1985

Nationally, 1985 was a year of upheaval. The Fourth Labour Government under David Lange continued its radical “Rogernomics” reforms – deregulation, floating the dollar, corporatisation, and subsidy cuts – that had begun after the 1984 snap election. These changes dismantled the old welfare-state protections, leading to rising unemployment and social dislocation in a country previously known for heavy regulation. At the same time, the July 10 bombing of the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior in Auckland harbour by French secret agents galvanised the country’s anti-nuclear and peace movements. The attack boosted nationalism and independent foreign policy while reinforcing anti-militarist, pacifist, and anti-imperialist views that resonated strongly with the emerging anarcho-punk generation. 

In Wellington these tensions fed directly into the music scene. The 1981 Springbok Tour protests had earlier politicised and partially fractured the local punk community; by 1985 a fresh wave of bands and zines embraced explicit anarcho-pacifist and class-war themes. Compos Mentis (evolving from the Hutt Valley band World War 3) released their cassette A Short History in August, compiling recent material after several line-up changes. Influenced by Crass, Discharge, and Chaos UK, they wrote politically themed songs and produced the zine Communicade. Both the band and their predecessor appeared on the Greymouth-based Battery Hen Cassettes’ inaugural national compilation Death Pays All Debts. Another new anarcho-punk outfit, Acid Reign from Wellington’s northern suburbs, put out a demo tape and later contributed to international compilations; two members also ran the zine Second Dark Age. Zine culture flourished as a vital mouthpiece for punk in the ’80s. Anarcho-Pacifist #1 appeared in 1985, later renamed as Anti-System, and becoming one of the longest running punk zines in the country. 

Post-punk and outsider strands added colour. Alt-rock trio The Glass played regular gigs and recorded at Broadcasting House and Marmalade Studios; they even joined Flesh D-Vice for a Halloween show at the end of October. Brothers Gorgonzola, self-described “outsider punks” based in a CBD flat on Manners Street, released the cassette Toxikk Rock – “1 hour of rockin’ roll music fit for fatheads and frantic friends”.

Skank Attack formed in winter 1985 as a high-energy post-punk outfit. They played gigs in the last quarter of the year and soon established Skank Records, which released their own material and supported other Wellington underground bands.

Touring acts injected fresh momentum. Levin/ Christchurch Oi! punk band No Idea rolled through on their “Totally Clueless” tour in May and released their 12” EP Class War in August.

Dominating the year, however, was Flesh D-Vice, who were now established as Wellington’s central punk band. They stayed busy recording their second album Secrets of the Estranged (released in November), whose single “Flaming Soul” came out in October with a memorable video shot at Avalon Studios. The band capped the year with the Summertime Blues tour (October–December), hitting venues across both islands and closing with two raucous nights at Wellington’s Terminus Hotel. Their hard-edged, non-compromising sound contrasted with the more arty post-punk of earlier years while still anchoring the live scene.

Venues were a mix of pubs (Cricketers Arms, Terminus, Clyde Quay Tavern), community halls, and studios; many shows stayed DIY because mainstream pubs were still wary of punk.

In short, 1985 marked a transition in Wellington punk: the anarcho-pacifist wave (Compos Mentis, Acid Reign, zines) responded directly to Rainbow Warrior-era peace politics and Rogernomics-era discontent, while established acts like Flesh D-Vice and emerging outfits like Skank Attack and Brothers Gorgonzola kept the live energy high. The capital’s scene – small, tight-knit, fiercely independent – produced a burst of politically engaged, creatively diverse music that echoed New Zealand’s broader push for autonomy and social change.