Nick Kent (born 24 December 1951) is a British rock critic and musician, best known for his writing for the NME in the 1970s, and his books The Dark Stuff (1994) and Apathy for the Devil (2010).
Nick Kent (born 24 December 1951) is a British rock critic and musician, best known for his writing for the NME in the 1970s, and his books The Dark Stuff (1994) and Apathy for the Devil (2010).
Kent, the son of a former Abbey Road Studios sound engineer, began his career as a writer at age 21 in 1972,[ clarification needed ] inspired by Jack Kerouac and Hunter S. Thompson. [1]
Kent's writing talent was evident at college when, after analysing James Joyce's Ulysses , he was recommended to apply for further English study. But after dropping out of two universities he started to make a name for himself as a music critic in London's underground scene.[ citation needed ]
Along with his contemporaries, such as Paul Morley, Charles Shaar Murray, Paul Rambali and Danny Baker, Kent is widely considered one of the most important and influential UK music journalists of the 1970s. He wrote for the British music publication New Musical Express , moving to The Face later on in his career. Kent's writing predominantly covers the lives and music of rock-and-roll musicians. His prose is laced with images of self-destruction and compassion, exploring the reality of being an artist in the late twentieth century. Kent is the author of two books: The Dark Stuff, a collection of his journalism and Apathy for the Devil: A 1970s Memoir which is an autobiographical account of his life and experiences in the 1970s, published in March 2010.
In the mid-70s, Kent played guitar with an early incarnation of the Sex Pistols, [2] and performed briefly with members of the early punk band London SS, under the name Subterraneans. Brian James, later of The Damned, said of him: "Nick is a great guitarist, he plays just like Keith Richards. He's always trying to get a band together but he just can't do it. Nerves, I guess. It's a shame, though, because he loves rock 'n' roll and he's a great bloke." [3]
Kent's relationship with the punk scene was strained. Already a well-known music critic and a symbol of the music industry, he was assaulted by Sid Vicious with a motorcycle chain [4] in the 100 Club. Kent relates the incident in Johnny Rogan's book on rock management, Starmakers & Svengalis; in The Filth and the Fury , director Julien Temple's 2000 documentary of the Sex Pistols; in Jon Savage's book England's Dreaming; as well as in his own books, The Dark Stuff and Apathy for the Devil. Despite this infamous incident, Vicious claimed in a 1977 interview that Kent was 'good fun' and that 'he bought me a meal a little while ago, it was really nice of him'. [5] In the film Sid & Nancy , there is a scene where "Dick Bent," described by Pistols follower Brenda Windzor (Kathy Burke) as "a wanky journalist who doesn't appreciate the Pistols," is assaulted by Sid Vicious (Gary Oldman) at one of their gigs.
Kent also had bad relations with the early punk incarnation of Adam and the Ants, starting with his NME review of the soundtrack album to Derek Jarman's film Jubilee in which Kent labelled Adam Ant a Nazi sympathiser on account of the featured song "Deutscher Girls". In retaliation, Ant sarcastically name-checked Kent in the song "Press Darlings" (later a B-Side of the Ants' #2 UK hit single "Kings of the Wild Frontier" and on the US edition of the hit album of the same name), claiming that "If passion ends in fashion, then Nick Kent is the best dressed man in town..." [2] In addition, then-Ants guitarist Matthew Ashman assaulted and humiliated Kent with a potful of strawberry jam in the queue outside Camden's Music Machine venue. [6] [7]
In 1974, Kent began dating and moved in with Chrissie Hynde, later lead singer of the band The Pretenders, after she began working at NME. Throughout the 1970s, Kent was a heroin addict. [8]
Kent currently lives in Paris with his wife, and contributes articles occasionally to the British and French press, most notably The Guardian . [9] He is the father of synthwave musician James Kent, best known as Perturbator.
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they became one of the most culturally influential acts in popular music. The band initiated the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspired many later punk, post-punk and alternative rock musicians, while their clothing and hairstyles were a significant influence on the early punk image.
The Damned are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1976 by lead vocalist Dave Vanian, guitarist Brian James, bassist Captain Sensible and drummer Rat Scabies. They were the first punk band from the United Kingdom to release a single, "New Rose" (1976), release a studio album, Damned Damned Damned (1977) and tour the United States. Nine of the band's singles charted on the UK Singles Chart Top 40.
The Pretenders are a British-American rock band formed in March 1978. The original band consisted of founder and main songwriter Chrissie Hynde, James Honeyman-Scott, Pete Farndon and Martin Chambers. Following the deaths of Honeyman-Scott in 1982 and Farndon in 1983, the band experienced numerous personnel changes; Hynde has been the band's only consistent member.
John Simon Ritchie, better known by his stage name Sid Vicious, was an English musician, best known as the bassist for the punk rock band Sex Pistols.
Glen Matlock is an English musician, best known for being the bass guitarist in the original line-up of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols. He is credited as a songwriter on 10 of the 12 songs on the Sex Pistols' only officially released studio album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols, although he had left the band early in the recording process, credited as bassist and backing vocalist on only one song on the album, "Anarchy in the U.K.". However, on the bootleg album Spunk, Matlock played bass on all the songs, which included earlier studio recordings of 10 of the 12 songs that later appeared on the Bollocks album.
The 100 Club Punk Special was a two-day event held at the 100 Club venue in Oxford Street, London, England on 20 and 21 September 1976. The gig showcased eight punk rock bands, most of which were unsigned. The bands in attendance were each associated with the then evolving punk rock music scene of the United Kingdom. Historically, the event has become seen as marking a watershed moment for punk rock, as it began to move from the underground and emerge into the mainstream music scene.
Nancy Laura Spungen was the American girlfriend of English musician Sid Vicious and a figure of the 1970s punk rock scene.
Sid and Nancy is a 1986 British biographical film directed by Alex Cox, co-written with Abbe Wool, and starring Gary Oldman and Chloe Webb. The film portrays the life of Sid Vicious, bassist of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols, and his destructive relationship with girlfriend Nancy Spungen. The film also features supporting performances from David Hayman, Xander Berkeley, and Courtney Love.
Stephen Philip Jones is an English guitarist, best known as a member of the punk band Sex Pistols. Following the split of the Sex Pistols, he formed the Professionals with former bandmate Paul Cook. He has released two solo albums, and worked with Johnny Thunders, Iggy Pop, Cheap Trick, Bob Dylan and Thin Lizzy. In 1995, he formed the short-lived supergroup Neurotic Outsiders with members of Guns N' Roses and Duran Duran. He played with Suicidal Tendencies frontman Mike Muir's Cyco Miko, which is still an ongoing project. Jones was ranked #97 in Rolling Stone's 2015 list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
Christine Ellen Hynde is an American-British musician. She is a founding member and the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of the rock band The Pretenders, and one of the band's two remaining original members alongside drummer Martin Chambers. She is the only continuous member of the band, appearing on every studio album.
Sex was a boutique run by Vivienne Westwood and her then partner Malcolm McLaren at 430 King's Road, London between 1974 and 1976. It specialised in clothing that defined the look of the punk movement.
Vicious White Kids were an English punk rock band from London that formed for only one concert on 15 August 1978, staged at the Electric Ballroom in London. The former bassist of Sex Pistols, Sid Vicious, was the lead singer. It was his final concert in England, as he died of a heroin overdose the following February.
Masters of the Backside was an early British punk rock group. They never released a recording or performed beyond practice sessions, but the group's members went on to greater success: Chrissie Hynde later fronted The Pretenders, and Dave Vanian, Captain Sensible and Rat Scabies were subsequently founding members of The Damned.
Stella Nova, born Stephen Charles New, was an English guitarist and singer who performed with a number of punk rock and new wave bands in the late 1970s and early 1980s, including the Rich Kids. In the 2000s, she came out as transgender and changed her name to Stella Nova, whilst performing with the band Beastellabeast.
Johnny Moped are an English punk rock group formed in South London in the mid-1970s, who once had Chrissie Hynde and Captain Sensible as members.
John Joseph Lydon, also known by his former stage name Johnny Rotten, is a British-born Irish-American singer and songwriter. He was the lead vocalist of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols, which was active from 1975 to 1978, and again for various revivals during the 1990s and 2000s. He is also the lead vocalist of post-punk band Public Image Ltd (PiL), which he founded and fronted from 1978 until 1993, and again since 2009.
Steve Dior is a British singer, guitarist and songwriter best known for being in bands such as The London Cowboys, Filthy Lucre and The Idols.
Rotten: No Irish, No Blacks, No Dogs is an autobiography by John Lydon, former singer, songwriter, and front man of the punk band Sex Pistols. Co-authors of the autobiography are Keith and Kent Zimmerman. The book was first published in 1994 by St Martin's Press (USA) and Hodder & Stoughton (UK), a second edition became available in 2008 by Plexus Publishing (UK) and Picador (US).
Pistol is a British biographical drama miniseries created by Craig Pearce for FX that follows Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones and the band's rise to prominence and notoriety. The series was announced in January 2021, and was directed by Danny Boyle. It premiered on Hulu in the US and Disney+ in the UK on 31 May 2022. The series was removed from Hulu and Disney+ internationally including the UK on May 26, 2023.
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