[30 Years Ago Today] 4AD’s 13 Year Itch Festival
Posted on July 19, 2023 at 2:48 pm | No Comments
A quick post to mark a noteworthy anniversary…

Thirty years ago today I was in England for the first time ever, and for a very, very special reason: A week-long celebration of the venerable 4AD record label called “The 13 Year Itch” at the I.C.A. London. Monday, July 19th through Saturday, July 24th, 1993. Six nights of music, two scheduled bands each night, with unannounced ‘special guests’ each evening. Plus unique video presentations and a gallery of the unmistakable artwork of Vaughan Oliver (RIP), Chris Bigg, and their collaborators at v23. The announced lineup? Undeniable. Kristin Hersh, Pale Saints, Unrest, His Name Is Alive, Bettie Serveert, Underground Lovers, Red House Painters, Insides, The Breeders, The Wolfgang Press, Brendan Perry of Dead Can Dance, and Heidi Berry. Some of the surprise bands? Throwing Muses, Lush, Ether (more on them below), and bonus second sets from the Breeders & Unrest. Unreal.
This trip started my unending love-affair with label-centric festivals. As much as I say I’m not a ‘festival kinda guy’, if a label I love is throwing one, I’m probably there. Merge, Teen-Beat, Matador, Touch & Go, Slumberland, Numero (earlier this year), Dromedary (later this year), I’ve been to a lot of ’em, and they’ve been some of the musical/travel highlights of my life.
Interview clips & live footage from the UK version of MTV’s 120 minutes
Some random personal (and mostly fuzzy) recollections from that week to accompany some photos I snapped below…

Here’s my set of point-and-shoot photos from the week. Wish I’d taken more, but the pre-digital-camera era and varied crowd spots kept it limited (though I certainly think I got enough shots of Kim Deal :-))…

Kim Deal of the Breeders during their surprise set

Kelley Deal of the Breeders

Kim again

The Breeders’ Josephine Wiggs

more Kim

Kelley Deal wearing my favorite Unrest t-shirt

Look, it’s Kim again

Kim Deal, back when you could smoke on stage

Josephine Wiggs of the Breeders

another Kim Deal shot

… and a last one for good measure

Caroline Crawley of Ether

Ether’s Pearl Thompson

Ether’s Caroline Crawley

Karin Oliver of His Name Is Alive

Guest Jason Farrell helps introduce Red House Painters

Former Pale Saint Ian Masters on stage with His Name Is Alive

Kristin Hersh of Throwing Muses

Throwing Muses’ Kristin Hersh & David Narcizo

Gordon Mack of Red House Painters

Mark Kozelek of Red House Painters

Red House Painters’ Gordon Mack

Mark Robinson of Unrest

Bridget Cross of Unrest

Unrest’s Mark Robinson

Unrest’s Mark Robinson

Unrest’s Mark Robinson & Bridget Cross

Mark Robinson sporting a spiffy Tsunami t-shirt

Michael Allen of The Wolfgang Press
Bless you, Ivo-Watts Russell, and everyone involved in putting that week together, for giving this Vermont kid a reason to take his first-ever cross-Atlantic flight. And memories I’ll never forget. Mostly.
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