Rock City

I've been listening to Andrew Collins standing in for Nemone on BBC 6Music - and here's a link to the save 6Music campaign He asked yesterday for stories relating to Rock City and so I dropped him an email, now listening to the show and other people's memories of Rock City is really taking me back. Just the words "chewing gum carpet" will be enough to transport anyone back to Rock City if they've been there.

Rock City for the uninitiated is a alternative music club and venue where all the best bands indeed do play. Rock City's been going in its current form since the 1980s. My friend Lorraine was at Nottingham University from 1993 and I did my PGCE at Nottingham in 1995/6 so frequented Rock City during that time. I also went back for new year 1998 for an ill-advised night out "gothed up" with Lorraine, except we ended up looking more like French mime artists.

Rock City is hard to capture in writing so I shall just list the things that come into my mind and hope it gives you a flavour of what it was like there in the 1990s

Aging punks in PVC, doc martins and ripped hem lines
Snake bite and black Goths too cool to dance actually dancing
An area known as "the pit" Stage surfing skinny boys with floppy fringes
Grunge goth brit pop metal & sweaties indie kids
Dancing until 3 AM dark corners taxi queue

I was lucky enough to see the Cocteau Twins there and being little, Lorraine and I sidled our way to the front and spent the whole night mesmerised by Liz Fraser's out of this world singing.

Rock City is one of the best clubs and band venues I have ever been to, long may it continue!