Issue 2- September/October 2022

This issue: Interview with UK Stars Nova Twins, Accessibility tips for bands and venues

Image ID: Cover of Cripple Punk Mag 2. It is a neon orange with black text and images, grainy like a photocopy. The logo at the top reads “cripple Punk Mag” designed to look like old cut and paste zines. There is a guitar and a wheelchair behind the text, which looks like it was cut from a newspaper, and a halftone affect in the background. A picture of the band Nova Twins takes up most of the space, two young black women in elaborate caution tape themed outfits. The text reads: Accessibility in local music, this issue: accessibility tips for bands and venues. A starburst in the bottom right corner reads: Interview with UK stars Nova Twins. End ID.

Welcome to issue 2 of Cripple Punk Mag. Here we are going to talk about music, accessibility and how we can make the local scene open to everyone. Want to submit something? Email merlin.sabal13@gmail.com. Show reviews, accessibility ratings, other resources, bands to check out, art, you name it. If you have accessibility recommendations for this blog as well, please feel free to reach out. Also available as a print zine, for those of you who prefer paper formats.

This issue: Tips for improving show accessibility for bands and venues, an interview with UK stars Nova Twins, a look at RAMP’D: Recording Artists and Music Professionals with Disabilities, and more zine recs on Diversity in Music.

A special thank you to Amy, Georgia, and Claire from Nova Twins and Arthur Gwynne at RAMPD for making time to talk with me about accessibility.

Image ID: Guitarist/vocalist Amy Love and bassist Georgia South, two young Black women, pose in front of an orange Mylar curtain, wearing white and orange outfits that are covered in caution tape that reads “Fragile” and big, exaggerated orange stitches. Amy wears her hair in two black braids bound with while ribbon and Georgia has a red Afro. They both sport theatrical eye make up and lipstick. End ID. Image Credit: Federica Burelli

Nova Twins- September 2022

Vocalist/Guitarist: Amy Love

Bass: Georgia South

Latest Release: Supernova on Marshall Records

Recommended Tracks: Antagonist, K.M.B, Choose Your Fighter @novatwinsmusic

If you haven’t heard Nova Twins’ music before, I urge you to check it out immediately. Described as “The loudest, most exciting new rock band in the UK” by The Guardian, their music is an intoxicating and genre defying blend of punk, metal, and R&B, complimented by fast lyrics and killer hand made costumes. They are kicking off their first full North American tour on September 27th. If you check out the previous entry, I have compiled, complete with links, the available access info for their NA tour dates to help you plan for a totally face melting show; the good news though is that almost all these venues are wheelchair+ accessible, which is impressive given that they are playing smaller venues than they currently do in the UK. I caught one of their few NY shows before the full tour in April at Baby’s All Right in Brooklyn, I took my electric wheelchair and both the venue and band were great, I wasn’t even the only visibly disabled person there. I’m so excited to see them back in the US, and very honored that they took the time to talk accessibility and diversity in music with me.

M: First of all, thanks so much. You guys are doing your first really big US tour soon, what are you most excited for?

NT: It will be good to be back in the States, playing cities we haven’t visited before. We’re excited to come back to see everyone, especially as it’s our first big headline tour in the U.S. and Canada and we’ll be playing ‘Supernova’ overseas. We’re grateful for the reaction to the album in the US, so it will be great to come back and perform to everyone who’s been supporting it.

M: Y’all have a sign at your shows that reads “No Harassment. No Racism. No Homophobia. No Transphobia. No Xenophobia. No Ableism” -this is a great ethos, and your shows are known for being positive inclusive spaces. When did you start hanging those, and how did ableism get added to that list?

NT: We’re a band who often feels we’re on the outside looking in. We wanted a safe space for everyone who’s ever felt like that, making them feel included. They can come to our shows and feel free to be their full authentic self. Many people have come to our gigs with access requirements. We make every effort to ensure we’re doing our best to lookout for the entire audience, as everyone is accepted and welcome. That’s the atmosphere we want to create, an all inclusive one.

M: Do either of you have personal experience with disability you would be comfortable talking about, either for yourselves or with people close to you? This is a very personal question so no pressure at all.

NT: We don’t have personal experiences ourselves, however we do have people within our management team who have disabilities. Fans have often specifically pointed out the no tolerance for ableism signs at our shows, thanking us for adding this, as often ableism is forgotten, making people feel unseen and unheard. It’s important for artists to embrace that responsibility, creating a safe space for all fans, as it’s unfair if people don’t have the same access or experiences as the rest of the crowd. Robin Millar from our management company wrote out against Noel Gallagher’s behaviour at Glastonbury. We encourage people to go read this.

M: Are you able to think about accessibility when booking venues at all?

NT: When you are playing smaller venues, everything becomes a lot more limited. Sadly, this can include accessibility, due to the size of the space. However, when we go to these venues, we make sure we have a good team involved, making it as comfortable as possible for everyone attending. To the best of our ability, we make any adjustments possible in order to tailor venues, to accommodate greater accessibility.

M: How do we as individuals create cultural change?

NT: You can’t take on the whole world, it’s daunting. However, working in your area, being an advocate for change and being vocal is a start, whilst always using your platform, if you have one, to keep the conversation going. If you focus on creating some form of positive change, whether that’s at home, at work or in your social life, then hopefully the change will start to spread, little by little.

M: What can other bands be doing to make their shows safer and more inclusive?

Address it on socials ahead of the shows, so fans feel more at ease. A lot of people can feel intimidated coming to Rock shows. We suggest having clear messaging on all platforms, to help people feel more comfortable at the thought of coming along. For bigger bands, showing representation via their support bands is also a great way to make shows feel more inclusive.

M: Do you know anyone else doing work to make the scene open to everyone — regardless of if they are focusing on disability or not?

FEVER 333 do a lot of demonstrations. Their name stands for charity, change and community. Jason is incredibly vocal, his lyrical topics and his open discussions support change. Dream Wife are huge advocates for women and non-binary people and take certain support acts out on tour with them. Their shows are focused on lifting the LGBTQ community. Big Joanie is another great example of positive change makers. They run Decolonize Festival, a POC focused Punk festival.

M: How does diversity improve the music scene? Is there anything else important to you that you want to discuss about music, art, diversity?

It provides more ideas and perspectives. Having more representation for younger generations to look up to supports more choices and removes limitations. It breaks down the boundaries that society sometimes creates for us. Some of the best/most popular music you hear comes from a lot of black or multi-cultural backgrounds. If it wasn’t for multiculturalism, what we hear today in the US, UK & more globally wouldn’t exist.

Check out the New Album Supernova and see Nova Twins in the US and Canada 9/27–10/16

Tips for improving accessibility for bands and venues

For Bands: Smaller bands, especially those just starting out, don’t have a lot of control over where they play. So, with that in mind, here are 3 easy things you can do to make your show more accessible.

1. Put access info on flyers

Don’t make your audience hunt around for info! If the stage area is wheelchair accessible but the bathrooms are up a flight of stairs, say that! Personally, I am more likely to pay attention to bands if they put this info on their flyers or in their posts, so even if you have to say that this particular venue is downstairs, I’ll try to make it to the next show.

2. Post flashing light signs

Lot’s of people are photosensitive, so if you use strobes or other fast lights post about that so people can make informed decisions

3. Write image descriptions on social media

Image descriptions make your advertising accessible to people with impaired vision. Write a quick visual summery of your post and make sure all the text is in the description. This makes your show more accessible and means you don’t lose out on audience members just because they couldn’t read where your gig was.

For venues: Venue staff, management, and owners have a lot more power to make things accessible than individual bands, so I really encourage anyone working in live music to think about accessibility! If roughly ¼ of American adults have some kind of disability, you are limiting your audience and your sales (capitalism yay) by not making your venue open to disabled audiences.

Accessibility is complex and constantly evolving, but we all need to start somewhere. I interviewed around 20 disabled concert goers and read through other first hand accounts to come up with a working definition of an accessible venue:

1. Be able to get a wheelchair into the performance space, stage and bathroom.
2. Have places to sit or chairs available, someplace the person sitting can see but won’t be in danger from the crowd
3. Post flashing light warnings, and don’t use strobes
4. Have bathrooms and water available
5. Allow re-entry so that people can step away if they need to
6. Have a contact number listed to make more specific arrangements

Further tips:

1. Flashing lights most likely to trigger seizures are between the frequency of 5 to 30 flashes per second (Hertz). Keeping your lights slower than this makes shows much safer for photosensitive patrons and will still look cool (Epilepsy Foundation)
2. Let physically disabled patrons in before the general audience to make sure they can get safe seats
3. If you send out press releases with images, write out image descriptions to encourage press to post them and to ensure you are being described the way you want.
4. This is a personal opinion, but a too steep portable ramp is better than no ramp! Just make sure you have staff who can help and keep the person using the ramp safe by spotting the chair if the person needs it
5. The more info you can provide the better: set times, floor plans if you have ’em, etc
6. Ask about accessibility even if its not an accommodation you need! Make it part of the conversation

Image ID: A black and grey logo for RAMPD,Recording Artists and Music Professionals with Disabilities. A grey music note with a dot above it to look like a head, on a black background with white text. End ID.

RAMPD: Recording Artists and Music Professionals with Disabilities

So far this zine has talked a lot about accessibility from the audience point of view, but disabled people are performers and industry people too. I chatted with Arthur Gwynne of RAMPD, a new organization founded in May of 2021 by award-winning recording artist and advocate Lachi. They have already gone on to partner with the Grammys to improve event accessibility and been written about in Billboard and the New York Times; so while they’re operating much bigger than the bar and basement shows that are the backbone of punk, their work has big implications for the music scene as a whole. RAMPD’s mission is to “amplify disability culture, promote inclusion, and advocate for accessibility within the Music Industry” (rampd.org) It was during this conversation that Arthur, Operations Manager of Lachi Music, RAMPD’s founder, explained that during the forming of RAMPD it became clear that a lot of disabled musicians have been working in very insular ways. RAMPD is working on creating a community so that people are able to not just be public about their disability but celebrate it as part of themselves and something that informs their work. He said RAMPD wants to encourage musicians to break away from the mindset that “you’re in this alone and your access needs are your own burden to deal with”, but instead connect with other disabled communities and realize that this is a cultural shift not just your own struggle.

Diversity in Music: Zine Recs!

Access is intersectional, so here are a few other great zines discussing other issues in the scene like racism, misogyny, organizing and inclusion. if you have others to recommend get in touch!

1. Antifa, Autism, and The Border Wall Around Punk
2. Building: A DIY Guide to Creating Spaces, Hosting Events and Fostering Radical Communities
3. Harm Reduction for DIY Venues
4. Making Spaces Safer: A Guide to Giving Harassment the Boot Wherever You Work, Play, and Gather
5. Muchacha Fanzine #16: Decolonize Punk
6. No Bystanders: by Mike Nowotarski
7. Outset: Women and Nonbinary Black, Indigenous and POC in Punk Rock: WOC musicians, zinesters, and photographers who were also pioneers of punk rock during the movement’s formative years.
8. Sing It Like the Kids That Are Mean To You: a collection of works about what it means to exist as a person of color in emo/punk/alt-rock/etc scenes and in online bandom
9. Shotgun Seamstress: by and for Black Punks since 2006
10. Weirdo Zine: a UK-based zine and platform documenting the experiences and perspectives of South Asian people in the alternative scene across the world

Thus concludes issue 2. Thank you! Disabled punks rock