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Joe Spencer is the man behind Joyce D’Vision, and one of the minds involved with Manchester’s (now deceased) alternative queer clubbing collective, Tranarchy. We caught up with him before tonight’s Bollox at its new venue: Bangkok Bar & Grill. We asked just one question: do you remember your first time?
I found out about Bollox through Myspace – yeah, Myspace – and took the pilgrimage from Liverpool where I was at uni at the time. I had no interest in the mainstream gay scene. Places like GBar and Garlands were fucking hell on earth to me – shitty music and unwelcoming people. So I stuck to shitty rock nights and hardcore gigs, all the while yearning to be with my people, to be able to go out listen to the music I liked, express myself queerly and maybe even pull. So when I saw this queer club that played punk and was run by this hot guy in a Black Flag T-shirt, well, I fucking ran to it!
Bear bash nose bleed
So my first time, I turn up pumped with my gal pals in tow, but we were swiftly 86’d at the door! NO GIRLS ALLOWED! At the time Bollox was a strictly men-only deal. I didn’t have any gay male friends I could go out with, and there’s no way I could have gone on my own. I tried going solo at a bear bash and got a nose bleed from the anxiety.
Luckily, Bollox changed it’s door policy and I could then go with my pack of rock ‘n’ roll lesbians.
Social club of filthy queers
I don’t remember much of the first time I actually got inside Bollox. I got shit faced, ran around a lot and tried to snog someone who really wasn’t interested. Pulling quickly took a backseat to dancing. I was hooked and nothing could keep me away, even having to wait till 8am for the first train back to Liverpool.
I quickly made friends at Bollox, friends that became best friends. Fuck, I think pretty much everyone I know in Manchester I met on the Bollox dancefloor. I moved to Manchester pretty much for Bollox and the social club of filthy queers.
It’s also where I discovered poppers and the rest is herstory!
My top 5 Bollox floorfillers!
CSS – ‘Let’s Make Love and Listen to Death from Above’
Yeah Yeah Yeahs – ‘Date with the Night’ (‘Cuz everytime this came on, Scotty Gillespie would start a mosh pit.)
M.I.A – ‘Bucky Done Gun’
Gossip – ‘Standing in the Way of Control (Soulwax Remix)’
Crystal Castles – ‘Alice Practice’
More information
Bollox Does Bangcock
Friday 16 January 2015
Bangkok Bar & Restaurant, Princess Street, Manchester
£5 Students / £6 everyone else please
11pm til vey late
For more information, visit the Bollox Facebook page.
You can also buy official merchandise online from the Bollox Boutique.
