Attila the Stockbroker - Performance poet - poetry - poems - songs

Sharp-tongued, high energy, social surrealist rebel poet and songwriter. His themes are topical, his words hard-hitting, his politics unashamedly radical, but Attila will make you roar with laughter as well as seethe with anger...

Inspired by the spirit and 'Do It Yourself' ethos of punk rock, and above all by The Clash and their overtly radical, political stance, he started as a punk bass player in 1977 and took the name Attila the Stockbroker in 1980, blagging spots for his poems and songs in between bands at punk gigs. He quickly got a couple of John Peel radio sessions, a deal with London independent record label Cherry Red Records and before very long was on the front cover of Melody Maker...and he hasn't looked back since! He celebrated the 25th anniversary of his first gig with a sold out show at the Komedia Theatre in Brighton on September 8th 2005.

Attila has spent the last 28 years performing his work across the world at literary and music festivals, rock venues, arts centres, pubs, universities, schools, folk clubs and punk squats in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the US, Euskadi, France, Scandinavia, Portugal, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Poland, Hungary - and more improbably in Romania, Bulgaria, Czech Republic and a hotel basement in Stalinist Albania. 23 countries in all!

He's created his own global network, organises most of his own gigs and is very proud to have earned a living as a poet since 1982. He also sets up shows for other poets/songwriters/bands: he co-founded the long running Glastonwick Beer, Music, Poetry and More Beer Festival in 1996 and promotes various one-off events in his local pub, the Duke of Wellington in Shoreham. He's released about 17 music/poetry albums in 5 countries and 5 books of poems: 'Cautionary Tales for Dead Commuters' (Unwin Paperbacks, 1985), 'Scornflakes' (Bloodaxe, 1992), 'The Rat-tailed Maggot and Other Poems' (1998) 'Goldstone Ghosts' (September 2001) and 'My Poetic Licence' (2008) .

He's written for many national and local publications including The Guardian, Time Out, NME, Sounds Magazine, The Independent...done loads of radio and TV work...but writing the words and music for his own performances and those of his band is what inspires him most.

Attila loves humour (wit, wickedness, satire, subversion) and hates 'comedy' (bland jokes about Seventies TV, adverts for undrinkable beer, endless moronic game shows, corporate gravy train spotting).

In 1994 Attila formed his first-ever band, BARNSTORMER, combining his two great musical loves - medieval music and punk! - and giving him the chance to use his classical violin training and play loads of his favourite medieval instruments (crumhorn anyone?). The band released their debut album, 'The Siege of Shoreham' in 1996, and gig regularly all over the place alongside Attilas's solo shows.

The second Barnstormer album, 'Just One Life', was released in October 2000 and the latest, 'Zero Tolerance' in March 2004.

'Live in Belfast', a solo CD of poems and songs, was released in March 2003, and 'Live in Norway' in 2007. For a full list of Attila's releases go to the Discography section and for ones currently available to Merchandise.

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Photo by Surreal Bob	Photo by Robina Baine