Recently I was perusing a short anarchist tract from the anthology "Reinveting Anarchy, Again" that stressed the importance of alternative institutions. Alternative institutions, it said were radical organizations running in parallel with those in the normal society, providing similar functions, but doing so in a different way, and were a necessary component for building a "transfer culture" -- a set of cultural values more conducive to building a free society, one in which people could more easily imagine the kind of institutions we would like to create than is possible in the controlled, authoritarian culture we live in. The most important task for anarchists, the author stressed, at the present stage of development in the movement is not "studying" ideas, or explicitly political activity, but building these alternative institutions.
This got me thinking about what I could do to help build alternative institutions, and I realized that though anarchist collectives like SPAZ and 5lowershop already have the free techno underground covered, there is fertile ground in another area. Every once in a while recently, and even more so back around 2000, SPAZ has thrown a real kick-ass underground gothic/industrial party also.... And they've always been better than anything that goes on at the officially sanctioned nightclubs and even the other underground gothic parties, but there have never been enough underground parties going on.
Now I used to think these kinds of things were a good idea just because they could last all night, when clubs had to close at two or three, or because they could be all-ages, or because SPAZ lets you bring your own booze, whereas the clubs try to rip you off with overpriced drinks.... And all of these are good things. But what I just realized is that the most important reason of all to have these things is to get people out of the officially sanctioned zones and into a genuinely liberated environment, where they are out of necessity exposed to how things can be a different way.
Recently I've been going out to the goth and industrial clubs to check out the scene, and I've been disappointed by how much, with a few exceptions, everything sucks. Now I could blame this on the DJ's or the organizers, or I could just conclude that I don't like this kind of scene anymore, but my intuition tells me that something else is going on. I remember genuinely good clubs like "A Winter Gone By" that kept going with their doors closed, after official hours until 4 AM. I remember how much I loved all the goth clubs in Berlin when I checked them out on the SPAZ tour a couple years back, and I remember stuff that SPAZ put on like “Totentanz Automata” and “Wonderland93.” Something tells me that the scene isn't dying in and of itself, but is being pushed in that direction by a society that is increasingly conservative and authoritarian -- by dwindling numbers of venues due to ridiculous permit processes, by increasingly controlled environments, and by a move to a society that only accepts work, family, sleep, work, family, sleep -- maybe a walk in the publicly-funded and controlled park on the weekend -- but no fun after 10 P.M.... No nonstandard hours or jobs less than 40 hours a week. No deviation from the norm. Anything less, and well, you might just be a terrorist or something.
Our social and political institutions oppose the gothic and industrial scenes, but the gothic and industrial scenes are so apolttical that they don't know it; they don't know that they need to oppose those social and political institutions, if they want their scene to survive.
Well, let's help them with that.
I think it would be great to start an anarchist collective within devoted to subversive gothic and industrial endeavors.... Let's not just throw parties, let's make it an explicitly radical experience, one that challenges the authority structures of our society. Let's throw them in warehouses, in places without permits, outside the official authority structure of our society.
Now if you know me, you may know I like taking a hard-line stance with the police and authorities when they try to shut down underground events -- not answering questions, not admitting to responsibility, or even opening the door. I think that's as important as having the thing, because it stakes out our claim to do what we want in our space without the permission of the powers that be -- it takes some power back from them.
But there are other things I would really like to see in an alternative gothic/industrial gathering. First off, it should be free, in the tradition of the free techno movement. I don't want to make anyone feel pressured into making a donation or to feel like they can't come if they don't have enough money, because the whole point of this endeavor is to build cultural values that are based on our genuine emotional needs as humans, and our need for freedom, not on consumerism, not pre-packaged or approved by us for those in charge. Though you probably know that I'm an individualist anarchist and not opposed to commercial activity, or using money, in this case I don't even like a "suggested" donation. If we were to suggest anything, I would like to have little scale at the door that suggests a different donation based on different income levels. $0-$700/month - $5, $700-$900/month - $7, etc. I want to take this out of the realm of a product that you buy, and make it clear that it's more like a movement that needs voluntary contributions. And we should take contributions for future events all the time, not just at parties.
Food and drink should be there at prices that don't constitute ripping off a captive audience as well -- free if possible, covered by the donations that fund the party, or Food Not Bombs, or something.
It would be nice to insinuate some radical politics into things as well. I would like to see some space for political expression, maybe just room for some tables with literature on them, maybe even some political art on display.
And we should encourage people to get involved as much as possible, so they can see from the inside how a non-authoritarian group works. If you know me, you know I have distinct ideas on this. I may be an individualist anarchist, but when individuals need to cooperate as a group, I think it makes most sense to do so in a decidedly non-formal and non-authoritarian way (the kind non-authoritarian communalism advocated by collectivist anarchists). I'm opposed to a few individuals taking charge and holding authority over things. I'm also opposed to running things by any kind of voting system, all of which are inherently authoritarian, if not merely because of the fact that majority overrules minority, also because of the fact those who make procedural decisions (when to recognize motions, when to vote on what) hold considerable authority. I like everything to be done by informal bargaining that seeks to placate all parties, like everyone is a sovereign monarch negotiating at the bargaining table for some kind of peace treaty.
It's a kind of organization that takes a while to reach maturity and master. At first negotiations break down a lot, and people end up going to the fallback, which is some kind of direct action in defiance of those they oppose, which leads to a little feud. It takes a while before everyone learns that these skirmishes are mutually destructive to all and people learn to consider the wishes of others before others force them to do so. It helps immensely to see others who have already mastered this skill, working and cooperating as a community in a productive manner. That's what I want people in the scene to see. Not some mysterious promoter, “XYZ Productions” or whatnot putting on everything for them, but a participatory community with participatory decision-making, where they can become part of the process themselves.
I think it would be a good idea to put on the same kinds of events that happen at clubs, even if almost everything was the same, and we couldn't do anything better. Just doing it a different way, to show that it could be a done a different way would be worth it. I suspect, however, that simply the quality of having an event that exists in a state liberty is in and of itself something that makes the experience better.
I would really like to start some kind of standing anarchist gothic/industrial collective, one with a continuing mission to throw kick-ass parties in underground venues, but not just that -- but also to do so in a very participatory, anti-authoritarian, and radical, way.
This whole train of thought has turned into something of a manifesto for me.... Well, who's with me?
I think the gothic/industrial community is the perfect kind of group to expose to this kind of project. They're outside of the norm, assaulted by and discriminated against by mainstream society. Despite their apoliticalness, they've already shown the willingness to make big sacrifices for their values, mostly aesthetic, but nonetheless this is the principle requirement for being a revolutionary. They're also to a large degree de-classed, many from middle to upper class backgrounds, but no longer reaping the benefits of this. This is another one of the principal qualities that they have in common with the anarchist "vanguard." -- not really a vanguard in the Marxist sense of course, but really forerunners who will need to build alternative institutions before society as a whole can see them as viable alternatives to those we have today.
I've seen goths politicized in Germany, both to the left and right. It can be done, and it should be done before our enemies try to take control of the scene. Goth was once an offshoot of punk, after all, so the whole thing isn't really incompatible with politics by its nature. Even more important than bringing explicitly political activity into the scene though is getting people involved in these alternative ways of doing things, that are by their very actions political whether they convey messages or not.
Let's take back the night... in style! Okay?
Interested individuals in the San Francisco Bay Area can e-mail daniel@individualist-anarchist.net.
Feel free to use these suggestions elsewhere or in other scenes. Political action begins in your own community!
Daniel Burton, a.k.a. Melchizedek, Lord of the Brambles
A collective has been formed to put on underground, warehouse-style gothic and industrial parties, outside of the confines of officially sanctioned spaces, in the San Francisco Bay Area. It seeks both to put on fun events and to expose people to alternatives to the present social order.
For more information, click here.