What is your name?

I go under the alter-ego of Commander Crab. He is the leader of the punk rock group The Crabs, and I channel that part of my personality through the band.

Where are you located?

I now live in Leeds, but my origins are in Sheffield, U.K. (about 40 miles down the road) where the band started in 1990.

What is your artist's name?

The Crabs - though when I joined Bandcamp I discovered that there were other bands with the same name, so for Bandcamp purposes we are The Crabs U.K.

How long have you been writing music?

I wrote my first "proper" song in 1988 which was The Crabs song "Sell My Soul". It's sort of a mission statement for the band & the opening 2 lines explain why I started writing music.

What inspired you to start playing and making music?

As I've said, it was boredom really, like a lot of punk bands. At that time life seemed a bit pointless and I was looking for something to focus on. I had done studying & there were very few jobs around at the time - certainly not interesting ones.

How would you describe your style of music?

Personally I would describe it as Punk. But punk has come to mean such a broad range of music - from hip-hop, to pop, to ultra hardcore & metal. Punk seems to be regarded more as an attitude rather than a musical genre nowadays. When I say punk I'm referring pretty much specifically to the 70s/80s movement in the U.S. & U.K. Maybe Punk Rock, Trash Rock or Garage Rock would be a better description of our style of music these days.

How is your personality reflected in your work?

I love American trash culture - it seemed so wild & exotic and out there to me growing up in 70s Britain. So my music is an outlet for all that stuff - comics, fetishism, b-movie horror & SciFi etc. that is not generally understood in polite society. It's probably my most core self that I have to keep repressed most of the time.

Describe your creative process when you write new music.

Usually, I just sit down with my guitar and strum around until I come up with something that I like, then build the song around that. Sometimes I read a book or see a movie or get an idea and use that as the basis for a song. Personally I find putting music to words harder than the other way around.

What is the name of your latest release?

Our latest release is (I Wanna Be A) Poll Tax Bailiff - 2024 Election Remix. It's a remix of a live track originally recorded on a Walkman from the crowd by a member of the audience back in the 90s.

What was the inspiration for that release?

The song was originally inspired by Margaret Thatcher's Poll Tax in the late 1980s. This was a tax that was based on the number of people living in a residence regardless of how big that residence was, so it targeted the less well off.

What do you do to promote your music?

Other than Bandcamp, GetMusic & Facebook - nothing! We don't even have our own website - we do it all through Bandcamp. It's a great way for artists to reach genuine music enthusiasts. I want to spend my time involved in the creative process, not on social media.

What are you currently working on?

The Crabs for me is one big project. The band split up in 1993 after having 2 main line-ups, with our final posthumous release in 1994 - though I am still in touch with some of the band members. I am now currently in Phase Two of the project, which involves reclaiming & restoring "lost" recordings as well as remixing & improving tracks in order to show them in the best possible quality while still maintaining the original feel.

How can folks contact you?

The best way to reach me is to "follow" us on Bandcamp - then use your account to contact us. We also have a Facebook account. https://thecrabsuk.bandcamp.com https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100085768808285 Or you can email us at: thecrabs@mail.com We are also on YouTube here: www.youtube.com/@thecrabsu.k.3598 CC🦀