The Alarm − 19 November, 2003
I made a pleasant discovery a couple of days ago -- a two-dvd set from Mike Peters, the old frontman and founding member of the Alarm. Apparently recorded on the twentieth anniversary of the band’s formation, it’s Mike telling the story of the band from start to finish, with a nifty slideshow and thirty six! songs performed solo acoustic.
Yeah, I know -- if you remember the Alarm at all, it’s because of their faux Bob Dylan western outfits, their forty foot hair, and the video of 68 Guns. Their music might be a little dated, it’s true, but I learned how to play guitar from their first two albums. They showed me that acoustic music can be punk as shit, say something real, and have heart, all at once.
Also, they remind me of the bond I had with an old friend, and the music we played together. That friend and I have ideological differences that I think keep us from being too close these days, but we still keep in touch, and I still credit him with shaping much of my musical creative style. We played a lot of Alarm covers those days. When I see Mike Peters waxing nostalgic about his old band, I can’t help thinking about it all!
Those were days filled with righteous idealism and fierce hope -- the definition of youth, I think. It’s important to carry that through our whole lives!
