SMAR SW Jarocin 93 - Guitars versus stones - news

Blood was spilled in Jarocin

Guitars versus stones

(CORRESPONDENCE FROM JAROCIN)

The fourteenth edition of the Jarocin 93 Festival of Rock Musicians was different from previous festivals of youth music held in this Wielkopolska town for two reasons. First, because such wealthy companies as Marlboro Music and Pepsi Cola, for example, were enlisted to sponsor the event ("sold out the festival"). Secondly, this year's FMR went down in the history of rockers' gatherings as an event where more than just guitar picks were contested. On Friday, 6 bcm, on the second day of the event, bloody brawls occurred on the so-called "small stage" (the amphitheater in the city park). The audience gathered there demanded the performance of their band SMAR SW from Rzeszow, which failed to qualify for the competition review. Under pressure from an aggressively behaving part of the audience (3,000 people), the organizers agreed to allow the band to perform, so SMAR SW played.

The punk audience (according to Jarek Janiszewski, who led the concert, it was mostly drunk) danced pogo in a ditch in front of the stage and climbed more and more boldly onto the stage, starting brawls with the bouncers, pushing against their "wall" protecting the sound equipment and music equipment. A bomb of ready-for-anything punks exploded a little later, when SMAR SW ended its performance. Its effect was to attack the bouncers (one of them reportedly punched a punk who had entered the stage). Stones were sprinkled and the demolition of speakers, drum amplifiers began on stage. Several hundred (600) people armed with, among other things, planks torn from the benches, rushed into battle with the Festival's already reinforced security force. A regular battle then took place in the park surrounding the amphitheater, when the security guards (chains, baseball bats) received help from the police. Blood was shed. Eighteen people were taken to the hospital, five of whom were hospitalized. On Saturday, a day later, only one of them was still in the hospital, the others had discharged themselves at their own request. Police did not detain any of the participants in the incidents. The remaining concerts on the small stage were canceled.

During the riots in the amphitheater, journalists - photojournalists - were also shelled. I was directly shocked by the statement of the aforementioned Jarek janiszewski, who said to the punks breaking through the bouncers: "spit on them (photojournalists - ed. note), they do it for money". The security guards were also not forgiving of the press representatives. Gazeta Wyborcza's photojournalist Krzysztof Miller was hit over the head with a chain when he tried to take a picture of punks being beaten by bouncers.

But it would be a misleading picture of a great rock music festival if it was dominated by scenes of rioting. Because Jarocin provided, above all, an audience of several thousand people (perhaps 20,000 people watched the last Saturday concert) with a hefty portion of rock. In addition to 50 competition bands, we saw and heard, among others, bands: PIERSI, BAKSZYSZ, DE FACTO, GARDENIA, IZRAEL, APTEKA (Thursday), ACID DRINKERS, HUMAN, HOUK, KULT, NEW MODEL ARMY (Friday) CLOSTERKELLER, MANCU, GOLDEN LIVE, T. LOVE, IRA, ODDZIAŁ ZAMKNIĘTY, THE FAILURES from Switzerland (Saturday).

On the last festival evening, two bands from Rzeszow, WAŃKA WSTAŃKA and 1984, also showed up on the big stage. The former, six years after its success at FMR, presented a show that will probably allow it to re-enter the ranks of the country's significant rock bands. Weighing 120 kilograms, BUFET surpassed itself in stunts and dances on stage, with which it fired up the stadium's audience. For a change, 1984 gave a program that was received with interest by people in the industry and those who appreciate thinking music. The closing chord of this band's performance was literally and figuratively the shattering of the guitar by the band's leader. As I was among the Rzeszow musicians immediately after the end of their concerts, I saw how many people congratulated them on their successful performance in Jarocin.

I will try to provide more details about the course of this year's 14th FMR in one of the upcoming issues of "Nowin".

PS. The jury of FMR Jarocin '93 decided to award the main prize to the group ALASTOR from Kutno.

JANUSZ PAWLAK

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