to town, don't say you're tied up! Get up, get out and go.