Simon Strong
Encyclopedia
Simon Strong is a North English writer, musician and
film-maker currently resident in Melbourne, Australia. He is best known
as author of "A259 Multiplex Bomb 'Outrage'" and as front-man for the
psychedelic new-wave group Pink Stainless Tail
.
, South Yorkshire, and attended local
comprehensive schools. Family connections allowed him to pursue an
interest in electronics and computing, and from the mid-seventies he was
active in local computer clubs and his programs and articles were
published in home computer magazines. In 1982, Strong left Sheffield to
attend Brighton Polytechnic and went on to work programming for
artificial intelligence projects, specialising in the then new field of
interface design. Increasingly politicised by the rise of Thatcherism,
Strong dropped out of computing and took a succession of menial jobs
(including toilet cleaner, bouncer and bookseller) and concentrated on
creative writing. During a tenure at Hatchards Booksellers, Strong
helped organise literary events by authors including Nick Cave
and
Billy Childish
.
By 1989 Strong was residing above an Indian take-away in the red-light
district with Palmer and Taylor of beat group The Fire Dept. They were
often visited by experimental novelist Stewart Home
, who exerted a
profound influence on Strong's writing. Around this time, Strong was
also performing with his own outfit, the Barry Jeffries.
production and distribution centre in Hove. He co-ordinated and designed
covers for artists including The Television Personalities, AlternativeTV
, Richard Hell
, Alex Fergusson
, The Undead
(ex-Misfits), TheeHeadcoats
, Man or Astroman?, Subway Sect
, GG Allin
. Strong was
instrumental in the re-issuing the oeuvre of Jon the Postman.
In 1996, inspired by small presses such as Atlas Press
, Temple Press and
Creation Books
, Strong founded CodeX Books and Records as a branch of
Overground. Over the next 12 months he issued Stewart Home's 'Cranked
Up Really High', Richard Hell's 'The Voidoid', Billy Childish's 'My
Fault' and Kathy Acker
's 'Pussy' on CD. Creation Books had previously
accepted Strong's novel "A259 Multiplex Bomb 'Outrage'" but delays in
its publication led to Strong issuing the book on the CodeX imprint. The
book was enthusiastically received, selling out two printings in six
months, but momentum was lost when Strong suddenly emigrated to
Australia in early 1997, although a Russian translation of the book
appeared in 2006.
Boddington to form The Pink Stainless Tail
in 2001, and went on to
release three records. The group was popular with a small but fanatical
group of fans with Strong's stage persona memorably (and consistently)
described as "a flailing scarecrow amalgam of William Burroughs and Mark E Smith".
In February 2004, the [Victorian College of Arts] invited Stewart Home
as writer in residence and commissioned Strong to run a course to
introduce students to Home's themes and praxis. Around this time, Strong
set up his [netlabel], The LedaTape Organisation, as an outlet for his
work and others.
Over the next few years Strong finalised two books (in collaboration
with Jason Crest) that had been in development since the publication of
'A259'. 'Rape vs. Murder' was produced entirely (in one run) by a
computer program from a corpus of books published by [The Paris Olympia
Press], whilst '66mindfuck99' was a fictionalised account of the
creation of the former. Both of these publications were privately
printed and circulated samizdat, not because their content was
contentious, but rather due to Strong's vehement rejection of the
conventional publishing paradigm. Despite their limited availability,
the books were well received and in 2010 were taught at the University
of Pennsylvania by Kenneth Goldsmith, curator of ubu
.com.
film-maker currently resident in Melbourne, Australia. He is best known
as author of "A259 Multiplex Bomb 'Outrage'" and as front-man for the
psychedelic new-wave group Pink Stainless Tail
Pink Stainless Tail
Pink Stainless Tail are a rock band formed in Melbourne, Australia in early 2000. The band's members are Nick Boddington , Harry Howard , Sonke Rickertsen and Simon Strong .-History:...
.
Early life
Strong was raised in EcclesfieldEcclesfield
Ecclesfield is a suburb and civil parish in the City of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England, about north of Sheffield City Centre. At the 2001 census the civil parish— which also includes the Sheffield suburbs of Chapeltown, Grenoside, High Green, and formerly Thorpe Hesley —had a population...
, South Yorkshire, and attended local
comprehensive schools. Family connections allowed him to pursue an
interest in electronics and computing, and from the mid-seventies he was
active in local computer clubs and his programs and articles were
published in home computer magazines. In 1982, Strong left Sheffield to
attend Brighton Polytechnic and went on to work programming for
artificial intelligence projects, specialising in the then new field of
interface design. Increasingly politicised by the rise of Thatcherism,
Strong dropped out of computing and took a succession of menial jobs
(including toilet cleaner, bouncer and bookseller) and concentrated on
creative writing. During a tenure at Hatchards Booksellers, Strong
helped organise literary events by authors including Nick Cave
Nick Cave
Nicholas Edward "Nick" Cave is an Australian musician, songwriter, author, screenwriter, and occasional film actor.He is best known for his work as a frontman of the critically acclaimed rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, established in 1984, a group known for its eclectic influences and...
and
Billy Childish
Billy Childish
Billy Childish is an English artist, painter, author, poet, photographer, film maker, singer and guitarist...
.
By 1989 Strong was residing above an Indian take-away in the red-light
district with Palmer and Taylor of beat group The Fire Dept. They were
often visited by experimental novelist Stewart Home
Stewart Home
Stewart Home is an English artist, filmmaker, writer, pamphleteer, art historian, and activist. He is best known for his novels such as the non-narrative 69 Things To Do With A Dead Princess , his re-imagining of the 1960s in Tainted Love , and earlier parodistic pulp fictions Pure Mania, Red...
, who exerted a
profound influence on Strong's writing. Around this time, Strong was
also performing with his own outfit, the Barry Jeffries.
Overground / CodeX
From 1993-97 Strong worked for Overground Records, based at theirproduction and distribution centre in Hove. He co-ordinated and designed
covers for artists including The Television Personalities, AlternativeTV
Alternative TV
Alternative TV were an English rock band, formed in London in 1976. Their punk rock and post-punk sound was influential for several musical artists.-History:...
, Richard Hell
Richard Hell
Richard Hell is a singer, songwriter, bass guitarist, and writer.Richard Hell was an innovator of punk music and fashion. He was one of the first to spike his hair and wear torn, cut and drawn-on shirts, often held together with safety pins...
, Alex Fergusson
Alex Fergusson
Alex Fergusson may refer to:* Alex Fergusson , Scottish politician, former Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament* Alex Fergusson , Scottish guitarist/producerSee also* Alex Ferguson...
, The Undead
The Undead
The Undead is a horror punk band formed in 1980 in New Milford, New Jersey by Bobby Steele , Chris "Jack" Natz , and Patrick Blanck . Bobby had just been fired from his previous band, The Misfits, when forming The Undead.They released their first EP 9 Toes Later in 1982...
(ex-Misfits), TheeHeadcoats
Thee Headcoats
Thee Headcoats 1989 - 2000, was a band comprising Billy Childish, Bruce Brand, and Johnny Johnson. Childish was featured on guitar and vocals, Brand on drums and backing vocals, and Johnson on bass. The band was the most prolific of Childish's many musical projects, releasing fourteen full...
, Man or Astroman?, Subway Sect
Subway Sect
Subway Sect were one of the original British punk bands. Their influence was limited by the very small amount of recorded material they released.-The early days:...
, GG Allin
GG Allin
Kevin Michael "GG" Allin was an American punk rock singer-songwriter, who performed and recorded with many groups during his career. GG Allin is perhaps best remembered for his notorious live performances, which often featured transgressive acts, including coprophagia, self-mutilation, and...
. Strong was
instrumental in the re-issuing the oeuvre of Jon the Postman.
In 1996, inspired by small presses such as Atlas Press
Atlas Press
Atlas Press began publishing in 1983, and specialises in extremist and avant-garde prose writing from the 1890s to the present day. Atlas Press is the largest publisher in English of books on Surrealism and has an extensive list relating to Dada, Surrealism, Expressionism, the Oulipo, the Collège...
, Temple Press and
Creation Books
Creation Books
Creation Books is a British publishing house specializing in experimental literature, surrealism, erotic and decadent literature. Creation also publish non-fiction, with books on magic, subcultures, and taboo topics such as suicide and serial killers. They are best known for publishing a number of...
, Strong founded CodeX Books and Records as a branch of
Overground. Over the next 12 months he issued Stewart Home's 'Cranked
Up Really High', Richard Hell's 'The Voidoid', Billy Childish's 'My
Fault' and Kathy Acker
Kathy Acker
Kathy Acker was an American experimental novelist, punk poet, playwright, essayist, postmodernist and sex-positive feminist writer. She was strongly influenced by the Black Mountain School, William S...
's 'Pussy' on CD. Creation Books had previously
accepted Strong's novel "A259 Multiplex Bomb 'Outrage'" but delays in
its publication led to Strong issuing the book on the CodeX imprint. The
book was enthusiastically received, selling out two printings in six
months, but momentum was lost when Strong suddenly emigrated to
Australia in early 1997, although a Russian translation of the book
appeared in 2006.
Melbourne, Australia
After a hiatus, Strong joined Harry Howard, Sonke Rickertsen and NickBoddington to form The Pink Stainless Tail
Pink Stainless Tail
Pink Stainless Tail are a rock band formed in Melbourne, Australia in early 2000. The band's members are Nick Boddington , Harry Howard , Sonke Rickertsen and Simon Strong .-History:...
in 2001, and went on to
release three records. The group was popular with a small but fanatical
group of fans with Strong's stage persona memorably (and consistently)
described as "a flailing scarecrow amalgam of William Burroughs and Mark E Smith".
In February 2004, the [Victorian College of Arts] invited Stewart Home
as writer in residence and commissioned Strong to run a course to
introduce students to Home's themes and praxis. Around this time, Strong
set up his [netlabel], The LedaTape Organisation, as an outlet for his
work and others.
Over the next few years Strong finalised two books (in collaboration
with Jason Crest) that had been in development since the publication of
'A259'. 'Rape vs. Murder' was produced entirely (in one run) by a
computer program from a corpus of books published by [The Paris Olympia
Press], whilst '66mindfuck99' was a fictionalised account of the
creation of the former. Both of these publications were privately
printed and circulated samizdat, not because their content was
contentious, but rather due to Strong's vehement rejection of the
conventional publishing paradigm. Despite their limited availability,
the books were well received and in 2010 were taught at the University
of Pennsylvania by Kenneth Goldsmith, curator of ubu
Ubu
Ubu may refer to:*Ubu Repertory Theater*Ubu, Nepal*Ubu or Uub, a character in Dragon Ball media*Ubu Roi , a French play by Alfred Jarry, along with subsequent plays Ubu Cocu and Ubu Enchaîné featured "Ubu" as the main character*Ubu Roi, mascot of Ubu Productions*Pere Ubu, an experimental rock...
.com.
Novels
- A259 Multiplex Bomb "Outrage" (CodeX)
- 66mindfuck99 (with Jason Crest, hors commers)
- Rape vs. Murder (wihg #579, hors commers)
CD releases
- 'The Infinite Wisdom of the Pink Stainless Tail' with The Pink Stainless Tail : CD : March 2007
- 'This is me in the park with no clothes on… I like the flowers' with The Pink Stainless Tail : CD : May 2005
- 'The Sky's a Soft Target' with The Pink Stainless Tail : CD : 2003