Pat Fear back to black…

Pat Fear

“There are two kinds of people in the world, people who are in White Flag and all those who wish they were.”

He is rascal, part of the youthful scene that we punks were made from! Those microbial bats of Rock & Roll. A jokester that played his music the way he wanted to. He is a friend and youthful comrade that always was there. A few years back I got to see White Flag rock out a Saint’s song. Demolition Girl. (He knew that was a favorite song of mine.)

That was Pat always making his friends happy and irritated at the same time.

He wrote and recorded the Flipside Fanzine theme song that is used on a few of the Flipside records and videos which are now free trolling through-out the internet.

The last time I spoke with him was backstage at the Golden Voice 30-year gig at the Santa Monica Civic.

He was part of the sexy black lace that held the original puck scene together. I will miss him. He overwhelmed me with his knowledge about music, and he let me know it too!!

To the left of me is “Bill” Bartell / Pat Fear. I had not seen many of my old punk comrades in years, so I was a little shy when I took the shot. Notice there are strange looks on their faces.

Bill annoyingly kept saying. “Smile look who is taking the picture, it’s Hud, you all remember Hud?”

I was so embarrassed and a little drunk but most of them did. If you know their faces you know who they are. It was a strange time because I did not know how I would be greeted. Most of the guys in bands and the promoters and artists treated me swell.

Others, like Mike Ness of SD were hiding in their backstage room, which was only available to some. A real change for him who once was very real and accessible in the early punk scene. Pat never changed he was always accessible more than you wanted. I felt a lack of freedom those few nights.

I once had the privilege of knowing the backstage very well as a Fanzine person. Now, I was not allowed to go backstage as one who caused considerable trouble.

I was limited and only was allowed in a type of buffer zone with a hand full of others… it was a sad reality of how things were becoming, which is a less personal punk scene and more Rockstars or impersonal. It once was so different.

The focus was on the individual or friend, scene, or community. Well that is why we now have Facebook, I guess.

Hub Master: Pat Fear.

As you know Pat was a force to deal with. He lived in Riverside which was not far from Whittier Ca where Flipside Fanzine was based. Flipside put out a few music vinyl fanzines on Flipside / Gasatanka Records.

Pat was the hub master and helped bring it all together. Was it only a few years ago I argued on Facebook about his hate for Sahara Palin?

I would ask him to slow down and redirect his energy. White Flag played a show with the Simpletons around 2008. They played a Saints Song, Demolition Girl. A nice dedication to me. Yet that was Pat… he always tried to make his friends happy.

He was humorous in an irritating and funny way. He had the gift of inclusion. He is a constellating hub across time which brings us all here together today.

I will read some quotes by White Flag Tape 6 Flipside Music Fanzine.

I will try to read them the way White Flag said them. Pat Fear’s high degree of sarcasm. This is a White Flag moment. “What is the purpose of White Flag?”

“To create an illusion of creativity. Because we are too good to be believed.”

“White Flag is a band that’s done everything done before… but better.”

“There are two kinds of people in the world, people who are in White Flag and all those who wish they were.”

“White Flag is more than just a band it is a concept of how to live your life.”

“We look like women, talk like men, and play like mother fuckers. (Twisted sister quote.)”

Pat wrote a theme song for our video fanzines. I would like to share a short description from our catalog describing the beginning of Flipside Video Number Two,

“Now if you want to see the good old video monster in action you just got to catch this video. So, if you get it, and put it in your VCR, you might just die.

Because the opening Flipside Video Number Two is the band White Flag. Gutsy and pure, Pat Fear will knock your block off while he plays guitar for the opening theme song called “Flipside” with backup singers including some Redd Kross members and one Bangle member.”