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Devil’s
Back
Part 1
Music Report - Herbie G -
1st April
This
term we have been studying Popular and Rock styles, in the hope that pupils
will learn to discern between quality compositions and bog-standard trash. Herbie
listens with enthusiasm and he shows some aptitude for the subject, when he
puts his mind to it. His guitar playing has developed surprisingly quickly
during the last few weeks. It's a pity that this seems to be directly linked to
his obsession with the popular singer Jex and the crude and unpleasant noises
made by her repulsive group Devil's Back.
I understand that their live performances have been banned because of their profoundly
negative influence on young people. No doubt all this is a passing phase for
Herbie and he will soon return to his senses.
Singing: satisfactory.
Devil’s Back
Part 2
DJ Pete's Big Talk on MBTV
– The Actual Studio Transcript – 1st May time 18:29
Director: Six twenty-nine . One minute to transmission. Virtual Tape rolling…
JEX: (settling into position) (expletive)
I never realised I’d be so nervous!
Floor Manager: Okay
- just to remind you, I did ask everyone to hand in all mobiles, tablets,
cameras and other gadgets. If you've still got one, I'll take it now - and let's get all those coughs out of your
system right away!
Audience: (coughing)
Director: (from control room, over headset) Lights?
Lighting: Check.
Director: Sound?
Sound: …now
let’s just clip that one on there; oops – excuse my cold fingers! and we’ll plug
this in here…
JEX: I hope you
know what you’re doing with that thing.
Director: Are
we ready, sound?
Sound: Yeah, yeah. Just about. Here we go. Uh... check.
Director: VTR?
VTR: Check.
Floor Manager: That’ll have to do for the make up, Pete –
we’re nearly on.
DJ PETE: Hang on just one moment… yeah,
thanks, Sophie. Catch you later.
Make up: Cool.
Director: Camera
four – starting position?
Operator: Check.
DJ PETE: How long have we got?
Floor Manager: Thirty seconds to transmission, Pete.
DJ PETE: Well, Jex, I hope you’ve got some
good excuses up your sleeve.
JEX: What do
you mean? You don’t really think…?
DJ PETE: I'd
just be honest, if I were in your position. You’ll have to tell us the truth –
obviously we can’t actually use your own lie detector on you, since that would
be illegal. But you might try to patch things up a bit… try and put a positive spin
on things, if you can…
JEX: But I
haven’t done anything. You’ve got me all wrong.
Director: Right.
OK. Silence in the studio, please. T minus ten.
Floor Manager: Silence in the studio.
(pause)
DJ PETE: Just try and convince us.
JEX: What?
Director: Going
live now. Cue music. Roll credits.
JEX: You
really think it was all down to me…? Isn’t this supposed to be a totally fair,
totally unbiased interview? That’s what I agreed to.
Director: And
it’s fifteen seconds before you’re on.
DJ PETE: I don’t know, Jex. I really don’t
know. We’ll have to find out.
Floor Manager: Come on now, Pete. Silence in the studio.
Director: ten
– nine – eight – seven – six – you’re live. With you, camera four. Good luck!
DJ PETE: We have lift off!
Floor Manager: (counting
down with fingers: five – four – three – two – one – he points at DJ PETE)
DJ PETE: (reading
from the autocue) Hey, wassup, friends and fellow travellers in time and
space! Yep - it’s so cool to be checking out DJ Pete's Big Talk:
your chance to get inside all that inside info and catch up with all the ketchup.
Tonight’s show comes to you live from our favourite city…
Audience: (half-hearted
cheering)
DJ PETE: …the
first stop in the murky perky past of all-time, all-grime, all-rhyme all-slime rock
mega-sensation Devil’s Back…
Audience: (murmured
jeers & boos)
DJ PETE: …the
band you love to hate! And don’t you hate them! Not just a lousy band – a big
ugly, festering putrid can of worms that has sapped the strength of a
generation, first with its subversive lyrics and its unnatural influence on
listeners, when people started dancing uncontrollably, and becoming violent
towards each other, which led to Devil’s Back being banned, and then
with its horrific and evil lie-detector. And today's show is very topical,
because just a few hours ago, of course, as everybody knows, it was announced
that John Hayter, the band’s demonic drummer, well, he's wanted by the police
and he's gone on the run. So if you, the viewer, have any information that will
lead to his arrest, we are waiting to hear from you!
Now,
it seems the whole thing started here in this cosy cosmopolitan hot-spot, way
back when rock was young – before it all turned very nasty.
Floor manager: (mimes turning a handle)(Get on with
it!)
DJ PETE: I
want to introduce our very special guest this evening. Someone who is going to
try to explain how this one small band came to cause so much trouble. How this
band made young people dance until they were in a trance-like state and
influenced them to break the law. How this band managed to install a vile
lie-detecting machine in every home in the country. Until questions were asked
in Parliament and they had to be sent back. And maybe our guest can help us to
find her missing co-star John Hayter. So here, only on DJ Pete's Big Talk, is the
lone figure who’s been behind it all. Yep. Jex Juliet from Devil’s Back
is back!
A voice: (among
jeers) Ask her how she can sleep at night!
Another voice: What’s
she doing to our kids?
DJ PETE: Already
we’ve got quite a few e-mails and texts with questions that you, the viewer,
want to put to our guest, and most of our phone lines are busy, but we can
still take one or two more calls, so keep them coming! I think we all know it
hasn’t been easy for Jex since the break up of the band – OK, since the
beginnings of the band – so let’s go easy on her, shall we? But, hell, it’s in
the public interest, and we have a right to know. So now, here’s Jex Juliet, with
her first interview since… here’s Jex!
Audience: (mixed applause and jeering)
DJ PETE: Jex, welcome to DJ Pete's
Big Talk.
JEX: Thanks.
Audience: (murmured jeering)
DJPETE: (indicating a member of the audience who has
his hand up) Well, even before we start we have a question from our live
audience. The gentleman with the shirt…
Man in audience: I’d
like to ask Jex, is she satisfied now? Did the whole thing turn out the way she
planned it?
JEX: The way I
planned it? I didn’t plan anything. Things happen…
Audience: (jeers)
DJPETE: I
think we deserve a lot better than that, Jex. Fill us in on a bit of
background. How did it all start? I mean, you didn’t just wake up one day and
think, “whoops, here I am, that nasty Jex from Devil’s Back. Now I can
do anything I want, and, hey, what’s the nastiest thing I can think of?”
JEX: Come
on! I’m fed up with being labelled “nasty”. I’m not nasty any more than you are.
And I’m not a lone figure. And I’m not “behind it all”.
Audience: (jeers) (an object is thrown)
JEX: Come
on guys! Look, I’m glad I’ve got the opportunity to set the record straight.
And I hope at least some of you will be kind enough to listen. You
wouldn’t want anyone to shout you down, or throw things at you, so give me a chance, will you?
DJPETE: (indicating another member of the audience)
The lady in the front row…
Woman: What
we’re dying to know is: when did you first decide to corrupt a whole generation
and turn our innocent little children into sick instruments of hate?
JEX: What
kind of question is that? Do you really think anyone would set out to do
something like that?
Woman: You
did!
DJPETE: (indicating another member of the audience)
Yes… you, sir…
Man: What
about your evil machine, then? Where did that come from?
JEX: Okay,
Okay. I can see where this is all going. Look, I’ll tell you something about
how we got together in the first place – but it’s nothing like what you’re
saying.
Audience:
(jeers)
JEX: You
see, I know it sounds so corny, but, well, I’ve always loved singing. I always
wanted to be a singer. When I was just a kid, I used to make up songs all the
time – I used to sing about everything: about going to the shops, about riding
my bike, about eating my supper. When I sang myself to sleep, I used to dream
about singing. When I woke up, I used to wake up singing.
And
then later my gran kind of, well, encouraged me to join the church choir
– and that’s when I discovered whole new ways of making music: working together,
singing in harmony, fitting in with other people, actually listening to each other and helping to create that extra something that
happens when people have a common purpose. Something special that really works.
That speaks to you. That sings to you! We sang hymns and anthems and we sang gospel
songs. We played guitars – piano too. That’s when I first met Ian.
DJPETE: So
that would be Ian Zack, who you dropped from the band as soon as you started to
taste success?
JEX: Not
true. Nobody sacked Ian. I’ve always been sad that he left. Without him we
would never have got off the ground.
A voice: It
would have been better for everyone if you hadn’t
got off the ground!
JEX: That’s
about the time when the gospel choir really began to take off. We started doing
competitions and little tours. I’ve been trying to find some photos but I don’t
seem to have anything from that period. But we performed all over the place and
we practised every evening. And in between practising with the choir, Ian and I
would get together and work out tunes and simple lyrics.
A voice: Hate
messages, more like.
JEX: No
– we didn’t do any of that stuff. That early material was all about the good
things in life. It was from the heart. Simple love songs.
Audience: (jeers)
JEX: Go
ahead and laugh if you like. What’s wrong with that anyway? But I don’t think
there are any recordings of those songs now. John erased them all.
DJ PETE: Yep.
Our researchers have confirmed that all of those early efforts have been wiped.
They just don’t exist anymore. Or is that just a rumour put about by you to
make your stuff more collectable?
JEX: Would
I really want to suppress my own material to make a few pennies? It just
doesn’t work like that. I’m not saying I’m proud of those early songs. In a lot
of ways they weren’t very good. They’re not sophisticated or clever. They
belong to an age of innocence. But it’s a pity there’s nothing left of those
days.
DJ PETE: We
have an e-mail from Judy of West Knoll, who suggests that all that goody-goody
stuff you were doing when you first started, it all came from this Ian Zack character.
He was the naïve one, and you tried to corrupt him. But he stopped the real you
coming out, didn’t he? You couldn’t wait to get rid of him. He would have foiled
your plan.
JEX: What?
I didn’t ever have a plan. You keep trying to make out that I’m some kind of
ogre. I’m not. I’m just an ordinary person trying to do what I can. Yes, Ian
did have a rosy vision of life. He saw good in everyone. He saw beauty
everywhere. He could see connections that no one else saw. He saw the lines
joining everything up.
DJ PETE: It’s
a pity we don’t have any of that early stuff, so I guess we'll never hear it…
A voice: Why
don’t you play something live? I’ve got my guitar here!
(the sound man swings a microphone over
to a boy in the audience)
DJ PETE: I
don't think we're going to be able to do that, because (as everyone knows) Devil's Back are prohibited from live
performance.
The boy: But
this isn't Devil's Back - it's Jex!
JEX: I'm
not banned from performing on my own. As long as I don't play with drums, it'll
be OK. It's the drums that have that effect on people... (taking guitar) Thanks. Looks like a good instrument. I could maybe
play one of our first songs: “I really like you”.
DJPETE: Well,
it seems I spoke too soon. Strangely enough, by the wonders of acoustic music we
are able to bring you an early song. This is from before John Hayter
joined the band, right?
JEX: That’s
right.
DJ PETE: And
now you, the viewer, can judge for yourself just how deliberately subversive
their lyrics were, even at that early stage.
JEX: (tuning guitar) You won’t hear anything
remotely subversive in this.
DJ PETE: I
think we should let the viewers decide for themselves, shouldn’t we? And here
it is now: “Why don’t you like me?”
JEX: It’s
called “I really like you”.
DJPETE: Whatever.
So let’s hear those first faltering attempts to corrupt young minds…
JEX (sings): You
know I really like you
I
like the way you move
You
know I really like you
You
know I approve
You
know I really want you
I
like the way you touch
You know I really want you
I want you so much…
Director: (on
the headset) That’s enough of that, Pete. Start talking!
DJ PETE: Well,
maybe there’s not a lot to complain about in that one –except for too much
sugar in the music!
JEX: I
told you it’s not subversive. It’s a simple love song.
DJPETE: Perhaps
you could play something else, if that's all right with our legal team...
Director: (talking
to DJ Pete on the headset) John says not… (talking to a researcher in
the control room) …What?
Researcher: (in
the control room – just audible through Director’s headset)
No!
No more live music. It'll only confuse the viewers. I’d strongly urge you…
JEX: Yes.
Let's. I’m happy to sing something else.
DJ PETE: Or
maybe we won’t. We don’t want to upset anyone…
Herbie & others: What’s
the problem? Just play it!
Director: Apparently
there’s a slight… (to researcher) …What? Why?
Researcher: (in the control room) These songs are
not suitable for a young audience. Don’t let her sing any more.
Herbie: Just
play it!
Audience: Play!
Play!
JEX: I
don’t see why I shouldn't play something. These are just songs from our naïve
period. You seem to be making out that there’s some kind of hidden agenda.
They’re just early songs. What would you like to hear? (to audience) Yes?
Man: “Through
the darkness”.
Researcher: (in the control room) I’m telling you
now: don’t let her sing!
Director: (to
researcher) Okay, I hear you. Who’s in charge here anyway? You or me?
JEX: I’ll
do it.
DJ PETE: Right.
We’re going to hear “Lead me through the darkness”. And this one really is… it’s really… it’s
about darkness.
JEX (sings): When
I don’t know how to play
You
help me through the hardest parts.
You help me make it through each day
And every night - with your light…
JEX: (talking
while playing the guitar) It’s not about darkness. It just mentions
darkness. It’s about light. I can’t see why anyone would want to censor lyrics
like that. Unless they’re trying to mislead everyone. It’s obviously just about
someone who is genuinely helpful. Someone, OK, like Ian Zach – I wrote it about
him. Someone good.
When I can barely see my way
You
lead me through the darkness.
You help me make it through each day
And every night - with your light…
Look,
it’s almost religious. There’s no point in trying to find anything nasty in
these songs. (stops playing) We were just writing the songs we wanted to
hear. There weren’t any hidden messages. Nothing unpleasant. I promise you. And
we didn’t have any commercial success at that stage either. (hands guitar to Floor Manager)
DJ PETE: No,
I don't buy that. You’ve had your say and it just doesn’t add up. (reading
from a card) Everyone knows your lyrics have always managed to speak
directly to the darker side of young minds. No one quite knows how you did it
at first…
JEX: Where
did you get that question from? This isn’t making any sense. You just heard for
yourself…
DJPETE: (reading
from a card) By the time John Hayter came on the scene you were already
well into a kind of powerful black magic that could grip hold of….
JEX: (reaching
for cards) Who wrote that? This just isn’t true.
Audience: (jeering)
JEX: No
really. This is just not right. Where do these questions come from?
DJ PETE: Our
viewers are sending in e-mails and texts, and…
JEX: No
– those questions on the cards!
DJPETE: We
have a whole team of people working on these shows.
JEX: Well,
they don’t seem to have got many facts right. Who’s on this team?
DJPETE: I
don’t have to tell you who our researchers are.
JEX: Just
give me one name.
DJPETE: I’m
asking the questions.
JEX: And
I’m trying to tell you the truth.
DJPETE: So,
when did you first turn nasty? And that question’s from me.
JEX: (after a moment’s pause) I’ve got to be
honest with you. Things changed when we met John. John Hayter. I’m sorry if it
sounds unkind – but it’s true.
DJPETE: (reading
from a card) And you begged him to join the band?
JEX: Not
at all. We advertised for a drummer and he was one of many people who
auditioned. He needed the work. We were in a rehearsal studio called – I think
– “The Arches” – a bit of a dive, really. Old mattresses on the walls to deaden
the sound, and everything musty and sweaty. It really stank. I think it was
forced to close down soon afterwards. But it was all we could afford then.
DJPETE: And
how was John’s audition?
JEX: You
know, we weren’t that impressed when we first talked to the guy. He didn’t give
much away, and he, well, he didn’t ever look at you, if you know what I mean – but
when he played, on that scabby old kit in there, he did have a certain
something. You know – some ability. He was quite good. But nothing special. Not
then, anyway.
DJPETE: So
what was your first impression of this man who is supposed to be a danger to
the public?
JEX: I
wouldn’t say we ever really got on particularly well. It was just that… he
could play, and we needed a drummer. And he said he was going to get a van.
DJPETE: Has
this got anything to do with anything?
JEX: When
you’re auditioning to join a band, it just helps if you have a van. After a few
months John got hold of this horrible old van that was always going wrong. It
was always breaking down at the worst moments – whenever we were in a hurry or
doing anything important. It seemed to have a mind of its own – seemed to know
when to mess things up. And it was always so cold – it made me shudder – it
always made me feel sick…
DJPETE: I
don’t think we’ve got time to hear about that, with all due respect. Our
viewers want –
JEX: Just
listen, if you want to know what really happened. I’m trying to tell you. I’m
convinced there was something about that van. Round about the time John started
driving it, he found this groove, this new sound – a kind of raw… well, raw nastiness
about it. His playing changed completely. And he changed too. Everything changed.
We started singing about different things. Dealing with more... more cruel kind
of ideas. And John’s beat just got more and more… sort of urgent, primitive,
aggressive… disturbing.
DJPETE: And
that's about the time your music started to get into people's heads and... and
in some cases, started to take control...
But, once again, we don’t seem to have anything from that period…
Voices: Yes
you do!
DJPETE: There
are no recordings from that time, so…
Herbie: What
is this? Your researchers asked us to
bring along old Devil’s Back recordings
and DVDs and hand them in at the door. You know perfectly well they exist
because you’ve got them.
DJPETE: (to Director) Is that right?
Director: (on
the headset) Is it? I’m just finding out now… what?… Uh - no, it seems we
don't have any of that back catalogue available.
DJPETE: Sorry,
friends. None of that stuff is around anymore.
Herbie: (approaching the stage area) Yes it is.
I brought in a whole of stuff today, just like your researcher asked us to. And
look - I've still got an old DVD here. Good
thing I didn't let you people have this. Go on. Put this one on! (handing DVD to floor
manager) Put on “Only pretending”
it's the second track.
DJPETE: Maybe
we do have one of those recordings after all.
Director: I
don’t understand what's happened here.
JEX: Looks
like someone on your staff is trying to collect all our old recordings!
DJPETE: I
don't think so, somehow.
Director: (on
the headset) We’re getting it lined up now. We’re going with “Only
pretending” – ready in ten, Pete.
Researcher: (in
control room, audible through headset) I can’t allow you to play that
track. For legal reasons...
Director: (on
the headset) (to researcher) Calm down, will you? The ban is only for live
performance.
DJPETE: We
have managed to get hold of a track they did at that time. We thought
all that stuff was lost.
Herbie: You
people have been doing your best to lose it!
DJPETE: Evidently
it’s not quite lost. Anyway, let’s have a look at this number called “Only
pretending”…
JEX: It’s
one of the first songs we recorded with John drumming, when he first came up
with that amazing sound.
DJPETE: And
when you played this live..
JEX: When
people heard John's drum groove in a live gig, that's when they sometimes found
- not with everyone - but with some people - that's when they found they
couldn't stop themselves moving to the music, and that's when... when the whole
dancing thing...
DJPETE: So
maybe we shouldn't play the track now.
JEX: It'll
be fine - it's only when John played the drums live.
AV: (very
shaky camera-work, clearly a live take, shot in a rehearsal studio. Jex is
singing and playing bass, Ian Zach strumming uncomfortably, and in the
background John, on a strange and archaic drum kit, appears to be concentrating
hard, locked in a mechanical groove as if possessed)
I don’t love you – I was only pretending.
You’re still hooked on it never ending.
Open your eyes and see what’s there.
Don’t kid yourself that I could care.
Don’t care.
Don’t care.
Why d’you have to act all good?
We can all see through it.
Time to dump your childhood.
Just get out there and do it.
Don’t care.
Don’t care.
Forget about the other guy.
Show me what you’re made of.
Kiss your principles goodbye.
What are you afraid of?
Don’t care.
Don’t care.
JEX: If you look around the studio now, I think
you'll see that no one has been gripped by the dancing
thing. Not one person. (to the studio audience) Did anyone feel they
couldn't stop dancing when they heard that? Did anyone begin to feel
violent? Did it make anyone want to go
out and commit a crime? I don't think so.
DJPETE: But when you played it live with
John Hayter...
JEX: Exactly.
DJPETE: Okay - so who came up with those – slightly
aggressive – lyrics?
JEX: Well,
up to that point I’d always written with Ian, but… and again it was about the
time John got his van… when everything… While we were working out the lyrics,
deciding which words would fit best, that kind of thing, John would be – well,
not really sort of discussing and contributing in the normal way, but…
DJPETE: Come
on! You came up with all those weird ideas, didn’t you? Your name is
clearly on all the credits. I think you’re trying to blame John Hayter for your
own errors of judgement.
JEX: No.
Ian and I would be, maybe... stuck for a rhyme or something, and John just used
to shout out how he thought it should go. To begin with I was, like, “no,
that’s not it” but John was a bit more assertive… he used to get slightly… he
insisted, let’s say. And then we just used to go along with it. He seemed to know
what would sell.
DJPETE: I
don’t think you’re being a hundred per cent truthful, are you? According to our
research…
JEX: I’m
telling you how it happened. Your research really does seem to be seriously flawed.
I was there, and I know.
DJPETE: Perhaps
you can take us through the writing process, then. That could be interesting
for our viewers.
JEX: Okay.
I’ll try. You've got to realize that no two songs were ever written in exactly the
same way… but Ian might come up with an idea – like, let’s say, “how about a
song about walking down the street?” We’d be bouncing ideas off each other. I’d
be writing down ideas on a scrap of paper, or whatever came to hand. I might
say, “hmm, well, walking down the street… two people walking down the street...
how about… how about keeping up?” and Ian might say, “yes, I like that…
what about I can’t keep up with you?” and I’d go, maybe, “I’m trying
to keep up with you” or something
like that.
DJPETE: That
hardly sounds like the kind of material you were releasing around that time.
JEX: But
that’s just it. That is what
happened. That’s exactly how Ian and I used to work, and that’s just the kind
of idea we might have. But the moment John came in the room, he’d start
drumming on the table, or on plates and pots and stuff, and he’d be listening
to “I’m trying to keep up with you” and he’d turn it into something a bit
rougher, and he’d go, “try to keep up, try to keep up” and then “get
a move on, get a move on” over and over again. Then he’d be going, “you’re
too slow” or “you’re holding me back” and pretty soon it would
change to something a bit more vicious, like “get away from me” or “get
lost, loser” or that kind of thing. Then he’d be shouting it out, louder
and louder, over and over again, and he’d get into some weird rhythm as if he
was in a trance. He’d be yelling it out. We couldn’t argue with him – and
anyway, it sounded… not exactly good, but, well, we couldn't help getting into
the groove! We knew we were onto something. We could tell it would make money.
DJPETE: I
didn’t ask you how well it would sell. I was asking how your songs came to be
written.
JEX: And
I was telling you.
DJPETE: But
I think it’s pretty clear that you’re not being totally honest. The way you describe
it, you’re completely naive and John Hayter is completely to blame for
everything.
JEX: I’m
just telling you what happened.
DJPETE: I
hear what you’re saying – but everyone knows that the ideas come from you.
You’re the song writer. You’re singing it, and it’s clear you mean it, and I
think any rational person would agree that you can’t pretend that it’s coming
from your drummer, who’s just a member of the band.
JEX: It
was coming from him. I can see that now. It wasn't just the drum groove.
It was the whole feel of the thing. The rhythm and the words and... and
everything. It was all coming from him. And now I don’t know why I went
along with it. Something just kind of took over. I know I was fronting the
band, and I was singing the song myself, even taking the credit for it, but
ultimately all the ideas – the ideas that made money – they came from him.
DJPETE: (indicating another member of the audience)
Yes… your question?
A girl: Can’t
you take the responsibility for your own actions? You’re credited as the writer
and you sang the song.
JEX: Yes
I know. And, believe me, I regret it now.
DJPETE: I
don’t know that we can believe you. You know, I think I just might try
you on one of your own lie detectors – whether they’re legal or not. I just
happen to have one out in the…
JEX: What
more do you want me to say? Look, I’m so sorry I ever went along with any of
this. Ultimately I am responsible for
my own songs. I know that, but really all those crazy ideas came from John.
They really did.
Audience: (jeers)
JEX: It’s
something I’ve asked myself over and over again. Why did I give in to it? You probably think it’s all to do with
wanting success and fame and money. You probably think I just sold out for that
kind of ambition. I mean, that’s how we started out, after all. Ian saw it all.
He was stronger than me. As soon as he saw the way it was going, and he didn’t
like it, he got out.
DJPETE: You
mean you sacked him?
JEX: I
mean he left. He knew it was all wrong. We started to have these rows – for the
first time. We’d always seen eye to eye up to then. But then we began to have
all these arguments about the way the band was going. It all turned sour. I
couldn’t see what was happening to us, but he
could.
DJPETE: You
couldn’t see it? I’d have thought it was obvious. And it wasn't just about the
drum rhythms. What about all those... those notorious, inciteful lyrics? When
you actively encouraged young people to riot and steal: “take it; you
deserve it; they don’t have to know” – you were promoting selfish behaviour,
weren’t you, with those other ones: “Get out and grab what you want” and
“You gotta push in before you’re pushed” and “Give as good as you
get” – what was all that about if it wasn’t inciting violence, or at the
very least inciting intolerance or distrust? Let’s face it, you were stirring
up hatred. It was a kind of mind control.
JEX: OK.
You’re right. I know that now. But when you’re having a commercial success like
that, and everything’s kind of bulldozing through on its own momentum, you
somehow – I can’t try to justify it, but it’s what happens – you somehow lose
sight of what feels wrong or right; you’re just caught up in what sells.
You stumble on a formula, and you go for it while it lasts.
DJPETE: And
in the middle of all that you sacked Ian Zack, who started you off?
JEX: I
told you: I didn’t sack him. He tried to persuade me to stop. We fell out. He
left us to it. He was – he still is, I hope – well, a real gentle man who tried
to make me see where it was going. But I
couldn’t stop.
DJPETE: You
couldn’t stop because you started it, didn’t you? You’re blaming it on
your drummer, but you were the one behind it all, and you haven’t got the
decency to come clean over any of it.
JEX: If
you ask John I'm sure he'll explain it to you.
DJPETE: Come
on now - you know we can’t ask him anything, as everybody knows he’s
disappeared. Or has he disappeared?
Audience: (jeers)
DJPETE: Don’t
you think it’s unfair to blame so much on your friend when he’s not here to
answer for himself?
JEX: You
asked me to come here. It’s not my fault he’s disappeared. I’m just trying to
tell you what really happened.
DJPETE: Well,
I was going to ask you about that extraordinary ploy of promoting your weird, unpleasant
lie detector machines through your music. This could be the moment to try one
out.
JEX: No.
I wouldn’t do that.
DJPETE: You
don’t want to use your own lie detector? I wonder why not.
Audience: (jeers)
JEX: Everyone
knows why not. It’s not safe and it's not legal to use them. It would be too
risky.
Director: (over the headset) No lie detectors,
Pete.
DJPETE: And
not so long ago you were so keen to promote them through your music. I seem to
remember one of your songs was entirely about how great they were supposed to
be. What was that lyric, now? Something
like, “So you know the truth hurts, but can you manage without it?”
JEX: “Can
you live without it?”
DJPETE: You
don’t deny that you were selling them through your music?
JEX: It
was John who had them made and it was John who was promoting them, not me. I shouldn't
have let him do it... but I did. But now everyone knows how evil they are and
why you shouldn't have them near you. And I really don’t think it’s such a good
idea to use one now. It would be… it would be so dangerous.
DJPETE: I
know it’s against the law now, but I think we’ll go with it anyway, don’t you
think? I’ll take the stick.
Director: (over the headset) We’ve got a call from
Broadcasting Standards. They’re on the line now. You can’t use the lie
detector!
DJPETE: I
know they’re supposed to be a bit dodgy, but we all know that they work, don’t we? Come on! (getting up
and leaving the stage)
Come
with me. (to camera) I just happen to have one in my car. One of the
original models; the one that, you know, that gives off a kind of… cold, kind
of… well, I can always use it for air conditioning…
(The
Floor Manager is in shot, holding the doors open, as Pete leaves the studio,
with cameras in front and behind)
JEX: (left behind in the studio, talking to Floor
Manager) This is just asking for trouble.
DJPETE: (out in the car park, approaching a
convertible sports car next to a large Outside Broadcast Vehicle) Here we
are. (some interference on sound and camera)
Right. I’ll just… (opening boot) Wow!
It’s cold in here! Feels as if… This thing seems to be giving off… (momentary loss of signal) …and it seems
to smell pretty strange as well, although… (struggling
to hold the machine and shut the boot at the same time) (leaning against side of Outside Broadcast
Vehicle)…you know, I’m not feeling that great right now (loss of signal again)
Researcher: (in the control room) We can’t allow
anyone under eighteen to be present if Pete is really going to use one of those
lie detectors. We’ve got to get the youngsters out of the studio.
Director: (on
the headset) Okay, Okay, Jake. You're right for once. We’ll have to move
the teenagers, just to cover ourselves. That's half the audience. Get those kids
out of here – take them to the canteen; give them a coffee or something. A
milk-shake. Whatever youngsters drink these days.
Floor Manager: (in the studio, to the audience) Ladies
and gentlemen, we’ve been taking legal advice, and I’m afraid we can’t allow
minors to remain in the studio audience while this… this machine is in use. I
have to ask everyone under eighteen to leave the studio. Right now. Yes, now. (He starts ushering out the youngsters in
the audience) Give me some help, guys.
Herbie & others: (various angry protests as they are forced
to leave by members of the production team)
Floor Manager: We
have a duty to the public…
Herbie: This
is crazy.
Floor Manager: I’m
sorry – you’ll have to wait through here – just for a few miniutes – Yes, I
know – I didn’t make the rules – just through here, that’s it…
DJPETE: (outside) Okay. Now we can find out what
really happened. This lie detector’s always worked pretty well, whatever you
say about them… (returning through studio
doors) It’ll be a first on live television. Nobody’s done this before. What’s
happening to the audience?
Floor Manager: (whispers in Pete’s ear)
Director: (over the headset) We’re getting real
calls now, Pete. Just go easy with that machine. We’ll probably lose our jobs
over it. Thanks a lot.
JEX: I
don’t know what you’re hoping to achieve by all this. I’ve already told you the
truth – and it… it’s not safe.
DJPETE: (setting down the machine and struggling to
get it ready) How come you were shamelessly advertising these things in
your songs and your ring tones, then, if they’re so dangerous?
JEX: Do
you still think it was me? I’ve told
you already: John was behind all that. I didn’t realize what was going on until
it was too late.
DJPETE: It’s
cold in here!
JEX: This
cold thing… it’s one of the effects
of the machine. Look, I can’t condone this for a moment...
DJPETE: It’s
not up to you – you’re the one who’s
under investigation here. (to Floor
Manager) Give us a hand, will you? (connecting
parts of the device to Jex’s hands and head)
JEX: Don’t
you realize what you’re doing? You’re just asking for trouble. The device is unstable
– surely you’ve heard about that? Do you know what it does to people?
DJPETE: I know perfectly well what it
does. (shuddering) It’s in the public interest.
JEX: Come on then – let’s get it
over with: what do you want to know? (TV picture loses colour)
DJPETE: Tell us about this device, then.
JEX: You’ve got to ask a question.
Director: (on the headset) The
picture's gone monochrome – can you fix it?
Floor Manager: (on the headset) Checking
connections now.
DJPETE: Whose idea was it to market these
lie detectors through your music?
JEX: It was John’s idea. John Hayter. I told you.
DJPETE: Can we be sure this thing is
working?
Director: (on the headset) Get her
to say something that isn’t true.
DJPETE: Yeah! Can you lie for us so we
can see if it’s working?
JEX: It doesn’t work like that. It’s not like any
other kind of lie detector. You can’t lie with this machine. (further
interference in sound and vision) That’s the whole problem with it. It
forces you to tell the truth. And you’re wasting time, and I don’t want to be
hooked up to this thing for much longer. It's making me feel sick. Can we get
on with it? What do you want to know?
DJPETE: Well first I think we all want to
know where John Hayter is. I’m sure you know. (more severe loss of picture
quality)
Director: (on the headset) What’s
causing that fault?
Floor Manager: (on the headset) It’s got something
to do with the lie detector. There’s no suppression on it. We’ll have to turn
it off…
JEX: No, I can’t tell you where John Hayter is,
because I just don’t know, and I don’t want to know either. But I wouldn’t mind
betting he’s had something to do with some of those ridiculous, misleading
questions you’ve got on your cards, there. (sound quality very poor) This
whole programme seems to be designed to confuse people. To me that sounds like
the kind of thing he would do. I think you’d better ask your researchers
where they got their information because I don’t think you’ve got good value
for money there. And I really want to take this thing off. It’s beginning… I’m
beginning to feel really… it’s taking
too long.
Director: (on the headset) Pete,
we’ve got to stop this. We’ve been told we can’t use it. We’re getting all
these calls and texts complaining about it. And it’s messing up the picture
quality. Switch it off now.
DJPETE: Okay, okay. I’ve just got to ask
a few more questions while we’ve got it up and running. So who wrote those
lyrics about pushing in and grabbing…?
JEX: I’ve already told you. It was John.
DJPETE: How do we know this thing’s
working?
JEX: Because... no more questions. (pulling off
the hand and head attachments) I’ve had enough.
DJPETE: Okay. Right. Right. (switching
the machine off) Just having this machine around is making my guts ache. (picture
flickers, then returns to normal transmission quality) But, you know, since
you’re so keen on shifting the blame, and since we have this machine here to
prove that our research is on the level, I think we should do one more little
experiment. It just happens we have our main researcher with us in the studio.
In the control room. We wouldn’t normally reveal the identity of a researcher,
but as you’re so keen to discredit him, let’s invite our researcher to answer a
couple of questions! Do we have, er, Mr – what is his name anyway?
Director: (in control room, on headset)
He’s not up here anymore, Pete. Probably in the canteen with the kids. I’ll
ring down. Keep talking. Ask Jex about how the lie detector works.
DJPETE: While we’re finding our, uh – I
think he’s a John too – perhaps you could take us through what it is about this
technology that makes it so different from other lie detectors?
JEX: I don’t mind talking about it but I’m not going
to stay here next to it. (moving to an empty seat near the back of the
audience, followed by camera and sound) I’ll try and explain, but I don’t
think anyone really understands all of it. But the basic principle, what makes
it actually work, is that inside the machine, in a tiny airtight container, in
complete darkness, there is a very small, rather unpleasant, sample of… it’s almost
microscopic – it’s constantly being compared with the input through the
sensors…
DJPETE: (moving over to Jex) I’m
not sure I follow all of that, Jex. The input?
JEX: Basically – as I understand it – as John
explained it to me, the input, which is what you say when you’re
connected up to it, is compared with the sample – the stuff inside, and if your
intent – I mean your thought, your meaning – if it matches the negative quality
of the sample, there’s an imbalance – there’s too much…well… too much negativity…
DJPETE: What is this sample? A sample of
what?
JEX: Okay, I can’t put it any other way. It’s a
sample of… well, it's evil. A kind of unrefined, crude evil. The
machine compares your thoughts and words with the evil sample and
basically, to keep things in balance, it can only accept things that are good,
or true… It measures your intentions and it can tell if they’re good or bad,
and it tries to maintain a kind of equilibrium. That’s what makes you tell the
truth. But the trouble is, to do that it’s always taking good out of the
atmosphere, and in a lot of the early versions, like this one, the airtight
container has somehow got contaminated from inside and, well, the evil is
seeping out... And you can feel it.
DJPETE: You’re right. I felt it. So the basic
principle is that there’s evil inside the machine, and it can tell if
there’s evil in what you say – right?
JEX: Yes – but it makes you tell the truth.
At the time, anyway. And there are quite a few problems with that. For a start,
as we said in the song, quite often the truth can hurt – sometimes, you know,
it’s wiser not to be completely truthful – like when you’re talking about other
people. Or if you say what you’re planning to do. Or what you’ve already done. Or
just whatever you're thinking. There are plenty of things it’s better not to
know. Things that people shouldn’t be able to find out.
DJPETE: And what does this evil look
like?
JEX: I haven’t seen it. It’s always kept in
darkness. Completely sealed off. Well, supposedly sealed off.
DJPETE: And you’re saying this machine
has got some kind of a leak, so that it’s spilling out evil?
JEX: It’s seeping out all the time. It’s unpleasant.
It’s harmful. It’s like an infectious disease. It gets to you and it begins to
take over. If you don’t fight it, it tries to control you. Can we please get that
gadget out of here?
DJPETE: Where’s that researcher? I want
to hook him up to this thing first.
Director: (over the headset) Forget
about John, Pete. We can’t find him. He’s not in the canteen. There’s nobody
there.
DJPETE: Well, we don’t seem to have our
researcher with us any more…
JEX: (getting up) What’s going on here? Who
was that anyway? And where are the kids? Who’s with them? (going out of the
studio)
DJPETE: I’m sure there’s a perfectly
reasonable explanation for this…
A Voice: Yeah! What is this? Where
are they?
Other voices: They’ve gone! Dan! Jack! etc (Many of
the remaining members of the audience are starting to leave the studio in
search of the youngsters)
DJPETE: Come on, guys! Let’s have a bit
of… Hey! Come back!
Director: (over the headset) We’ll
have to go off air, Pete – we can’t broadcast this – we’ll lose our licence.
Let’s go with a few Devil’s Back tracks until we sort this out.
DJPETE: (to camera) Well, we’re
going to have to leave you for a minute or two because of… an unforeseen
technical problem. Normal service will of course be resumed as soon as
possible. Whenever that is. In the meantime, just to remind our viewers what
this is all about, we’re going to show one or two Devil’s Back tunes. Don’t
forget – you’re watching DJ Pete's Big
Talk.
Director: (over the headset) We’ve
just had a call from the police – someone claims to have seen John Hayter, here
on this show. When Jake was getting the kids out, Hayter was helping him. They
only saw him for a second, but they’re pretty sure it’s him. The police are on
their way now.
Devil’s Back
Part 3
First Statement by Herbie G
(surname and address supplied
but omitted here for legal reasons)
submitted to DJ Pete's Big
Talk enquiry.
1st May
What was I doing there? Well,
I’ve been a fan of Jex Juliet’s for ages. I've never actually seen Devil’s Back live, and now it's too
late, but I’ve always liked Jex's songs, especially her early material, and
I’ve collected quite a few CDs, DVDs, mp3s, promos, photos and other
merchandise from the period when she first wrote and recorded with Ian Zach,
who is well cool.
Recently I replied to an
advertisement – supposedly placed by MBTV – in a music paper which asked for
fans to get in touch if they want to see Jex in a live TV show, and they asked
me to bring all my stuff in. I now realize that I shouldn’t have parted with
anything. The advertisement was put there by John Hayter; he was trying to
rewrite the history of the band.
Yes, I know that Devil’s Back have released some really dodgy
material, and they’ve been involved in dodgy activities, and I of course
everyone knows that when they played live, they had this weird effect on people
- people couldn't stop dancing - and then sometimes rioting - that's why their
gigs were banned. But their music has always been quite amazing, and I don’t
think anyone should dismiss it or claim that it’s evil. I’ve listened to it a
lot and played it, and even recorded my own covers of some of the songs myself
– and I don’t think it has done me any harm. And besides all that, I think Jex Juliet
has been wrongly accused. She’s a talented singer and she deserves better
treatment. I went to the TV studio that day because I’m prepared to stand up
for her, and I think she needs people to do that.
But what happens? It's around
seven
o'clock in the evening. The
show's been on for half an hour, with DJ Pete ranting at Jex but getting
nowhere. Everyone's restless. There's quite a bit of heckling. DJ Pete goes out
to get his lie detector, and all of us teenagers are forced to leave the
studio. The TV people are telling us it’s because we’re too young to see the
machine plugged in, although of course everyone’s seen one already. A lot of us
had them in our homes, before they were recalled. We’re herded into the studio
canteen, before we even have a chance to pick up our things, and this guy says
a researcher is going to look after us and buy us all a coke or something.
There’s twenty or so of us. We’re
in there for maybe half a minute, and then this researcher guy tells us to go
out into the yard. His face seems sort of familiar but nobody twigs who he is
until it’s way too late. He opens up the side door of this truck with black windows
called the MBTV Outside Broadcast Unit
and he invites us inside. It’s a bit of a squash but it’s amazing in there – it’s
full of all this awesome TV equipment: monitors, mixing desks, racks of
amplifiers and modules and effects and all kind of gizmos. We’re just getting
ready to watch the show from inside the truck, when the door slams shut, the
engine revs up, and the truck drives out with all of us in it.
No
one has said anything about fastening seat belts or even sitting down. There are
hardly any seats anyway. We can tell right away that something’s wrong. The
truck is going way too fast, bumping over kerbs and scraping against things.
Somebody opens a door into the cab part of the truck and they can see the guy
driving is like someone possessed. He has that look. And that’s when we realize
who it is: John Hayter. The drummer from Devil’s Back. The one who's gone missing and is wanted by the
police. And here he is driving this truck like there's no tomorrow. He’s accelerating through the middle of the
town, hurtling round corners and forcing other people off the road.
We’re
all sort of gasping – we can’t believe what’s happening - some of the girls
start screaming and pleading with him to stop. He throws the truck round a bend
and a guy called Des hits his head quite badly on some piece of TV equipment.
It’s a nasty gash and there’s blood running down his arm – and pretty soon we’re
all yelling, trying to get Hayter to slow down and trying to get everyone down
on the floor. Hayter swerves through a red light, things start falling off the
shelves and you can hear drivers blasting their horns at us. He must be doing
at least sixty.
We’re
scared. And angry. In shock, I suppose. And funnily enough I don’t just feel
angry about being driven around by a lunatic and nearly killed at every
junction. I’m incensed that he’s made me leave my guitar behind, as well as my
case which has all my stuff in it.
A
guy called Joe crawls into the cab and tries to grab the steering wheel. I see
what happens: Hayter turns to him and says something like, “Are you trying to
get us all killed? Let go of the *** wheel, keep your *** mouth shut and get
into the *** back.” – he isn’t shouting; he just says it matter-of-fact. He
fixes him with this icy stare while he’s still careering through the city. Joe
gets out of the cab as quick as he can and leaves Hayter to get on with it.
We’re
heading out of town, but I don’t recognize the route: past a row of shops, through
an estate, under a railway, into the country. No one can make a call on a
mobile because we had to give them in at the studio. The roads are getting
narrower and narrower and rougher and rougher. We’re climbing up into the
hills.
Suddenly,
with a massive jolt, we’re off the road and driving across a field – there doesn’t
seem to be a track. The vehicle is sort of lurching from side to side as the
wheels spin up over bumps and drop down into ruts. There’s rough grass growing and
not much else. A few wind-swept bushes here and there, and trees round the edge
of the field showing their branches like the veins on a row of fingers. We’re
heading towards this vast great lump on the top of the hill, two or three
hundred meters away. It’s shaped like an enormous upturned boat. Noah's Ark
Hayter
jumps down from the cab, he pulls open the side door and then he just stands
there in the long grass, saying nothing. It’s pretty clear we have to get out.
Somehow everyone has quietened down – nobody says a word. Des isn’t bleeding so
much now, but he looks as white as a sheet. One by one everyone staggers to their
feet, they move to the door and climb down this little ladder thing. Except
that I’m furthest from the door, behind a kind of worktop, and I decide to take
a chance and drop right down out of sight. I see that Joe notices me – the same
Joe who crossed Hayter before. I hope he won’t do anything that will give me
away.
And
now Joe is climbing down – he’s the last one out. Hayter climbs halfway back up
the steps and looks into the truck. He kind of sniffs the air. I’m holding my
breath. My heart is thumping. At first I think he's checking that we’re all
out. But then he reaches into a storage space and for a moment I think he's
going to get a weapon - but instead he pulls out this strange looking drum.
It's one of those "talking drums" that has kind of ropes made out of
animal skin tied all round it. It looks extremely old and battered. I recognise
it from some video I've seen. He jumps down and slams the door. I hear him
starting to play a rhythm on the drum that I don't recognise. Calming - almost
inviting - for a moment I almost feel like I want to get out and join them - but
then I realize it's also menacing.
I’m
still in there. I keep right back from the window and I don’t risk looking out
until I hear the drum getting fainter and I know they've moved further away.
When I sneak a look I get the impression that they're all trying to march in
step...
They’re
trudging and stumbling, but somehow they all seem to be moving together, in formation,
towards this huge thing on the top of
the hill. It looks as if it could be the remains of a hill fort from thousands
of years ago, or a burial mound from thousands of years before that. There are odd-shaped
bushes growing up the side of it and sort of furrows where sheep have worn
paths round it. The whole thing looks somehow out of place and nothing feels
right about it. Dark clouds are gathering overhead.
I
don’t really feel a lot safer inside the truck as Hayter could notice I’m
missing at any moment – and I feel bad that I’m hiding there while all the
other guys are facing the music. Weird that he seems to have got them all
marching around. I can’t tell if it means I’ve escaped, but I know I’ve got to
do something quickly.
I
notice a telephone in the back of the truck, next to a big mixing desk. I pick
it up and amazingly I can hear a dialling tone. I press 9 three times and
listen.
