The Pass

Squid Peter Hook The Murder Capital

Menu Why The Pass?....................................................1 Grease......................................................................3 Squid.........................................................................7 Dough.......................................................................11 Peter Hook..........................................................13 Main Course.......................................................15 Fine Dining...........................................................21 The Murder Capital......................................25 Afters.....................................................................27 Creative Direction and Design: Benji Chapman

Moments shared are feelings passed.

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Why The Pass?

‘Food ready to be picked up is put in the window or en la ventana; also called the pass, the slide or the shelf.’- Anthony Bourdain

I

chose the name of this magazine because it’s the station in a kitchen that I still find the hardest to get right.

thing; be it music, food, or a cause to someone else. The pass has taught me to be clear even under pressure.

When I started working in a pizza shop, I enjoyed serving people, but I found it hard to keep track of orders.

I am lanky and Dyspraxic, so my limbs sometimes get in the way of things.

Of course, the name also has close associations with the same ‘passes’ that laden this issue’s front cover: press and photo passes that have gotten me into the gigs and landed me the interviews to make this magazine possible.

I stuck with the title though, because it means much more than that. To pass something along is to share it.

That’s what I’ve always tried to do in my writing; pass on my love of one

And so, in its layered meanings, The Pass is a consummation of the two best things Bristol offers: food and

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music. It’s inspired by the people, spillages, and learning curve that my time here has taken me on. It’s a banquet for the taleneted people and institutions of this city.

This magazine is designed to be picked up and put down again, dropped on the floor, shared with a friend, and then torn apart and used for hamster bedding. Just don’t give up on it without a taste test first.

You can read it while you’re watching the telly. Or eating a Caesar salad and a panini. Drinking a pint. It’s designed to be quick and digestible. It won’t leave your stomach upset after.

Think of this magazine as a staggered feast made of several small courses.

Each ‘course’ of the magazine contains photos and writing that was produced across my time exploring Bristol’s music and food scene.

It also contains three guest interviews from my time as a music journalist while I was studying my undergraduate degree at Bristol. Each of them brought a unique perspective, and they have each learned to see the world differently. They all had some special wisdom to share with me.

Now, it’s my job to try and pass it on to you as well.

‘And so, in its layered meanings, The Pass is a consummation of the two best things Bristol offers: food and music.’

All words: Benji Chapman. Images: Redd Greaves and Benji Chapman

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Drop the not the

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beat, fries.

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Grease S

ince first opening in 2016 as a pudding shop out the back of the Pipe & Slippers pub on Cheltenham Road, Oowee has embedded itself in the thriving music scene as

it expanded. It’s the go to of many a student returning from a gig or club night, hoping to prevent a hangover the next day with greasy remedies.

They serve burgers, chicken, and fries.

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This shoot was completed for the restaurant’s announcement of the ‘Buffalo Blue Cheese’ menu that was

launched for Love Saves The Day. It tasted decadent and moreish. It was washed down with lager and bass.

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‘No more pages of

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pages and crispy skin.’

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Squid

T

he cat that’s crawling across my laptop screen is making introductions to Ollie Judge a little awkward.

To my disappointment, he quickly dispels any suggestion that the cat had anything to do with the production of his band Squid’s new album, Cowards, which we discussed.

I’ve kind of made my bed here [Bristol]. I think I’ll probably end up staying here till the rest of my days, which is quite a nice thought. There’s a great sense of community, great venues, and the fact you don’t have to get a bus everywhere.

Q: When did you get the cat?

are there any local bands you want to shout-out?

We were recording the album when I just got the cat, so I was probably racing through to get home to him and hang out.

Q: Bristol or London; which

side are you on and why?

Q: You clearly love this city:

There are so many new bands I’m enjoying. There’s a whole new wave thing going on; bands like Ex Agent, and there’s a band called Sunglasz Vendor, loads of interesting new bands that are quite left of centre.

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I just saw something great at The Cube. It was just a couple who strapped a bass guitar to the washing machine and turned it on to make some incredible drone music. Kind of like Tara Clerkin Trio if they were sponsored by Bosch.

Q: Where is the best place to

get a pizza in Bristol?

Pizzarova is the best pizza in town.

It’s unreal. The best one they do is the hot honey one. It’s so good, although last time I got it, I accidentally carried it home at an angle and fucked it up.

Q: Where did the name ‘Squid’ actually come from?

Some of us were really getting into Beak> during the first year of uni, and it kind of stuck out for its monosyballic animal name. There was almost zero thought behind the name, which is kind of nice.

Q: Do you remember your first local gig performing as Squid?

Yeah, it was at Crofter’s Rights.

I remember my partner’s dad came, and he hated it. I think my dad hated it. All the dads hated it. Someone also spray-painted ‘Squid’ all over the wall across the road, which we thought was cool. But the show was shit.

Q: When did you sign to Warp Records and how did it feel?

Our show at Simple Things Festival in 2019: that was the gig that got us signed to Warp Records. That’s when we met our old A&R. He came and saw the show, and we got breakfast the next day and signed to Warp a few months later. That was a really special show.

Warp have helped in that we’re able to have the budget to work with people like Dan Carey, and to access the skills and equipment to realise the fully electronic sound. It’s really insane to think that we’re on the same label as Aphex Twin, Boards of Canada, and Autechre.

Q: How does your new album compare to the others?

It’s my favourite album that we made.

We finished doing the main recording of the new album the day O Monolith came out so we were kind of working on it in secret. I was really nervous about how the second record would be received. I thought it was kind of like an impenetrable collection of songs.

I’d say it’s a little bit more accessible than O Monolith. A little bit more organic and natural.

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Dough

I

worked at a local sourdough pizza shop for 9 months while I finished my degree. It taught me how to think clearly under pressure, but perhaps more importantly, what good piz-

za tastes like and how to make it.

My best memories are making the morning dough from scratch, drinking pints with my coworkers, and listening to Robbie Williams on the close.

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Measure twice, cut once.

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Peter Hook H

ow many British musicians have been in not one, but two of the nation’s most influential bands: each in a completely different genre?

Q: What feels so different about the record industry nowadays compared to the 1980s?

What impresses me about bands these days like the bands you’ve got on there, IDLES, is that they have to be in charge of everything. I think that’s better. But what you don’t have now is a huge record industry the way we [New Order] had.

IDLES will not be able to open a club - I can guarantee you - or be able to entertain a city for seventeen years the way New Order did, with cheap drinks.

Q: What was it like writing Unkown Pleasures: how did it feel to hear it for the first time once it was done?

We were writing music that we couldn’t tell how good it was. We wanted Unknown Pleasures to sound like the Sex Pistols’ Nevermind the Bollocks: big guitar, rip your head off.

Total punk. We wanted a punk LP. Martin Hannett realised that our songwriting ability had far outstripped our mental capacity.

That’s how daft we were. We were just kids messing about. And I must admit, when he gave us Unknown Pleasures, we were going ‘what the fuck is this? This doesn’t sound like the Sex Pistols?’

Q: What was it like playing it live on the first tour of the album in 1979?

Live we were a lot different, we were very aggressive. We got the best of both worlds. He gave us a great record that had the wonderful gift of timelessness. The reason you’re listening to it years later is because of Martin Hannett’s production.

Q: How did it feel to lose Ian Curtis?

He was suffering from something that he needed to correct, but he didn’t understand it. He didn’t want to lose the impetus, so he forced himself on as well as he could, and in the end, he decided that - for many reasons - he couldn’t carry on.

But it’s better now, and I’m better educated. If I had had the education I’ve got now, then I wouldn’t have let him play. I would have took him home and I would have sat on him until he was better.

You know, I still feel guilty about Ian

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now, the same way I feel about a lot of my friends who have passed away.

Q: What would you say to your twenty-year-old self now?

In those days, you had to seize the moment. You were a kid! What do people say to you nowadays? ‘Don’t

rush, take your time’, and you go ‘no, no! I want it now!’ Now, we’re not afraid, I’m not afraid, to say ‘I can’t do that’.

You should always look after yourself, I’ve learnt, because the world keeps turning. You just get back on six months later.

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Set the it’s time

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table, to eat.

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Main Course B ritish nightlife just couldn’t exist without the kebab at the end of a night. In a city like this, you can’t just expect cheesy chips though.

There are raves in Bristol where they serve jerk chicken from the drum with rice and peas at 3 AM, and shell out pizzas into the early morning, to keep the crowd fuelled up for the walk home long after the booze has worn off.

These are some pictures from nights out in Bristol that were improved by a well-earned deep fried delight at the end, after several long hours in a club or field, with my friends.

Think of tasting a fresh piece of pickled cabbage between a soft wrap as you read; imagine your tastebuds coming back to life as a particularly spicy guindilla chilli pepper bursts between your teeth. Swearing you asked for garlic mayo but getting plain. Eating it anyway.

My favourite spot to get a bite to eat after a night out is North Street Shwarma, where they serve fresh naan from a tandoor oven. The various kebab shops are all, controversially, largely undiscernable for my money but I have a soft spot for Taka Taka. They have the best chips and most affordable wraps in town.

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These are photos of the daytime field at Love Saves The Day 2025 and the bus journey home that followed.

There was falafel, bao, ramen, toasties, fish and chips: the lot. Just what we needed after a long day of dancing.

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Fine Dining

I

make lasting memories every time I eat at Sonny Stores. Me and Redd shared pasta and wine for this shoot, and talked about what we were going to do once we graduated and

moved out of our house. The restaurant serves Italian influenced dishes.

In summer, they sell milk buns, soft serve ice cream, and freshly made lemonade from the outside pass.

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The Murder Capital

W

ith an ever-increasing focus on the nation’s musical output, The Murder Capital’s newest and third record is at the forefront of a kaleidoscopic reinvention of Irish sound.

I spoke to their guitarist, Damien Tuit, to learn more about Irish music and his band’s new album, Blindness.

There’s eyes on Ireland at the moment, but there always was a great standard of music in Ireland. Music is kind of in our DNA.

Q: How do you feel about the focus on Irish post-punk that’s hapenning at the moment?

Absolutely: what’s great about Gilla Band is that they’re a big inspiration for me personally, in terms of just sounding so unique, sounding like something I hadn’t heard yet.

There’s definietly a moment in general for Irish music. But when I see these things I don’t really get ‘this is a big moment for post-punk’ or anything like that.

Q: One band that stands out for me from Ireland are Gilla Band.

Are you guys fans?

I think what they bring - the four lads in that band - is that is the music they’ll be making together in that kind

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of way forever; it’s unapologetically them, it’s their authenticity that makes people take notice. They inspired a lot of bands like ourselves and definitely Fontaines.

They sounded like something we all hadn’t heard yet, it was done in a way that you couldn’t look away. You had to look.

Q: What are you listening to at the moment?

I’m kind of getting into the habit of just waking up and starting to play music. A lot of music from Detroit.

J Dilla is the best. When you do a deep dive on Dilla you discover so much. He really was king.

Q: What feels special in Bristol when you play here?

Joe [Talbot] has been really nice to us. Bristol, just in general, has acts that we’re really inspired by Every time we go to Bristol you get people that want music in their town.

There’s a kind of a very easy-going nature to it that I really like. We love Big Jeff too. He shares something with everyone, and we’re big fans of him.

Q: What’s next for the band?

We’re all writing music at the moment and keeping ourselves busy. We’re heading off to Tokyo on Monday, and then to New Zealand and Australia.

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Afters T

he running theme behind this magazine has been to spotlight stories of connection and resilience.

Something as commonplace as food and music, which entirely surrounds us, can be such a powerful force in uniting people. I wouldn’t have learned to look after myself if I hadn’t grown up listening to Joy Division, or had Peter Hook tell me that I need to take a break every now and then.

I wouldn’t have as positive an outlook on the world after university if it

wasn’t for the meals I shared with my friends in this city. Most importantly, I wouldn’t have learned to embrace my strengths and weaknesses while remaining guided by my passion if it wasn’t for the open communities documented inside this magazine.

The people I met at Pizzarova taught me it was cool to geek out about food and music. Bristol24/7 made me confident as a journalist. Plaster made so much of this possible, while teaching me about the far wider world of creative communications.

‘We all have the ability to listen and learn from each other.

The world is full of beautiful sounds and tastes. If we learn to pass them on, their richness will only increase.’

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‘Life is messy, twisted, unfair, but damn it; catch it at just the right angle and it’s breathtaking.’- Anthony Bourdain Bristol is a city that preaches and fosters compassionate resilience. It’s full of people who will lend their ear when you have a problem, and are always ready to share their own view on things (for better and worse). But they keep an open mind and heart.

Something that Anthony Bourdain knew and understood better than anyone was that, deep down, we are all want the same thing. We just want to break bread together, laugh, and feel heard. It was his adeptitude at expressing this that made him a celebrity. But people do this everyday.

We all have the ability to listen and

learn from each other. The world is full of beautiful sounds and tastes. If we learn to pass them on, their richness will only increase.

Dr Elizabeth McEwan, Emma Garland, and Douglas Coupland inspired me to write. My parents, friends, and Uncle Bruce taught me to appreciate good music.

Negativland, Oowee, Photographique, Pizzarova, and Sonny Stores all made this publication taste and sound better with their food and wisdom.

Please do tip each of these excellent chefs on your way out.

Thank your waiter: