The Nuthins played an exhilarating garage rock inspired by all those 60s garage psych / acid punk classics.

Their 1997 release of ‘1 Step Forward’ has been recently reissued to extended nature. ‘1 Step Forward… Further Steps’ contains album and accompanying session tracks, plus their singles and compilation appearances. Featuring recordings cut between 1991 and ’98, this expanded album is the definitive anthology. This collection is the first of two Nuthins anthologies, with the vinyl rarities/unreleased set, ‘Oddities, Allsorts & Magic Mixtures,’ to follow soon. The band were also recently included on the Cherry Red box set ‘Into Tomorrow – The Spirit Of Mod 1983-2000,’ alongside such other garage related acts as The Prisoners, The Milkshakes, The Clique, The Stairs, The Aardvarks, The Bogeymen, Thee Cherylinas, Jarvis Humby and The Mystreated.

Members of the band included Jonathan “Mojo” Mills, Robert “Bon” Taylor, Andy Cornick, Carol Galpin, Lee Thornton, Marcus Turner, Richie Walker.

“We found our groove in that 1965-67 sound”

Detour Records did such a fantastic job with the release of ‘One Step Forward… Further Steps’. How involved were you with the process?

Mojo: Yes, they did a great job. The album ‘1 Step Forward’ originally came out in 1997, not 1995 as Discogs says, on Twist. On vinyl. Detour, who had issued our previous EP, ‘Mistake,’ and who we had contributed a track to for a compilation, bought up the Twist catalogue. Hence this … ‘Further Steps’ anthology, which collects together the album, and all the singles, bar a few tracks, and comp appearances. We were very involved. We chose all the tracks, wrote the liners, et cetera. There’ll be a vinyl rarities comp to follow called ‘Oddities… All Sorts… Magic Mixtures: Rare and unreleased 1993-1998’ to follow. That’ll be vinyl-only and contains some great stuff.

Bob: Dizzy had been wanting to do this release for a while, must be five years or so. Anyway, he persevered, and we finally got it together. Luckily,I had a really good Nuthins archive, started by Carol, our original bassist, handed to me when she left the band. I kept it going until the end, so we had everything we needed for the anthology.

Would love it if you could speak about the material in this fantastic anthology. We can hear your 1997 album, plus the singles and compilation appearances.

Mojo: Yes, basically it’s everything we released between 1992 and 1999. The remaining stuff of note will be on the coming album. We started off as a comic book garage band, inspired by The Fuzztones and all of the ’80s stuff, alongside the Pebbles thing. Only a couple of us could play, so it was rather ramshackle. We had to work very hard, and by the time of our debut single ‘Allergic Kiss,’ recorded in 1991, we were getting there. I do wish it was about half the length though. We were very green. As a debut goes it’s not bad really and sounds better than it should. I’d say it’s passable mid-60s R&B in the Stones/Pretties mould. Lee’s vocals sound great. And I’m not embarrassed by my guitar. As we progressed, we deviated across all manner of sounds and styles, all roughly in the garage camp. The ‘Cemetery Chemistry’ EP is pretty wild, and there’s a great live tape of us from 1994 playing in London. We used to play a cool version of ‘Bad Little Woman’. When we solidified as a four-piece, we stripped it back a lot more and focused on the 1965-67 sound. Mixing up fuzzy ’60s punk with pop, beat, folk-rock and semi-psych. We became more uniform. The ‘Mistake’ EP is great, but I’m not that keen on the recording, even though it was Toe Rag. It sounds muddy. The album followed and was done quickly. I used to think that hindered it, but listening to the new edition, the sound is improved, and I hear it with new ears, and really like it. We had a sound. The last single ’Thoughts & Visions’ was superb. We split before it came out, but if we had continued in that manner we could have really shone.

Bob: Yes, we did a lot of writing, and the early material did have a lot of influences, including that early indie jangle! We were a bit green, and it was a big learning curve. It took us a while to settle, but as a four piece we found our groove in that 1965-67 sound.

“Keeping it ’60s was the only way”

Where was most of the material originally recorded and what was the process like back then?

Mojo: The early singles were local studios in and around Salisbury and Southampton. The album and ‘Mistake’ were recorded at the legendary Toe Rag in London. The first couple of singles were recorded quite pro, with the drums and bass laid down first, and then the rest… and vocals last. We used old amps, so it sounds okay, but we didn’t have the expertise or means to go against the grain in the provincial studios. We were inexperienced so we did what the engineer told us to do. We soon learned to play all together with vocal overdubs to keep it garage. I still think some of the best stuff we recorded, which will appear on the forthcoming collection, was recorded in the village hall where we used to rehearse. Keeping it ’60s was the only way, and we were pretty tight, and young, so always played with a ton of energy. We literally bashed the album out on our return from an Italian tour.

Bob: Our first single ‘Allergic Kiss’ was produced alongside Simon Wiggs, who had been in a signed indie band called The Badgeman. That definitely helped us and gave us a good start. We also did a lot of sessions with a great young producer, Justin Calloway. He did the ‘Cemetery Chemistry’ EP, the recordings in the village hall, and the last great session at The Orange studio, including ‘Thoughts And Visions’. That was definitely the sound we wanted and was a great way to finish on a high.

Tell us about the gear you had in the band.

Mojo: I always used the same Vox AC30 amp… and played a Hofner Verifin on the beat-punk stuff, had a Tele custom before, and then settled on Vox Phantom guitars, six and 12-string (the latter sadly borrowed and only used for recording). I used a Fuzz Face pedal. Carol had a lovely old Eko bass and a Vox. Lee had all manner of guitars. Our final bassist had some old unbranded bass, which looked cool. Richie had a Ludwig kit… Bob will tell you about his organs.

Bob: I now have that great Eko bass. I used a Vox Continental, Hammond L100, and Farfisa, until the last two were stolen. Also, an Intercontinental and an Elka organ. The speakers were Leslies and a great Elka spinning amp.

Would you like to share about your upbringing? Where did you all grow up? Tell us about daily life back in your teenage years.

Mojo: I grew up in a village on the edge of The New Forest, 10 miles away from Salisbury. I hung out in the town and studied there. All of the rest of the band were based in the town. Richie on drums was still at school. As a teenager I was a mod, and then my village pals and I got into the psychedelic scene through that and started dressing that way in about 1987. We loved garage, and then became stoner hippies… I was into the garage still, but also acid-folk, prog and so on, essentially the majority of the shit that I still dig the most. Meeting the rest of the gang that would become The Nuthins in 1989, saved me, and my long hair was cut into a bowl.

Bob: My dad was in the army, so the first part of my life was in Germany. We moved to the Salisbury area when I was about eight. At school I got into mod and the beat and freakbeat sound. I spent my teenage years going to see a lot of mod bands, obviously The Jam, Purple Hearts, Small World et cetera and scooter runs. Great at first, then overrun with scooter boys, which made me move away from that into the early C86 indie scene. That was great, full of bowl cuts and Chelsea boots, with a love for The Byrds, Velvet Underground and ’60s pop. I remember seeing The Thanes play with The Soup Dragons, and because of the close links with bands like that I got into the whole garage scene.

Was there a certain scene you were part of, maybe you had some favourite hangout places? Did you attend a lot of gigs back then?

Mojo: Salisbury is a Cathedral city, which then had a population of about 40,000. It had an art college and was on the gig circuit. We all met at the Arts Centre, which put on The Fuzztones, Thee Hypnotics, Darkside, Ride et cetera. So, there was always an indie scene in Salisbury, which dated back to the West Country thing centred around Bristol. Bob was part of that. I wasn’t. By the time The Nuthins came around we fitted in with that and played with all of the local bands. By 1992 we’d packed out The Pheasant pub and made quite a name for ourselves. I suspect it was primarily down to our appearance and attitude, it certainly wasn’t for pretty songs. In the early ’90s the area had a healthy band scene, and all of the decent bands came through town, so we’d see the acts of the indie scene weekly. My now buddy Lee Dorrian’s Napalm Death played too, and we all saw that. The gig was even released on DVD. As you may know, Lee is a major record seller and psych and prog expert. There were also lots of gigs in Southampton, so we were well-served locally.
Bob: Salisbury always had a good music scene, like the Arts centre, a lot of bands wanted to play there because it was an old church. There was a good local indie scene with bands like Bubblegum Splash, Badgeman and Mayfields, who in turn put bands on. We were never part of a scene, there was no one like us. We started our own! Some of our favourite hangouts were probably pubs like The Pheasant and The Gallery club, started by a mate Dom. We put on some great bands and a lot of groovy deejays.

If we would step into your teenage room, what kind of records, fanzines, posters et cetera would we find there?

Mojo: As a kid it was Paul Weller and The Jam (he’s a mate too now) and then when I was turned-on, I painted the room purple, had Indian rugs, joss sticks and played Traffic and The Incredible String Band. Garage followed, but it looked the same…I’ve always been obsessed with collecting records, so the collection grew and grew, always centred around psych and garage.

Bob: Yes, a lot of fanzines – mod, indie, garage and psych – which I still have. Always a lot of records, I loved collecting, which is probably why I have a record shop, along with Adrian Martin, £sd records.

What are some of the most memorable gigs you did?

Mojo: Early days in Salisbury, packing out The Pheasant were fabulous. As was the Arts Centre. In 1995 we even had our night called The Gallery A Go Go and would bring down friends The Mystreated, The Nerve, Stewed, and numerous others. Later it was about touring Europe. Every trip was fun. Italy was the best.
Bob: One of our early gigs out in Oxford with The Brand New Heavies was good. Playing with The Mild Mannered Janitors in Portsmouth, always fun. Europe was the best, exciting and full of adventure.

“The ’90s underground was the best”

What would be the craziest?

Mojo: I recall playing in Antwerp and discovering Duvel beer. I can’t remember much else. Nah, the people there were great. A really good ’60s scene. I loved going to Perpignan on the bloody coach. I met the love of my life Sara there, then in The Flashback V. That was 1994. She moved to London with me three years later and has been here ever since. The Barcelona psych/garage crew were great, and I’m still pals with Marc Argenter and co, who was of course in The Flashback V too. Touring Italy over a couple of weeks was literally insane. So many adventures, like playing Festival Beat, going to Sardinia, and so much else. The early London days, playing for Slim Chance at The Wild Western Rooms and Mike (RIP) and Herb at Quintessence, and the Rob Bailey shows. The ’90s underground was the best. I think the internet put an end to that. Nothing could ever be like that again.

Bob: Probably Perpignan with Marcus being sick on the coach, a mixture of beer and chocolate milk. Getting chucked off, all the craziness and drinking. Some of the Wild Western Room gigs were definitely wild. Especially with Marcus!!!

When did the band stop playing? What followed for you?

Mojo: We ground to a halt around 1998. Three quarters of us were living in London, and I think due to partying so much we just ran out of steam. Saying that, we had been here since late ’95 and managed to record and tour, so I guess life just got in the way, and maybe we changed musically. The London members teamed up with Andy Morten, who lived up the road, and we were drinking within our local area. Bands like Nazz, Blue Cheer and later Pretty Things were floating our boat, and we just started messing around, and formed Little Bare Big Bear after The Nuthins slowly stopped. There was no bad blood. Andy and I were also doing Shindig!, which became my main focus. But Little Bare Big Bear recorded one great single at Toe Rag and played a gig with The Solar Flares and a gig for Rob Bailey’s New Untouchables in a basement bar. On all accounts we were something. We were playing the kind of psych-rock that many went on to. It was fun whilst it lasted, but then kids and adult responsibilities came along. I haven’t played since 2001. I don’t miss it.

Bob: Yes, life gets in the way, commitments et cetera. We were always mates, still are!! Myself and Marcus continued, alongside members of The Unchayned, to form The Autumn Reign. We still do things together as The Neighourhood Strange, releasing singles. I also play in an alt country/ indie band called The Marlboro’s and own a second-hand record shop.

Looking back, what was the highlight of your time in the band? Which songs are you most proud of? Where and when was your most memorable gig?

Mojo: The friendship and kinship. We spent all our time together and were Nuthins full-time. The clothes, the hair, the attitude. It never slipped. We were more of a gang than a band. I love all of the CD. We changed as we went along. At the time I was promptly embarrassed by some of the things we cut, but it’s grist to the mill now. It was part of growing up. When we formed Richie was 15. I was 18. The early days with Lee were great. He was the ultimate garagenik, and did all of our art. It was all very Scooby Doo! We gigged and gigged and were hardly at home. And because of that we got really tight and knew how to play via telepathy. Live was where we were best, and we were also pretty moody, so argued on stage and Bob lost his rag and trashed stuff. The audience loved it. We were on the edge. Most memorable gig? Probably one of the early ones locally. It just felt so good. We were young and full of vim and vigour. I recall a gig we played for Mark Raison at his Carousel Club in London was on fire. Then there were mad gigs, like playing a pub in Avebury on NYE, playing to pagans and bikers. And the continent was always an adventure. We’ve made so many friends… and people like Hugh Dellar (The Beatpack), Lenny Helsing (The Thanes), Ian O Sullivan (The Aardvarks) all still write for Shindig!. The roots go deep. Great days.

Bob: It was the friendship; we were all mates and still are. It wasn’t part-time; we were full time Nuthins!! Highlights were meeting so many like-minded people, playing with great bands releasing vinyl. ‘Thoughts And Visions’, the ‘Mistake’ EP, ‘I Feel Fine’ are favourites, but they all represent us and I’m happy with all our releases. So many memorable gigs, jumping on my organ, a bit of Keith Emerson. I loved it all.

Thank you for taking your time. Last word is yours.

Mojo: Thanks for the interest. This all goes back over 30 years now, so it would be amazing if a new younger generation gets hip to our music. As we always came from the sounds of the past it’s not dated by its era.

Bob: It was from the heart, I loved it all. We were part of a great scene, what more could you ask for. Thanks for the interest.

Klemen Breznikar

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