The Mob - The Mirror Breaks

THE MOB – THE MIRROR BREAKS

In a more calmer and reflective moment, Penny Rimbaud would remark that the poems of Charles Baudelaire were infinitely more culturally relevant than the atomic bomb, which if true could have just as easily been said about the songs of The Mob. Whilst grounded in the despair of 1980s Britain, their Let The Tribe Increase album had transcended all external forces of fear and repression to shine a light upon a profound sense of virtue. Their follow-up 7” single entitled The Mirror Breaks, released in the Autumn of 1983, acted as a final confirmation of this and sealed their reputation as being a band in possession of a rare poignancy.

Containing all the essential elements of a typical Mob composition – the driving bass, rudimentary guitar, neat drumming, soaring backing vocals and even the tremble in Mark Mob's baritone – there was a melodic lightness of touch to The Mirror Breaks that whether intentional or not made them of even greater appeal than they already were.

The Mob were in the enviable position of being unable to do no wrong and in what was essentially another state of the nation address this latest release not only fulfilled all expectations but surpassed them also, encapsulating all that was good about their album and boiling it down into just under four minutes of sheer beauty.

Opening with an admission of living a life of fear and an acknowledgement of there being very little to be done when facing the overwhelming power of those who rule the earth, Mark Mob was still taking a stand, insisting that his understanding of the way things were was a correct one: “You may think I don't know anything, you may think I've got it wrong but I know what it means when I hear the hangman whistling his song.”

Ranged against “the knives they keep in Whitehall,” Mark sees “hope and fragile love” as the only weapons available to fight back with and once again places his faith in children and that one day when the world is theirs they might use it well. As for their elders, he wishes them all the best but hopes that they “burn in hell”.

His final observation is in regard to himself where he faces the fact that ultimately he is alone, emphasised when the mirror breaks and he is nothing more than a drowning man without even a reflection.

With the release of The Mirror Breaks, The Mob were on their way to greater things. Though still loyal to the squat/DIY circuit, they were at the point of being easily capable of filling more mainstream major venues as well, particularly within London. With this in mind it was strange to say the least that this was the moment when Mark Mob decided to load up his truck and go off travelling with the Peace Convoy, effectively causing The Mob to vanish in the sunlight never to be heard of again (apart from posthumous re-releases) until almost 30 years later.

It may well be better to burn out than it is to rust but for many this was a sad day. The Mob would be missed but the memory of them as being one of the best Anarcho Punk bands and one of the most special groups of the 1980s would always remain.

Grenada invasion

GRENADA INVASION

In a speech delivered to a Christian fundamentalist organisation in America earlier in the year, President Reagan had described Russia as “the focus of evil in the modern world” and called for his audience to “pray for those who live in that totalitarian darkness, pray they will discover the joy of knowing God”. There was no reason to believe that Reagan was just playing to the gallery and telling the congregation what they wanted to hear because after all, he was merely a mouthpiece for his political masters and every speech he made – or rather, had written for him – would have always been sanctioned by his Administration so as not to stray from or contradict official policy.

So essentially, the government of the United States of America was defining Russia as an empire of evil that only through God and a position of military strength would be defeated. God and guns, in other words. Was it any wonder that people viewed America with suspicion, fear and loathing when such sentiments were aired? This was with whom Britain apparently had a 'special relationship' with. The same backwards-looking, bible bashing, gung-ho Administration that was being allowed to site first-strike Cruise nuclear missiles throughout Europe.

Thatcher wasn't oblivious to the anti-American mood even though she was unsettlingly close to Reagan but just three days after the Hyde Park CND rally an event took place on the other side of the world that tested even her own blind trust in him.

The island of Grenada in the Caribbean was a member of the British Commonwealth, meaning that the Queen of England was its Head of State. Since 1979 it had been under the rule of a socialist government who was close allies of Cuba. Even though Cuba along with Nicaragua and of course Russia was considered by America to be an 'enemy of freedom', Grenada itself had never caused any great concern. That all changed, however, on October 19 when Grenada's Prime Minister, Maurice Bishop, was ousted and the governance of the island taken over by a more hardline Marxist group.

Following a flurry of diplomatic activity in London, it was concluded that the coup was an internal affair and that no action should be taken by Britain apart from keeping an eye on the safety of the British nationals who lived there. Thatcher herself could distinguish that there was no comparison with the Falklands and that there was no cause to intervene. America conveyed the same line and let it be known that all it would do is to have a ship on standby in case its own nationals at any point needed to be evacuated.

And that, apparently, was the end of it until Thatcher woke up on the morning of October 25 to the news that without any consultation with Britain, America had launched an invasion of the island. Thatcher was reportedly livid, viewing such an action as not only a flagrant violation of international law but as a betrayal of trust between herself and Reagan.

Only a day earlier, the British Foreign Secretary, Geoffrey Howe, had informed the House of Commons that America had reassured his government that there was no intention to intervene in any way. America, it seemed, had lied and had now invaded a British Commonwealth country resulting in almost 100 deaths, over 500 wounded, and untold political damage.

How could Thatcher now tell the British public that America could be trusted, particularly over the issue of Cruise? How could she now argue this with CND? It was undeniable: There had been no cause for Grenada to be invaded. Thatcher knew it as did everyone else but in a television address that would have been high comedy if it hadn't been so scary, Reagan justified the invasion thus:

“Grenada, we were told, was a friendly isolated paradise for tourism. Well, it wasn't. It was a Soviet/Cuban colony being readied as a major bastion to export terror and undermine democracy. We got there just in time.”

At the same time of the invasion, in a leaked government report to the Guardian newspaper it was revealed that the first of the Cruise missiles were due to arrive at Greenham Common in just over three weeks time...