There was a myriad of influences that were the backbone of the sound & style of The Radiators From Space. There seemed to be nothing around us in Dublin that reflected what we wanted to hear. The high energy rock of the New York Dolls, MC5, Stooges, Velvet Underground, Flamin’ Groovies, Pink Fairies, Edgar Broughton Band mix with the art-rock of Roxy Music, Sparks & the glam of David Bowie, T. Rex were are touchstones in the early days.
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The word “punk” was not yet in current, common circulation, but these bands represented something vital, energetic & liberating. It was music from 'somewhere else'. So, we looked for a name that somehow reflected those interests & adopted a B-movie trash aesthetic.
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The name, 'The Radiators' was inspired by a heating appliance catalogue I had to hand, but in order to give an additional addendum in the vein of 'The Invaders from Mars', the suffix 'From Space' was added (and later 'Plan 9' in 2005).
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With gigs forthcoming & in the wake of the media’s focus on 'punk' & the use, ironic or otherwise, of facist imagery, I thought about creating an alternative symbol, which became a lightning bolt-music notation symbol in white circle on red background. Both reflected a certain blitzkrieg attitude & maybe a little bit of antagonism. These photos capture one of the only times we used this imagery at a show. In these pictures you can see my “art” shirt, which I had on set on fire before the show & stomped it out, hence the missing lower half. .
It was ultimately a naive thought & open to being misunderstood in its intention, which was an anti-fascist attack on typical fascistic imagery. We very quickly dropped this image, feeling that the Radiators logo was the perfect visual representation of the band’s music & direction. Really, the Radiators logo was intended to be used only for the first single, 'Television Screen'. However, it took on a life of it's own in punk aesthetics & became synonymous with the band, with the custom typeface also being used for the post-Radiators band, ‘Trouble Pilgrims’. It was gratifying to see it included in the Punk exhibition @madmuseum as shown by @typedirectorsclub
Blitzkreig at the Baggot Inn
