Words: Oli Spleen. Gig photos: Jeff Pitcher. “I’ve killed so many men, but I saved one” – Lydia Lunch says as she puts an arm around me to pose for a photograph at The Piper, Norman Road. She’s just torn through an incredible set with her band Big Sexy Noise. Any attempts to define the…
Author: Oli Spleen
On the Eve of Hope We Linger
Oli Spleen The second to last time I saw Nick Hudson was at the start of March 2023. I had booked a two week trip to visit him in Tbilisi Georgia in the hope of performing a gig together and maybe bashing out a couple of Charles Aznavour covers while soaking up the sights and…
Transphobia, Women’s Rights and the New Section 28
Text: Oli Spleen. Photo: Oli with long-time friend and trans activist Fox Fisher. By Proud Parkers Photography. When Hastings Independent Press first launched over eleven years ago, its founding mission was to offer a unique community-led alternative to the mainstream fearmongering, scapegoating and divisive rhetoric that is the fodder of the daily tabloids. For many…
Hastings: a Town of Words, History and Myth
Oli Spleen On September 10, Moth Light Press will publish a book to commemorate two hundred years of Hastings poetry. Poet Town: The Poetry of Hastings & Thereabouts will be released in two paperback editions, featuring images of the contemporary poets in their chosen locations, brilliantly captured by photographer Maxine Silver. The first section of…




