ON THIS DAY ... in 1991/1983 - THE DIRECTION / THE PLAYN JAYN
A rare Mod/Psychedelia diversion! (71 photos)
The Playn Jayn at the Marquee sometime in 1983.
I was never anti-Mod even when Punk was a its height. Indeed, one of my fellow Panache creators Neil, when there was still regular input to the fanzine from people other than myself, had begun raving about it. Due to his enthusiasm we once found ourselves to be the only leather jackets in a packed Lyceum for the boring March Of The Mods event. For every drippy piece of shite like Secret Affair, there would be a dynamic, punch bunch like Purple Hearts, and for every dull Who-inspired tribute act like The Chords you’d find a subtle thrillfest like Speedball. All of the garage scene, who weren’t a million miles removed, seemed even better … and then there was THE PLAYN JAYN, who later became Playn Jayn. (I have even seen tickets where the name was The Playne Jayne! The case of the ever-diminishing band name…)
The Playn Jayn/Playn Jayn were fantastic live, and the records still sound great today. Controlled psychedelic pop thrust out live with power, there was no self-indulgent wibbling, it was direct, enjoyable and imaginative. I saw them live a few times and noticed they also drew a diverse crowd, including a fair few goths. I even had the pleasure of working with guitarist Nick Jones, who was a designer at Zigzag magazine, and interviewed them for Melody Maker.
The Direction, Dublin Castle 8th January 1991.
THE DIRECTION had none of these qualities, being a predictable retro Mod band, right down to the name. They were fun, with brisk tunes, but you knew it wasn’t going anywhere, which it wasn’t. If you want to take Mod and make it work it needs more than nostalgia. (Look at The Molotovs and how brilliantly they’ve incorporated all the elements. They make it fun and relevant.)
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