Peter Rehberg and I met at school in the mid-1980s. He was born exactly a year and a day before me, and was in the year above me Verulam School, the single sex comprehensive we endured in commuter belt Hertfordshire.
My musical tastes had matured from the stadium synthpop of Howard Jones to Soft Cell, Bauhaus and, erm, New Model Army. My mates and I were mainlining John Peel's Radio 1 shows and one day after school, two of us ended up in a conversation about all this with Peter. He offered to do us some tapes. With characteristic efficiency, the next day my friend received a C90 stuffed with Jim Thirlwell's Foetus productions, which blew our teenage minds with its symphonic cartoon nihilism.
My tape was Psychic TV's Dreams Less Sweet album, which Peter suggested was best listened to on headphones in the dark. This simple act of generosity would prove to be a major turning point in my life. The sounds and music on Dreams Less Sweet were like nothing I had ever heard before and I was terrified and fascinated in equal measure. It would be my first initiation of many that took place in darkened rooms late at night...
Peter's enthusiasm and evangelism about music was equalled by his inability to fit in with our school's stifling regime. He was banned from using the stereo in the sixth form common room after several incidents with Swans albums and some turntablism with a Captain Scarlet sound effects record.
One day us older pupils were subjected to a business workshop to focus our minds on future wage-slavery. It included a lecture from an invited speaker about what industry meant to us (not a lot). This was followed by some group work, where we had to produce a visual representation of our impressions. Obviously this was a load of bollocks and the outputs were instantly forgettable. Except one: Sunday supplement magazines had been cut up as source material for a large collage featuring factory chimneys, smoke and barbed wire - emblazoned with the slogan YOU DON'T HAVE TO ROB A BANK. It looked like the cover of a Throbbing Gristle bootleg. The group's spokesman displayed the artwork to the teachers and about two hundred bemused kids. He muttered apologetically: I'm really sorry, Peter took charge of this one.
Peter kept a watchful eye and was always happy to provide suggestions as I hoovered up the Some Bizzare back catalogue and boldly snaffled the weirdest records the local Our Price had to offer. One time I visited him at home, talking two to the dozen about the Butthole Surfers' Locust Abortion Technician LP. My mentor proceeded to pull out the band's entire back catalogue from his floor-to-ceiling record shelves. We watched his copy of their insane Blind Eye Sees All video and made a pact to see them live.
I finally got to a Psychic TV disconcert in 1987, marvelling at the array of freaks in the audience. I hid behind Peter in awe as he casually struck up a conversation with the goddess Paula P-Orridge. That summer was a lot of fun. Peter's beaten up blue Volkswagen Beetle ferried us to the Rough Trade shop in Ladbroke Grove, or to incredible gigs like Big Black's final show and an ecstatically deranged performance by the Butthole Surfers at the Clarendon. Starting the car involved fiddling about with some wiring under the back seat and there was no stereo, so we'd chat nonstop about music up and down the motorway.
Our record and gig habit was funded by doing dead end jobs. We both briefly had weekend shifts at Tesco. I vividly remember Peter getting bollocked when it emerged that he had spent about an hour dropping Marmite jars on the concrete floor of the storeroom. He liked how they sounded. Neither of us lasted long stacking shelves, temping jobs in the school holidays were better paid and more varied anyway. Early one morning a group of us was being inducted into the tedium of order picking at some warehouse and I noticed the manager becoming increasingly distracted. His eyes were drawn to Peter's T-shirt, bearing the bold proclamation: SWANS: PUBLIC CASTRATION IS A GOOD IDEA.
We both reacted badly to authority figures and were too easily distracted by music so unsurprisingly we both completely fucked up our 'A' Levels. Peter cashed in the dual-nationality he had from his father and headed to Vienna. I spent a miserable year doing retakes while my friends regaled me with their university adventures. I eventually scraped into college in London. Peter and I stayed in touch. Being from London and possessing sheer drive was enough for him to blag some DJ slots and insert himself into music journalism in Vienna. On his next trip to the UK we interviewed Cabaret Voltaire's Stephen Mallinder together and visited the offices of Mute Records, where Peter grinned at Daniel Miller and told him that he blamed the label boss for the way his life had turned out. I had to pinch myself.
Peter's next phase was already in train. He insisted that I buy a copy of LFO's debut album. There was vague talk of an ambient project. But I wasn't ready for the off-kilter inventiveness of the early Editions Mego releases. Nobody was. By the time I got to Vienna in 1997, Pita was an established artist and there was a buzz about the Vienna scene he was at the heart of. I was one of the speakers at the Association of Autonomous Astronauts' first Intergalactic Conference, which had been organised by Konrad Becker and Marie Ringler of seminal arts and culture venue Public Netbase.
Konrad's 1980s recordings as Monoton meant he had a natural affinity with Peter's work, so I assume that is how Pita was given the role of DJ at the children's party that was part of the event's eclectic programme. He did not compromise one iota with his set and it was a joy to watch the kids run around like maniacs and pogo to the drones, glitches and walls of noise. It ended abruptly. Peter later told me that some of the parents had been shocked and had complained, but he was characteristically amused by this and exasperated that the kids' enjoyment had been curtailed.
I found it hard to keep up with him after this. We'd meet up in London occasionally for a drink or a gig and he'd stuff armfuls of Editions Mego product in my hands or email me a bunch of download codes. I know I'm biased, but I never saw him do a bad performance.
Peter's love for music also extended to the people who made it. In 2012 we got the train from London down to Bexhill for the We Can Elude Control festival at the De La Warr Pavilion. Our travelling companions included Russell Haswell, Nick Edwards (Ekoplekz) and EVOL. Peter joked that he'd made the journey to the event to check on my investments (i.e. his artists), but his taciturn emails belied a deep affection for the people he signed to his label and collaborated with. I watched him talking to younger fans after gigs and taking the time to find out about their projects. To their delight, the more persistent ones would be inveigled into shifting his gear out of the venue.
I last saw Peter in 2018 when he played a modular set at Sutton House, Hackney's oak-panelled stately home. His excitement about forthcoming projects and his infectious humour about his escapades were unabated. Peter's life's work was music. And he spent his time doing exactly what I believe he was supposed to do. Whenever I spoke to him, the thrill of discovery that we shared as teenagers was always there. It physically hurts me that we will never meet again. But those conversations, his music, the countless people he inspired, the hundreds of incredible releases Peter was involved with all of these are an abiding and monumental legacy.
Farewell Peter, we were lucky to have you.
See the original post:
Features | Remember Them... | You Don't Have To Rob A Bank: The Roots Of Peter Rehberg - The Quietus
- Voices: Working-class men like Steve Wright don't go to the doctor and that's exactly the problem... - Yahoo News UK - February 16th, 2024 [February 16th, 2024]
- "Superman Defeats Nihilism": Grant Morrison Loved an Obscure Alan Moore Story So Much They Almost Remixed It - Screen Rant - February 16th, 2024 [February 16th, 2024]
- The rise of stay-at-home girlfriends - UnHerd - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- 'Fargo' Recap, Season 5, Episode 2: Trials and Tribulations - Vulture - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- What's the matter with Russia? - The Hub - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- The Killer: The unintentional comedy of the year? - EL PAS USA - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- Eli Roth's Thanksgiving Keeps A Disappointing 2023 Slasher Trend ... - Screen Rant - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- Bobby McDonagh: The Rule of Law matters more than ever when ... - TheJournal.ie - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- A 2023 gift guide: 10 ideas for the music lover in your life - 25 News KXXV and KRHD - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- Ten Great Sci-fi TV Shows that Promote Reason and Individualism - The Objective Standard - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- Jonathan Sacks: Are Science and Religion Enemies? - The Collector - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- An open letter to all of my progressive friends - New York Daily News - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- The Two Tragedies of November 22nd - The American Conservative - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- Speculating on the ceasefire moment in Gaza - rabble.ca - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- In Defense of Stigma - The Stream - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- Pro-lockdown obsessives still long to be told what to do - Yahoo Eurosport UK - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- 8 signs you're a mentally strong person (even if you don't think so) - Hack Spirit - November 26th, 2023 [November 26th, 2023]
- Trump Gets Fined in Court but Wins in the House - The New Yorker - October 29th, 2023 [October 29th, 2023]
- The challenges to democracy [letter] | Letters To The Editor ... - LNP | LancasterOnline - October 29th, 2023 [October 29th, 2023]
- Standing against the insidious spread of euthanasia | News, Sports ... - The Daily Times - October 29th, 2023 [October 29th, 2023]
- A large chunk of Republicans are quite set on voting for the face ... - Daily Kos - October 29th, 2023 [October 29th, 2023]
- Israel's civic strength in response to the Hamas attacks should stiffen ... - The Hub - October 29th, 2023 [October 29th, 2023]
- No Time to Go Wobbly on Russia - Center for European Policy Analysis - October 29th, 2023 [October 29th, 2023]
- Blinken to Security Council: Where's the revulsion over Hamas attacks - The Times of Israel - October 29th, 2023 [October 29th, 2023]
- Opinion | In Israel and Gaza, Searching for Humanity - The New York Times - October 29th, 2023 [October 29th, 2023]
- Donald Trump to testify in NY AG Case - Daily Kos - October 29th, 2023 [October 29th, 2023]
- Thom Nickels: Demonic nihilism? It's not just on the streets. - Broad + Liberty - August 18th, 2023 [August 18th, 2023]
- Reflections on the Revolution in America | Pavlos Leonidas ... - First Things - August 18th, 2023 [August 18th, 2023]
- Why It's Always Raining In The Movie Se7en: David Fincher's ... - Screen Rant - August 18th, 2023 [August 18th, 2023]
- Poetic Time In The Age Of Acceleration - Noema Magazine - August 18th, 2023 [August 18th, 2023]
- Review: Zilched releases her best work yet in 'Earthly Delights' - WDET - August 18th, 2023 [August 18th, 2023]
- Phoebe Bridgers thinks we confuse sadness with intelligence: Listen ... - Audacy - August 18th, 2023 [August 18th, 2023]
- Called to be a man in Christ, not a Nietzschean superman - Catholic World Report - August 18th, 2023 [August 18th, 2023]
- Why The Last Voyage of the Demeter Sank at the Box Office - MovieWeb - August 18th, 2023 [August 18th, 2023]
- Forget GTA 6 and Red Dead Redemption, I want Manhunt 3 - PCGamesN - August 18th, 2023 [August 18th, 2023]
- Gabriel Krauze: raw writing from the streets of London - RNZ - August 18th, 2023 [August 18th, 2023]
- The Ideal Man According to 7 Different Philosophers - Art of Manliness - August 18th, 2023 [August 18th, 2023]
- Review: In How to Blow Up a Pipeline, nihilism is optimism - Detroit Metro Times - April 29th, 2023 [April 29th, 2023]
- Beaten To Death Review: Disturbing Australian Horror Lives Up To Its Title [Panic Fest 2023] - Dread Central - April 29th, 2023 [April 29th, 2023]
- David Brooks: Joe Biden and the 'battle for the soul of America' l - Baltimore Sun - April 29th, 2023 [April 29th, 2023]
- Ram Jams: Fall Out Boy, New Album and Era - Fordham Observer - April 29th, 2023 [April 29th, 2023]
- Tucker Carlson Is the Emblem of GOP Cynicism - The Atlantic - April 29th, 2023 [April 29th, 2023]
- One Night in Washington, D.C., With George Santos - The Intercept - April 29th, 2023 [April 29th, 2023]
- Reddit study finds interesting facts about typical Blue Jays fans - Jays Journal - April 29th, 2023 [April 29th, 2023]
- Yale Professor Breaks Down Years of Violent Conflict Between ... - The Greyhound - April 29th, 2023 [April 29th, 2023]
- Nietzsche, Friedrich | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy - January 6th, 2023 [January 6th, 2023]
- 30 Religious Terms You Should Know - Daily Writing Tips - January 6th, 2023 [January 6th, 2023]
- The Difference Between Existentialism, Nihilism, and Absurdism - January 6th, 2023 [January 6th, 2023]
- Philosophical skepticism - Wikipedia - January 4th, 2023 [January 4th, 2023]
- Simon Critchley - Wikipedia - January 4th, 2023 [January 4th, 2023]
- 'World is Crumbling. An Email Doesn't Matter': 2022 Was the Year of Nihilism. How Do We Move On? - News18 - December 23rd, 2022 [December 23rd, 2022]
- Moscow accuses West of legal nihilism RT Russia & Former Soviet Union - December 12th, 2022 [December 12th, 2022]
- Wordsworths Challenge to Darwinian Nihilism | Evolution News - December 12th, 2022 [December 12th, 2022]
- I Fear My Pain Interests You by Stephanie LaCava review numb nihilism ... - November 19th, 2022 [November 19th, 2022]
- Editorial: In the Face of Climate Nihilism, What Can One Do to Not Lose All Hope? | Opinions - The Link - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Cardinal Mller Reasserts the Dangers of Nihilism The European Conservative - The European Conservative - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- The Midnight Club Is a Teen Horror Show Thats Actually Scary: TV Review - Yahoo Entertainment - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Hiltzik: GOP cruelty counts on the humanity of others - Los Angeles Times - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Screen Grabs: A revisionist Western that still shines bright - 48 hills - 48 Hills - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Russian Roulette: How Ukraine Can Win the Game (Part 1) - Kyiv Post - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- What 20 Years of Putin's Own Words Tell Us About Russia's Subversion of International Law - JURIST - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- 'Triangle of Sadness' Review: Hazardous Levels of Smug - Vulture - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- In China, Only the Party Tells History - Foreign Policy - September 29th, 2022 [September 29th, 2022]
- The Infinite Nihilistic Jest of Brian Ennals and Infinity Knives - Yahoo Entertainment - September 29th, 2022 [September 29th, 2022]
- No Laughing Matter: Bodies Bodies Bodies Is Too Cynical to Be Much Fun - Erie Reader - September 29th, 2022 [September 29th, 2022]
- Oliver Jeffers Gets Perspective With Meanwhile Back on Earth - TIME - September 29th, 2022 [September 29th, 2022]
- Talkin' About My Generation: How Boomers Became Deaf, Dumb, and Blind To The Inspiration and Innovation of Rock and Roll - MetalTalk - September 29th, 2022 [September 29th, 2022]
- 'Cult of the Lamb' and the bleating heart of nihilism - Catholic News Service - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- The Infinite Nihilistic Jest of Brian Ennals and Infinity Knives - Spin - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- This cosmic horror game will force you to trust characters to survive - Polygon - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Belief in God can help us find a purpose in life that we are currently lacking - David J Nixon - The Scotsman - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- "Date Night" by White Lung - Northern Transmissions - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Lyrically Speaking: What is Bob Dylans All Along the Watchtower actually about? - Far Out Magazine - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Pinocchio (2022): Disney wished on another wrong star - Campus Times - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- The Complicated Legacy Of 'Rick And Morty' - The Federalist - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- "Soul and Things" - Baltimore Beat - September 22nd, 2022 [September 22nd, 2022]
- Ukraine Holds the Future: The War Between Democracy and Nihilism - Foreign Affairs Magazine - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Hedgerow Theatre Company Dives Into The Darkness With Martin McDonagh's THE PILLOWMAN, October 5-31 - Broadway World - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- The skate punk brats of the '90s are back to ruin our lives again - Cult MTL - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Kurt Russell's Best Movie Was A Critical And Box Office Disaster - Giant Freakin Robot - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]