924 Gilman: The Story So Far...

by Brian Edge (Compiler)

Known to most only as the place where punk rock legends Green Day, Operation Ivy, and Rancid were spawned, and home of the 'East Bay' sound, there's actually a lot more that's impressive about Gilman Street. What you get here, in words, and over 200 photographs, is a thorough historical account of the first 17 years of the all-ages, volunteer-run punk club in Berkeley, CA, as recounted by those that actually worked there, went there, and occasionally played there. Some of the names you may know - some of them are (in)famous scenesters, zinesters and play(ed) in bands too - most of them you won't. Which is, of course, what makes the project, and this documentation, so incredible. Heartfelt and inspiring, these stories, anecdotes, complaints, exultations, analyses, and reminisces truly capture the huge impact the club has had on the lives of those who've been involved there. In the words of the books editor "it's not your age or experience that matters most, it's your dedication and enthusiasm."

Genres: Music, Punk, History, Nonfiction

424 pages, Paperback

First published June 6, 2004

Reviews

[Brad · Rating 1 out of 5]

One-and-a-half stars. I did learn a few interesting tidbits about 924 Gilman (A.K.A. The Gilman Street Project), but very few. The book was frustrating to read and was not worth the little bit I learned.

My major grievance is that this book features very little writing about music, which is to say it speaks very little about the first thing most people think of when they think of Gilman. Make no mistake: the book intentionally chooses to instead focus entirely on how the organization is run, as told by its volunteers from over the years. That indeed could have been interesting if the book were built to be a “How to” guide for others interested in the Gilman model, but any discussion of its business matters stays far too generalized for the book to be considered instructional. Instead, the reader is given an extremely repetitive collection of mostly impersonal testimonies about the volunteer experience at Gilman. A collection of letters like this would do well as something for a 501(c)(3) to show potential funders, but it makes for frustrating reading for anyone interested in getting more info about what it was like volunteering/attending/playing at shows at the epicenter for the second wave of punk rock. If I were to accept that a book about the most influential punk rock club of my lifetime has chosen to not focus on music, that still would not undo the book’s numerous other flaws.

At its most basic, the book looks at the club from pre-founding through 2004. It does so by collecting two-to-six page essays written by Gilman members who took some ownership of their club experience by way of becoming volunteers. Certain stories are referred to again and again…a Feederz show where the singer had cockroaches glued to his head and threw a dead dog into the audience (which was acquired from a friend who worked in or studied animal medicine) (40); a show where Jello Biafra was targeted for physical assault (193-194, 200); an Insaints show where a female performed a sex act with a banana and a different (reformed) Dead Kennedys member called the cops on them (170, 194); the Isocracy shows (a band made up of Gilman volunteers that later had a Lookout! release) where they literally threw bags and bags worth of trash into the audience (40). There are also the two major stories about the club in regards to the neighborhood. One is about Pyramid, a brewery that wanted opened a pub across from Gilman which the Gilman unsuccessfully protested…only to later have positive relations with the company. The other is DiCon, a company that refused to work with the Gilman regarding the vandalism on their property, choosing instead to go through the city to have the club closed…Gilman had numerous entities supporting them and a resolution was reached. There are also many mentions of early conflicts with neo-Nazis, interacting with city council, addressing fights while working security, membership meetings, getting burnt out as a volunteer and getting upset with how many concert attendees never become involved as volunteers. It is rare when these repeated topics are given much detail or have a unique viewpoint associated with them. Overall, the book makes Gilman feel like a cliquish punk rock clubhouse at times, an insufferable anarchist commune at others, an inclusive community outreach center at others. The book is part scrapbook (much of which is tiresome attachments that could have been an appendix), part unabridged zine. The value of most of these pages is not likely to be high for folks who haven’t ever served as Gilman volunteers.

A pseudo-oral history of Gilman volunteering could have been interesting, but in 400+ pages, it rarely offers an essay that has something different to say. The issue seems to be the prompt that was given to contributors, which I’d wager was far too open to be inspiring. Very few of the essays seem passionate in any way. (Exceptions at the bottom.*) A more interesting approach would be, “What was your favorite Gilman moment? As a volunteer? As an artist? As an audience member?” Instead, most entries follow the same formula: “I first came to Gilman on… I started volunteering on… What I grew to become [whether at Gilman or outside of Gilman] was…” There are, of course, exceptions, but they do not outweigh the boredom caused by the rest.

Lack of specificity seems intentional for the book’s compiler. Nearly all essays have their author’s last name somewhat anonymous, something that only breeds more frustration for the reader. Certain writers are obvious—Chris A(pplegren, 152-154) and Kamala P. (38-41, who is known both for her band Kamala & The Karnivores and for the Screeching Weasel song “Kamala’s Too Nice”)—but what harm could come from including a few words to contextualize the author of each blurb? I mean, Matt Freeman (listed as Matt F.) writes about the pleasure he took in being the Gilman’s trash man, which is hilarious and humbling in light of the fact that he became an internationally touring musician in Rancid. (45-46) Most bands to come out of the Gilman did not become mega-stars and their names may not be instantly recognizable. For all I know, some of these writers were in one of the smaller Lookout! bands, so why not let the reader know this? A little biographical info seems standard, not something that would not be “selling out” and instantly mean the book was written for starf**kers.

Speaking of pretty normal things that are left out, the photos throughout the book primarily only offer photographer credit, almost no informative photo captions.

There is no arch to the book and other than the early years, no arch to the individual chapters.

Also worthy of note is that the physical book is poorly put together; pages only require a few turns before they start falling out.

*Quality entries include: Steve S. (30-34), Emilie V’s photo essay (246-251), Rachel Siebert’s “Punk Rock Praxis: Women at 924 Gilman Street” (281-285), Leigh Vega (286-288), Megan March (294-295), Jemuel Gardner’s “Cake Fight” (344-345) and Ben Ditch’s “After Hours at Gilman St.” (346-347).



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According to Jesse “Luscious” Townley Blatz was basically a house band his first two years there, starting 1989. Since then, Jesse has held every position but working sound or the other two corporate offices. (He has been the Secretary since 1991, which means he shares legal responsibility.) (135)

New Year’s Eve 1989 featured Primus and Mr. Bungle

For a while, one member lived at Gilman and struck a deal with a prostitute where she could safely bring tricks into the office and she’d give him $5 after. (143, Dean “Naked” D.)

Chris Applegren (listed as Chris A.: He met Livermore in March 1988 when Chris had a radio show. Y late 1988, he and Livermore would do a 200 mile drive to Livermore’s to stuff records and do Lookout mail orders before going off to the Gilman. (152)

“Lookout Records would not exist today if it weren’t for Gilman…I became a full-time employee of Lookout Records in 1989, when David H. / left, and became president/owner in late 1996 when Lawrence left. I was 23 at the time. One thing that made it easier to make the decision about running Lookout, and to become responsible for its 14 employees as well, was seeing the strength and power that young people had at the Gilman, and drawing inspiration from that, seeing what they could do. It helped me understand my own capabilities, believe in myself, and visualize what I could accomplish. I hope this piece can convey in some small way the gravity of impact Gilman has left on me.” (153-154)

“I remember the crazy Blatz shows, them throwing out squid at the audience, or spraying the audience with rotten milk out of an inflatable goat’s ass, or chopping things up with an electric chainsaw.” (177, Ernst)

“At the time I announced I was leaving, we had over $4000 in the bank, and when I left, three months later [after Branwyn took over], we had close to $10,000 in the bank…/…In closing, I think Gilman does a really good job of delivering music to people, but that’s about it, and people get their own sense of community out of it, despite the fact that there’s not much going on besides music. The club has a way of chewing people up and spitting them out, and it’s important to recognize how much work goes into a place like that. There are very few businesses that have stayed open as long as Gilman and have been doing pretty much the exact same thing as the day they opened.” (189-190, Mike Stand)

“My first impression of the space was that it was much smaller than it appeared in zines. It was also dirtier, and had way more ‘crusties’ than I’d ever seen in my life. I was also surprised at all the Mohawks spiky hair, patches, and dog collars, not to mention the circle pit. All these things had died out in the mid-80’s on the East Coast. One of the first shows I saw there included a band who mocked rape on their stickers and in their lyrics. The paid audience for that show consisted of about 15 people who were yelling things, throwing things, and holding up picket signs to protest the band. I was however, impressed by the smooth operation of the club and the egalitarian way they paid the bands…/…I was glad to be a part of the successful fight to ban major label bands from playing at Gilman. I also helped start ‘new band night,’ which Gilman does when we have trouble with a bill on a particular night. We only charge $3, and all the money goes to Gilman, but bands get to play here faster than they normally would. Some of the bands that played the first ‘new band nights’ included AFI, Screw 32 , and Link 80.” (199-200, Hawk)

“Quite a few of the volunteers that some of you might remember as being these incredible, awesome people turned out to be elitist power-hungry assholes that didn’t want the club to belong to anyone except themselves and their handpicked group of friends…The problem with that mentality is that new people with fresh ideas and perspectives are needed to help make things move onward and upward.” (212, Jake Kelly)

“Many people have said to me, and I can’t disagree with them, that the biggest weakness is that the club is run by a clique or cliques that stand aloof from the regular people who attend the shows. Gilman is like a punk rock high school, and the / social life of any high school is run by cliques. This is human nature, and it holds true everywhere, not just in high schools. I think anyone who is bothered by this needs to look at themselves, and why they are going to Gilman. Part of the point of ‘punk’ is that we are all worthwhile, even if we are geeks who don’t fit in.” (241, Larry W.)

“So I was going to write about what Gilman means to me and how important it is, but changed my mind. That’s boring.” (Jemuel Gardner, 344) Agreed.

“There are generally 10-20 members at a meeting.” (editor, 375)

[EC · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent read, what can I say?!! It kept me company through some very, very rough nights in my life. I'll write a proper review later.

[Christopher Stockwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love it here at home in the PNW, but I always felt like I was at home when I went to Berkeley. 924 Gilman was home away from home for a lot of people. Anyway, this book give you a comprehensive on 90s punk in the Bay Area. It's required reading for any and all Gen X punks.

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off, I should share that, having grown up in the Bay Area, I spend a few nights at Gilman in my youth, and I will always have fond memories of going to shows there growing up.

Having said that, this book was a fascinating read: I learned a great deal about the early days of the club and all the hurdles they had to overcome in order to just get the space off the ground. I got some insider stories from around the time I first went there. I got to find out a lot more about a place that I still believe in into my thirties.

On the downside: it is a little bit long, and I feel like they included a lot of supplemental material that was more loosely connected to the actual "story of Gilman". While it is cool to see minutes from some of the trials, some of the paperwork, all that, it is so small when reprinted in the book that it is almost illegible. Plus, the constant debate about punk ideology gets a little tiring over the span of 400+ pages. That's mainly my personal gripe with the scene anyhow, but hearing about things that are "so punk" just kind of gets tiring after a while.

Overall, I'd say it's a must-read for anyone who has had a good time at the venue, or even those of you who have an interest in the space and its history. The writing and stories are all over the place, which kind of makes the book like Gilman itself in a nutshell.

[D'arcy · Rating 5 out of 5]

What makes this such an amazing piece of music history is that many different perspectives are represented (though it would have been valuable, and difficult, to get the opinions of those who did not want this book produced included). From those who just went to shows in the last decade and those from the start, to the people who helped build and maintain it, to those who hated what it was or became, plenty of opinions and personal account fill this meaty beast of a history (which also includes some great photographs). MRR have done a great job in trying to offer an honest and in-depth look at one of punk's most important venues, the ideas that it spawned, and how people felt about them. This really gave me plenty of ideas with how a music scene can and cannot work and has been a useful document to this day. From putting on shows, to dealing with egos, this book has lots to live and learn from.

[Ryan Mishap · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thick ass piece of history, this. With so many contributors, this reads like an oral history about one place: the volunteer-run, non-profit community space at 924 Gilman St. in Berkeley, CA. With accompanying news articles, meeting notes, policies, letters of support, and tons of photos accompanying the personal remembrances, this book is a definitive chronicle of the start, the fun times, conflicts, processes, and even gossip around Gilman. This book is rad and anyone involved in DIY punk or collective spaces will get something out of it.

[Joshua · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was the head coordinator of the 924 gilman collective when this book was published. The layout leaves a lot to be desired and could have been trimmed down significantly. The list of shows from conception to the time of the books publishing is a great resource for nostalgia if nothing else. A few interviews stand out as great and a few that could have been left out.

I'm glad this book was produced, but I really wish the internal layout was more readable.

[Christopher Hong · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of recollections of the club that remains as scrappy, loud, and unapologetic as it was when it was founded.

[Noodle · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is another book you find just about everywhere in the punk scene in the East Bay. This place is punk DIY institution. Yes, it's generally near the toilet.