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The Ghost in the Chess Machine
Many years ago Nick Blinko sent me a copy of this A6 pocket size zine. With just 4 or 5 simple drawings and one short story with "Chess" in the title I did wonder if anyone would be interested. Then we got in to a long protracted discussion through a third party about doing the bla(n)ck version of his Primal Screamer book.
Then it all went quiet.
2018 came around and a crazy jigsaw puzzle project brought Nick and I back in to regular conversation. I asked him if he'd like me to revive the anonymous Primal Screamer project. We did that, its a weird and wonderfull version that is almost unsellable outside of a "knowing" audience. That done I thought it time to do the "Chess" zine too. Nick had said he had "done a few" back in the day, but no one I knew had heard of it before. Tempting to print 20 on a risograph with a card cover and keep it as a rare, collectable and "expensive" item. But that is not what Active is about and probably not what he wanted when he asked if I was interested in it. So here it is a last , 1000 have been printed, with an old school anarcho-punk cover price. Enjoy
Jon active
Then it all went quiet.
2018 came around and a crazy jigsaw puzzle project brought Nick and I back in to regular conversation. I asked him if he'd like me to revive the anonymous Primal Screamer project. We did that, its a weird and wonderfull version that is almost unsellable outside of a "knowing" audience. That done I thought it time to do the "Chess" zine too. Nick had said he had "done a few" back in the day, but no one I knew had heard of it before. Tempting to print 20 on a risograph with a card cover and keep it as a rare, collectable and "expensive" item. But that is not what Active is about and probably not what he wanted when he asked if I was interested in it. So here it is a last , 1000 have been printed, with an old school anarcho-punk cover price. Enjoy
Jon active
12 pages, Paperback
16 people want to read
About the author
Nick Blinko
9 books45 followersNick Blinko (born 4 September 1961) is a British musician, lyricist, and artist best known as the lead singer, lyricist and guitar player for the British band Rudimentary Peni. He is also known for being an "outsider" artist who creates all the drawings used by the band for its artwork. Blinko began his career in the band The Magits, which formed before Rudimentary Peni in 1977 and was primarily electronic and considered inaccessible to most punk listeners.
Blinko has written a fictionalized semi-autobiographical novel with horror elements, entitled The Primal Screamer. It was published in 1995 by Spare Change Books. The book is written as a series of journal entries made by the therapist of one Nathaniel Snoxell (who starts a band which is never named but is similar to Rudimentary Peni in many ways).
Blinko also contributed to a collection of punk fiction short stories, entitled "Gobbing Pogoing And Gratuitous Bad Language". It was published in 1996 by Spare Change Books. The story is titled Punk Alice, a reference to Rudimentary Peni's song Alice Crucifies the Paedophiles. The story is written in a sketchbook style of doodles and scribbled phrases referencing the death of punk, chess, Catholicism, depression, goth, Rudimentary Peni lyrics, and drug chemicals.
Blinko contributed artwork for Coil's 1997 release, Unnatural History III released on Threshold House. The use of many bright colors in the drawings is a departure from his usual black & white style.
Blinko draws intensely dense and detailed compositions of faces, figures and obsessive patterns, which at times also incorporate fragmented phrases. Diagnosed as suffering from Schizoaffective disorder, and in the past hospitalized, Blinko creates his pictures when not taking therapeutic medication that adversely affects his ability to work. His art conjures a nightmarish, anxiety-ridden world where inner demons might be exorcised through repetitive graphic marks. Out of thousands of tiny flecks and dashes emerge elaborate visions of skeletons, mysterious symbols and religious figures. Reminiscent of the macabre images of Goya or James Ensor, Blinko creates a personal iconography that evokes the magic and menace of a rich imagination.
Another example of this is the Rudimentary Peni concept album Pope Adrian 37th Psychristiatric.
Nick Blinko currently resides on the "outskirts of London" in Abbots Langley.
Blinko has written a fictionalized semi-autobiographical novel with horror elements, entitled The Primal Screamer. It was published in 1995 by Spare Change Books. The book is written as a series of journal entries made by the therapist of one Nathaniel Snoxell (who starts a band which is never named but is similar to Rudimentary Peni in many ways).
Blinko also contributed to a collection of punk fiction short stories, entitled "Gobbing Pogoing And Gratuitous Bad Language". It was published in 1996 by Spare Change Books. The story is titled Punk Alice, a reference to Rudimentary Peni's song Alice Crucifies the Paedophiles. The story is written in a sketchbook style of doodles and scribbled phrases referencing the death of punk, chess, Catholicism, depression, goth, Rudimentary Peni lyrics, and drug chemicals.
Blinko contributed artwork for Coil's 1997 release, Unnatural History III released on Threshold House. The use of many bright colors in the drawings is a departure from his usual black & white style.
Blinko draws intensely dense and detailed compositions of faces, figures and obsessive patterns, which at times also incorporate fragmented phrases. Diagnosed as suffering from Schizoaffective disorder, and in the past hospitalized, Blinko creates his pictures when not taking therapeutic medication that adversely affects his ability to work. His art conjures a nightmarish, anxiety-ridden world where inner demons might be exorcised through repetitive graphic marks. Out of thousands of tiny flecks and dashes emerge elaborate visions of skeletons, mysterious symbols and religious figures. Reminiscent of the macabre images of Goya or James Ensor, Blinko creates a personal iconography that evokes the magic and menace of a rich imagination.
Another example of this is the Rudimentary Peni concept album Pope Adrian 37th Psychristiatric.
Nick Blinko currently resides on the "outskirts of London" in Abbots Langley.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
March 22, 2024
Nick's words are delightful but half the time I've no idea what the fuck he's going on about 🤣
August 28, 2025
The rating isn't reliable, think I'll be going back over this little zine a few times at some point - it's between a 3* and 4*, I'm confused about everything (myself included).
I don't know what to make of it, sometimes it seems Blinko's onto something and at others you're in a whirlwind of words, imagery and ideas. First page I was like "This sounds interesting" but very quickly it turns into some sort of opium dream shared by Lovecraft and William Burroughs, then had another interesting bit for a few lines at the end.
I took it as a very extreme mixing of reality/fantasy in and outside of His (the character's) head. I think I get it... but do I? Going to go back to it another (few) times, purely out of Blinko fandom, and it's so short that you can finish it in minutes. He can come out with some great lines and phrases too.
Also wonder if all the grammatical errors were true to how Nick wrote it (and then, is it intentional or unintentional) or if they're publishing mistakes.
I don't know what to make of it, sometimes it seems Blinko's onto something and at others you're in a whirlwind of words, imagery and ideas. First page I was like "This sounds interesting" but very quickly it turns into some sort of opium dream shared by Lovecraft and William Burroughs, then had another interesting bit for a few lines at the end.
I took it as a very extreme mixing of reality/fantasy in and outside of His (the character's) head. I think I get it... but do I? Going to go back to it another (few) times, purely out of Blinko fandom, and it's so short that you can finish it in minutes. He can come out with some great lines and phrases too.
Also wonder if all the grammatical errors were true to how Nick wrote it (and then, is it intentional or unintentional) or if they're publishing mistakes.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews