It’s easy to overlook unsung local firsts. But in the late 1970s, punk in Halifax wasn’t just a cute imitation of crass Brits and stoned New Yorkers. It affected major changes in a city that shunned inexperienced performers and laid the groundwork for some of the most exciting independent music of the 1980s and ’90s.
Halifax’s first tentative dance with its own punk culture happened in the halls of the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, a goof-around art project by a handful of smirking art school students. The Vacant Lot and The Trash Kanz were the city’s first punk bands, consisting of two very similar, friendly lineups in different formations, playing off a staged rivalry used to drum up excitement for supposedly contentious billings. And beyond the walls of NSCAD, they managed to find a local hippie cafe, Odin’s Eye, that wasn’t concerned with running afoul of the musicians’ union.
Like many cities across Canada, the Halifax bar scene of the ’70s was tightly controlled by the American Federation of Musicians. AFM Local 571, the Atlantic Federation, would blacklist venues that hired non-union musicians or refused to pay scale, a measure of protection for the professionals who comprised their backbone.
Upstart punk bands couldn’t afford union dues, and venues couldn’t afford to be blacklisted by hosting non-union performers. The young, excited kids starting sloppy new bands and hoping to play in their own town were, essentially, fucked.
Which is why Odin’s Eye, soon renamed The Grafton Street Cafe, became such a crucial local institution. When The Vacant Lot and The Trash Kanz inevitably imploded, the first bands to play the re- christened room were Nobody’s Heroes and Agro.
Equally passionate bands, they were younger musicians whose reaction to punk was more genuine and less self-conscious. Nobody’s Heroes still relied on covers, but its two recorded originals demonstrate a serious dedication to the craft of songwriting, along with the undeniable influence of Stiff Little Fingers. It’s no surprise that Cowan continued to play long after the Heroes—he later formed The Little Ministers, a classic rock radio staple, as well as Absolute Faith, the first vehicle for future reality TV star and INXS frontman JD Fortune.
Agro was Halifax’s tougher, wilder punk outfit. It was a boundary-pushing collection of weirdos right out of the gate, an almost-immediate post-punk response to what had barely come before them. Confrontational and intentionally obtuse, the few existing live bootlegs of early shows hint at a Pere Ubu-like attack, a very literal assault on a limited audience.
Talking to anyone who attended early shows, words like “chaos,” “psychotic behaviour” and “troublesome” tend to pop up a lot. One of the most infamous episodes in the band’s history was an impromptu set on the steps of a church—set at the top of a hill, the building had a handful of working outdoor electrical outlets. Naturally, it was Agro who first thought to storm the church and set up its amps, cranking through almost half an hour of tunes before the cops showed up.
Before long, local arcade owner Greg Clark opened the city’s first real venue to reject the AFM outright—The Flamingo, also on Grafton Street.
The rest is local history, but it started with some passionate kids and an open-minded hippie enclave, sidestepping and rejecting an establishment that had tried to keep them from participating in and creating their own culture: punk.
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This article appears in Nov 3-9, 2011.
I admit I am slightly too young to be definitive, but I remember the Club Flamingo’s first location was the Cove Theatre, most recently Palooka’s gym on Gottingen, around 1984. Anyone?
Waye: Nope. First Flamingo location was down the street on Grafton in a building that was eventually torn down and now houses the . I can’t recall how long it lived there before moving to the Cove… maybe a year? It was definitely operating there in 1983-84. cheers, AO
Oops, housed Alfredo Weinstein & Ho.
My suds & body! An article in the Coast praising people who stood up to a Union. I can die a happy man now (but won’t because I’m a prick)
Another venue from that era that seems to be forgotten is the former St Pat’s Church community hall located at 2128 Brunswick St. There was not only a performance venue on the main floor but also a communal flop in the upstairs. Mod rockers “The High Numbers” held residency there for a while, along with many of the seminal Hali punker bands and followers.
There was also a punk/new wave venue above where 5 Fishermen is now, and a big one in Dartmouth near the ferry. IMO the Brunswick Street Social Club space mentioned by yokel was the best of all the 70s and 80s venues.
I remember Agro’s first show at a Halifax West talent night. The power was shut off to prevent a riot, the police were called and Greg & Edwin’s dad was called to drive us away to safety. Good times back when it was all about getting away from the slugs and Top 40 radio.
The first hardcore band in Halifax was Urban Attack circa 1981 who played often at St. Pats and layed the foundation for artists and skateboarding.
Well apparently I’m late to this party, but I was there so I thought I’d say, Hi. Odin’s Eye didn’t get made over into the Grafton St. Cafe right away. It was a viable operation from I think winter of 76 to at least the spring 78 maybe longer. I left for a while and it was still in operation when I returned in the spring/summer of 78.
The punk bands were a change of pace as they came with their own crowd and their own beer… We were aware that they were under 19 and worried about getting busted for their drinking. I thought the body slam dancing was bizarre, but everyone was happy enough to host them as long as they didn’t brawl too heavily.
I also hung out at 1707 Brunswick Street where we did live theatre. The stage manager had punk sensibilities and a whippet which he brought nearly everywhere he went. I loved that venue. I was the props queen.
If anyone from those days is interested in a chin wag look me up on facebook, Val Barone or add a comment here. 🙂
Val, if you know Dave Kimber, you and I have a lot of people in common.
Can’t even make a comment, bull FB blither bather lotssssss of internet blathterrrrerelrejrakefjalkefdlisfhlfn
Pretty sure my band, The Nerve opened up for Agro at the Grafton St. cafe. Patrick Fraelick opened for The Nerve. Not sure the Church story was like that. I remember we did a show, with Agro, in the Brunswick St Church which was gutted at the time and was going to be converted to Condos. We had permission to do this impromptu show by the developer, on Easter Sunday and it was billed as Pontius Pilot and his Nail Grabbing Trio featuring bands like Agro and PBX. Of course Gregory Cameron and the Agro band may well have done another abandoned church gig, but that would be news to me. I think we were told to turn it down and the cops might’ve showed up, but my attention at the time was mixing and recording the sound.
The Cove Theatre Flamingo was opened in 1985 and the Wailers were the first big act to perform.
Also, Suburban Rebels, my band, played with Urban Attack (frontman Ewan MacDonald, also student friend at HWHS) at the “St Pat’s Social Centre” on Brunswick St as we called it on our posters. There was another band that played there once, as well, from Moncton, The Robins. I had a one-gig band. The Inquisition, that opened for Nobody’s Heroes at Grafton St Cafe as well (I went to school with the Cowans at HWHS). Agro was Greg and Edwin, twins if I recall. Yeah, they were pretty mental, and nearly started a riot at their first gig at a HWHS Coffee Shop.