Goudvishal: DIY Or Die! Punk In Arnhem 1977-1990 By Marcel Stol & Henk Wentink (Earth Island Books)

From my experience, people realize the importance of some public spaces, culture centers, clubs, or any other adequate spaces for gigs once they’re demolished or reclaimed by the state. When you’re living in the moment and having a great time with your friends during some punk rock gig, you don’t pay much attention to those details. Thankfully, some people spent their entire lifetime documenting punk rock history, and this book is all about that. Marcel Stol and Henk Wentink wrote Goudvishal: DIY Or Die! Punk In Arnhem 1977-1990, a book about Stokvishal and Goudvishal, two significant Dutch squats famous for hosting gigs for many renowned punk rock bands.

The authors separated this book into sections. Of course, it all starts with an idea, beginning, and realization. After that, the book leads us to the segment about hard times in the early eighties, exiting Stokvishal and entering Goudvishal, the first punk rock gigs in the mid-eighties, two years of regular working, protesting, moving, and finally settling down in the late eighties and early nineties. The first thing that caught my eye was the design of the entire book. There’s no way you won’t notice how this book has been designed if you’re profoundly into punk rock aesthetics. There are articles, news strips, torn apart paper textures, typewriter fonts, and a comprehensive collection of photos taken in those squats during the beforementioned era. And when I said comprehensive collection, I meant pictures of Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Ramones, Blondie, Johnny Thunders, Iggy Pop, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Talking Heads, The Selecter, Plasmatics, UK Subs, Stiff Little Fingers, Angelic Upstarts, Negazione, Amebix, Raw Power, The Varukers, Chumbawamba, Scream, Government Issue, Heresy, Chaos UK, Conflict, Social Unrest, Broken Bones, Napalm Death, Newtown Neurotics, The Instigators, Toxic Reasons, Culture Shock, RKL, Jingo de Lunch, MDC, SNFU, The Accused, Youth of Today, Soulside, The Vandals, Verbal Assault, Gorilla Biscuits, DI, DOA, NOFX, and many more.

Instead of sharing only their side of the story, Marcel Stol and Henk Wentink gathered regular visitors, artists, promoters, volunteers, squatters, audience, crew, and others who helped out these two squats in one way or another. These stories play a significant role in this book because you’ll realize the importance and correlation of squatting and the punk rock movement. Goudvishal: DIY Or Die! Punk In Arnhem 1977-1990 explains DIY ethics, self-organizing, and activism in the best possible way. Instead of explaining everything through incomprehensible terms, Marcel Stol and Henk Wentink do it by storytelling through a series of explanations of how they have done it back in the day. It’s a perfect book for anyone interested in squatting, subculture, punk rock movement, activism, or any other vital part of the underground movement. Goudvishal: DIY Or Die! Punk In Arnhem 1977-1990 is available at Earth Island Books.