Whatever Happened to the C86 Kids?: An Indie Odyssey

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These bands felt so cool and untouchable to me as a teen - now I'm older I can relate to their various struggles and the odd paths their lives take them down. The book deconstructs the imagined glamour of life in a Peel session / NME single of the week / top 10 indie chart hit band to the point where you feel almost fatherly to the young groups of 36 years ago. Change the plan you will roll onto at any time during your trial by visiting the “Settings & Account” section. What happens at the end of my trial? NME promoted the tape in conjunction with London's Institute of Contemporary Arts, who staged a week of gigs, [7] in July 1986 which featured most of the acts on the compilation.

NME have also collaborated with Rough Trade Records to release C09 in 2009 for Record Store Day [24] and with Bose Corporation to release C23 in 2023 for South by Southwest. [25] This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. Please improve this article by removing excessive or inappropriate external links, and converting useful links where appropriate into footnote references. ( June 2015) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) The significance of C86 was recognized by several events marking the 20th anniversary of the compilation's release in 2006:directory. Music is the common thread but the book's really about how you replace it when real life encroaches. In 1986, the NME released a cassette that would shape music for years to come. A collection of twenty-two independently signed guitar-based bands, C86 was the sound and ethos that defined a generation. It was also arguably the point at which 'indie' was born. But what happened next to all those musical dreamers?

One common complaint which seems to afflict most of these acts, was how unhappy they were with the choice of song they put on the compilation. Most insist that they thought it would be more along the lines of C81, which was released to celebrate five years of the Rough Trade label and the wider Independent music scene in the UK in general. So most of the bands approached it with low-expectations, believing that this set-up would be along the same lines in terms of audience and impact. But of course hindsight is always 20/20 and no one was to know just how significant and popular the tape would become.Hann, Michael (14 June 2011). "NME releases a cassette that codifies music". The Guardian . Retrieved 28 October 2014. Often funny, sometimes poignant ... [a] candid, evocative snapshot of a scene that is fondly but scarcely celebrated. 4/5' -- Classic Pop

Following on from the cult success of C81, NME or anyone else couldn’t possibly have predicted just how seminal their C86 compilation cassette would become. But even today, nearly forty years on a whole generation and then some, know exactly what you mean when you say the words C86. In 1986, the NME released a cassette that would shape music for years to come. A collection of twenty-two independently signed guitar-based bands, C86 was the sound and ethos that defined a generation. It was also arguably the point at which 'indie' was born.

Some of the bands, like Primal Scream, went on to achieve global stardom; others, such as Half Man Half Biscuit and the Wedding Present, cultivated lifelong fanbases that still sustain their careers thirty-five years later. Then there were the rest, who ultimately imploded in a riot of paisley shirts, bad drugs and general indifference from the record-buying public.