Crass Records was an

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

that was set up by the

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not neces ...

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

band

Crass Crass were an English art collective and punk rock band formed in Epping, Essex in 1977, who promoted anarchism as a political ideology, a way of life, and a resistance movement. Crass popularised the anarcho-punk movement of the punk s ...

Overview and history

Prior to the formation of Crass,

Penny Rimbaud Penny Lapsang Rimbaud (born Jeremy John Ratter, 1943) is a writer, poet, philosopher, painter, musician and activist. He was a member of the performance art groups EXIT and Ceres Confusion, and in 1972 was co-founder of the Stonehenge Free Fes ...

and

Gee Vaucher Gee Vaucher (born 1945 in Dagenham, Essex, England) is a visual artist. Biography Vaucher met her long-lasting creative partner Penny Rimbaud in the early 1960s when both were attending the South-East Essex Technical College and School of Ar ...

had published their creative works via their own Dial House based Exitstencil Press. However the band set up the record label after encountering problems over the release of their first 12" EP, ''

The Feeding of the 5000 In Christianity, the feeding the multitude is two separate miracles of Jesus reported in the Gospels. The first miracle, the "Feeding of the 5,000", is the only miracle—aside from the resurrection—recorded in all four gospels ( Matthew 14:1 ...

'', on the

Small Wonder Small Wonder or variants may refer to: Film, television and theatre * ''Small Wonder'' (TV series), a 1985–1989 American sitcom * '' A Small Wonder'', a 1966 Australian television film * '' Small Wonders'', a 1995 documentary film * ''Small Wond ...

label in 1978. Workers at the Irish pressing plant contracted to manufacture the disc refused to handle it due to the allegedly

blasphemous Blasphemy is a speech crime and religious crime usually defined as an utterance that shows contempt, disrespects or insults a deity, an object considered sacred or something considered inviolable. Some religions regard blasphemy as a religiou ...

content of one song, "Asylum". The record was eventually released with this track removed and replaced by two minutes of silence, wryly retitled "The Sound Of Free Speech". However, this incident prompted Crass to set up their own record label to control all aspects of their future productions. Using money from a small inheritance that had been left to one of the band, the piece was shortly afterwards re-recorded and released as a 7" single using its full title, "Reality Asylum". A later repress of ''The Feeding of the 5000'' on Crass Records restored the missing track. As well as releasing their own material, Crass were able to use Crass Records to make available recordings by other performers, the first of which was the 1980 single "You Can Be You" by

Honey Bane Honey Bane (born Donna Tracy Boylan, 1964, London) is an English singer and actress, possibly best known for her 1981 UK Top 40 single "Turn Me On Turn Me Off". Early life and career Honey Bane began her musical career at the age of 14 in 1978 ...

, a teenage girl who at the time was staying at Dial House whilst on the run from a children's home (however, Bane's backing band on this release are in fact Crass, using the name Donna and the Kebabs). Others who recorded for the label included

Zounds Zounds are an English anarcho punk/post-punk band from Reading, Berkshire, England, formed in 1977. Originally they were part of the cassette culture movement, releasing material on the Fuck Off Records label, and were also involved in the s ...

Flux of Pink Indians Flux of Pink Indians was an English punk rock band from Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, England, active between 1980 and 1986. Biography The band formed in Hertfordshire, England in 1980 from the remaining members of The Epileptics (who ...

Captain Sensible Raymond Ian Burns (born 24 April 1954), known by the stage name Captain Sensible, is an English singer, songwriter and guitarist. Captain Sensible co-founded the punk rock band The Damned (band), the Damned, originally playing bass before switc ...

the Cravats The Cravats are an English punk rock band originally from Redditch, England, founded in 1977. The 'classic' line up of Robin Dallaway (vocals, guitar), The Shend (vocals, bass guitar), Svor Naan (saxophone) and Dave Bennett (drums) remained con ...

Conflict Conflict may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Conflict'' (1921 film), an American silent film directed by Stuart Paton * ''Conflict'' (1936 film), an American boxing film starring John Wayne * ''Conflict'' (1937 film) ...

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

ic band Kukl (who included singer

Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct three-octave vocal range and eccentric persona, she has de ...

), classical singer

Jane Gregory Jane Gregory (née Jane Bredin 30 June 1959 – 1 April 2011), was an international equestrian. She first rode for her country in 1994, competing in the World Equestrian Games of that year, and competed for Great Britain in Dressage at the A ...

and the

Poison Girls The Poison Girls were an English anarcho-punk band from Brighton. The singer/guitarist, Vi Subversa, was a middle-aged mother of two at the band's inception, and wrote songs that explored sexuality and gender roles, often from an anarchist pers ...

, a like-minded band who worked closely with Crass for several years. Many of these groups, in turn, went on to set up their own independent record labels loosely following the Crass Records model. Singles released on the Crass Records label had a distinctive '

corporate identity A corporate identity or corporate image is the manner in which a corporation, firm or business enterprise presents itself to the public (such as customers and investors as well as employees). The corporate identity is typically visualized by ...

'. As well as lyrically addressing political themes from a broadly anarchist perspective, they were always low priced and usually produced by Crass drummer

and

engineered Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more specializ ...

by John Loder at

Southern Studios Southern Studios is a recording studio in the Wood Green area of London. It was founded in 1974 by John Loder, and came to be the recording studio of choice for Crass and their record label Crass Records. Southern Studios Ltd. continues to gro ...

in north

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. They also featured sleeves designed by

, often in conjunction with other artists, wherein the record's title and band name were set in '

stencil Stencilling produces an image or pattern on a surface, by applying pigment to a surface through an intermediate object, with designed holes in the intermediate object, to create a pattern or image on a surface, by allowing the pigment to reach ...

' style text in a black ring reminiscent of

Robert Indiana Robert Indiana (born Robert Clark; September 13, 1928 – May 19, 2018) was an American artist associated with the pop art movement. His iconic image LOVE was first created in 1964 in the form of a card which he sent to several friends and acq ...

and

Jasper Johns Jasper Johns (born May 15, 1930) is an American painter, sculptor, and printmaker whose work is associated with abstract expressionism, Neo-Dada, and pop art. He is well known for his depictions of the American flag and other US-related top ...

' works. These sleeves usually folded out into large posters containing additional artwork and text. The label also put out three editions of ''

Bullshit Detector ''Bullshit Detector'' was the name of a series of compilation LPs put together by the anarcho-punk band Crass and released on their Crass Records label. Three editions were released between 1980 and 1984, consisting of demo tapes, rough recordin ...

'', compilations of demos and rough recordings that had been sent to the band which they felt represented the

DIY punk ethic "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and semi ...

. The catalogue numbers of Crass Records releases were intended to represent a countdown to the year 1984 (e.g., 521984 meaning "five years until 1984"), both the year that Crass stated that they would split up, and a date charged with significance in the anti-authoritarian calendar due to

George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, and critic. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to totalitar ...

's novel ''

Nineteen Eighty-Four ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'' (also stylised as ''1984'') is a dystopian social science fiction novel and cautionary tale written by the English writer George Orwell. It was published on 8 June 1949 by Secker & Warburg as Orwell's ninth and final ...

''. Although these vinyl records are now no longer pressed and their art out of print, many of the tracks have been collected and re-released on the ''A-Sides'' parts one and two compilation CDs. Crass' back catalogue, however, remains in print, both in vinyl and CD format. Ex-Crass members Penny Rimbaud and Gee Vaucher continue to put out their creative works (for example, material by

Last Amendment Last Amendment, formerly known as The Crass Collective and Crass Agenda, is the working title of a series of collaborations by ex-members of the anarcho-punk band Crass and others. Although Crass had formally split up in 1984, Penny Rimbaud, G ...

, and Vaucher's book ''Animal Rites'') through Exitstencil, often in collaboration with other publishers such as the

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

label

Babel Label Babel Label is a jazz record label founded in 1994 by Oliver Weindling. It released more than 130 recordings in its first 20 years, two of which were nominated for the Mercury Prize. Formation Weindling was a banker in England in the 1980s whe ...

and

AK Press AK Press is a worker-managed, independent publisher and book distributor that specialises in radical left and anarchist literature. Operated out of Chico, California, the company is collectively owned. History AK was founded in Stirling, Sc ...

Corpus Christi

Corpus Christi Records Corpus Christi Records is a British independent record label started by some of the members of Crass and their recording engineer and business partner John Loder, to release records by artists who did not perhaps fit in with some of the stric ...

was a 'spin-off' from Crass Records, that enabled artists and performers to put out material supported by Crass through John Loder's

, whilst not necessarily being tied to the latter label's 'corporate image' or anarchist ideology.

Discography

Albums

* 621984 Crass - ''The Feeding Of The 5000'' * 521984 Crass - ''Stations of the Crass'' * 421984/2 Poison Girls - ''Chappaquiddick Bridge'' * 421984/4 V/A - ''Bullshit Detector'' * 421984/9 Poison Girls - ''Hex'' * 321984/1 Crass - ''Penis Envy'' * Bollox2u2 Crass - ''Christ: The Album'' * 221984/3 V/A - ''Bullshit Detector Vol 2'' * 221984/7 Dirt - ''Never Mind Dirt, Here's the Bollocks'' * 121984/2 Crass - ''Yes Sir, I Will'' * 1984/1 Kukl - ''The Eye'' * 1984/207370 Hit Parade - ''Plastic Culture'' * 1984/3 V/A - ''Bullshit Detector Vol 3'' * 1984/4 Penny Rimbaud - ''Acts of Love'' * CATNO 1 D & V - ''D & V'' * CATNO 4 Kukl - ''Holidays in Europe'' * CATNO 5 Crass - ''Best Before'' * CATNO 7 Hit Parade - ''Nick Knack Paddy Whack'' * CATNO 8 Crass - ''A Sides Part One, 1979-1982'' * CATNO 9 Crass - ''A Sides Part Two, 1982-1984'' * CATNO 10C Crass - ''Christ's Reality Asylum''

Singles

* CRASS1 Crass - "Reality Asylum" / "Shaved Women" 7" * 521984/1 Honey Bane - "You Can Be You" / "Girl on the Run" / "Porno Grows" / "Boring Conversation" 7" * 421984/1 Crass / "Poison Girls - Bloody Revolutions" / "Persons Unknown" 7" * 421984/3 Zounds - "Can't Cheat Karma" / "War" / "Subvert.Subvert.Subvert.Subvert." 7" * 421984/5 Crass - "Nagasaki Nightmare" / "Big A Little A" 7" * 421984/6 Crass - "Rival Tribal Rebel Revel" 7" (Flexi-disc free with "Toxic Grafity" fanzine) * 421984/7 Poison Girls - "Statement" 7" Flexi-disc * 421984/8 Poison Girls - "All Systems Go" / "Dirty Work" / "Promenade Immortelle" 7" * 321984/1F Crass - "Our Wedding" 7" (Flexi-disc got with a coupon from "Loving" magazine) * 321984/2 Flux Of Pink Indians - "Neu Smell" 7" * 321984/3 Annie Anxiety - "Barbed Wire Halo" 7" * 321984/4 Snipers - "Three Peace Suite" 7" * 321984/5 Captain Sensible - "This Is Your Captain Speaking" 7" * 321984/6 Dirt - "Object Refuse Reject Abuse" 7" * 321984/7 Mob - "No Doves Fly Here" 7" * CT1 Crass - "Merry Crassmass" 7" * 221984/1 Conflict - "The House That Man Built" 7" * 221984/2 Rudimentary Peni - "Farce" 7" * 221984/4 Cravats - "Rub Me Out" 7" * 221984/5 T, Andy - "Weary of the Flesh" 7" * No number Crass - "Sheep Farming In the Falklands" 7" (Initially released as flexi, later as 121984/3) * 221984/6 Crass - "How Does It Feel?" / "The Immortal Death" / "Don't Tell Me You Care" 7" * 221984/8 Alternative - "In Nomine Patri" 7" * 221984/9 Anthrax - "Capitalism Is Cannibalism" 7" * 221984/10 Omega Tribe - "Angry Songs" 7" * 221984/11 Sleeping Dogs - "Beware Sleeping Dogs" 7" * 221984/12 Hit Parade - "Bad News" 7" * 121984/1 D & V - "The Nearest Door" 7" * 121984/3 Crass - "Sheep Farming In the Falklands" 7" (Formerly flexi-disc only) * 121984/4 Crass - "Whodunnit?" 7" * 121984/5 MDC - "Multi-Death Corporations" 7" * 121984/6 "Lack Of Knowledge Grey" 7" * 1984 Crass - "You're Already Dead" 7" * CATNO 2 Jane Gregory - "Do Not Go" 7" * CATNO 3 Lucky 7 - "Take Your Elbows Off the Table" (Choral Mix) / "Take Your Elbows Off the Table" (Orchestral Mix) 7" (Actually Steve Ignorant - unreleased, test pressings only) * CATNO 6 Crass - "10 Notes On A Summer's Day" 12"

References

External links

A history of Crass and Crass Records

Exitstencil Press web site
{{Authority control Crass Anarcho-punk British independent record labels Record labels established in 1978 Punk record labels