Legendary writer, singer and provocateur Mick Farren is due to perform a one-off spoken word show
in Brighton this Friday (June 15th). Farren will headline the Midsummer Poetry Ball at Brighton’s 100-capacity Westhill Hall, reading from his recently-published collection of verse, Black Dogs Circling (Sea Urchin Editions), among other work. The counter-culture veteran will be backed for the occasion by guitarist Andy Colquhoun and percussionist Jaki Windmill, both current members of Farren’s recently-reactivated proto-punk freak band the Deviants.
A major player in late sixties London, and a thorn in the side to both the establishment and the
underground, Farren is best known for his work with the Deviants, described in their heyday as an
unholy collision of the Mothers of Invention and the Stooges, and laying much of the groundwork
for the punk explosion to come. But Farren was also a major contributor to International Times
and later the NME during the seventies, before moving to the states to concentrate on writing SF
novels and non-fiction work, including acclaimed biographies of Gene Vincent and Elvis Presley,
and his own must-read memoir, Give the Anarchist a Cigarette. His gloriously unhinged 1970 solo
album, Mona the Carnivorous Circus was recently chosen by Luke Haines as part of his Quietus Baker’s Dozen selection, and Teeth of the Sea are among the other current acts claiming Farren as an inspiration.
This performance sees Farren almost returning to the scene of his notorious 1970 free festival
Phun City, with which he brought William Burroughs and the MC5 to his sleepy childhood home of
Worthing. Indeed, the Midsummer Poetry Ball also features Worthing poet Gary Goodman, booked
to appear on the main stage at this year’s Supernormal Festival later in the summer, and local
Stuckist Dan Belton, whose collection Self Hate in a Phone Free Heaven was published by Billy
Childish’s Hangman Books. Quietus scribe and organiser Ben Graham will also read, alongside Lisa
Jayne, Alice Walker and a musical performance from South London-based purveyor of contemporary
psychedelia, Mydget Submarine. As the Westhill Hall is an unlicensed venue, audience members are
invited to bring their own refreshment. Tickets are £4, available on the door from 7pm or in advance from Resident Records in Brighton- call (01273) 606312 to check availability.
