Medway scene is a term denoting bands and related cultural activities in the Medway Towns, north Kent, England. Main towns involved (from West to East) are Strood, Rochester, Chatham, Gillingham, and Rainham.
Of Medway musicians, the best known is Billy Childish (from Chatham) who formed punk band The Pop Rivets in the late 1970s, and later formed Thee Milkshakes, Thee Mighty Caesars, Thee Headcoats, The Buff Medways, The Musicians of the British Empire and The Chatham Singers, among others. His inspiration has led to many other bands forming who now have a worldwide cult following. Other acclaimed bands have included The Prisoners, The Dentists, The Claim and Thee Headcoatees. The music often draws heavily on the tradition of garage/punk/rock'n roll/raw-blues-music from the 1950s and 1960s, hence references to the "Medway Delta". Records have been released on Big Beat, Media Burn and other small indie labels, as well as Childish's own Hangman Records and Hangman's Daughter, and latterly Damaged Goods Records. There has also been an accompanying, though not so well known, poetry scene, started by The Medway Poets in the late 1970s; Childish was a member of this group. There is also a crossover into art with the Stuckists art group.
Bands
This list is incomplete
Antmonkey
Allfather
All Flags Burn
All the Flesh
Alvin Purple
The Ambience
Andy Pandys
Archie Wah Wahs
Arctic Star
Armitage Shanks
The Accursed
Ascend To Glory
Audrey, Start The Revolution
Auntie Vegetable
Avokan
Bad Taxidermy
Balance Lost
The Baron Von Marlon
Bear vs Manero
Bela Lugosi Blues
Between the Eyes
Black Light Brigade
Black Lion Courtiers
Blind Lemon Pie
Bluevoid
Bonsai Reservoir
Brahma Bums
The Bresslaws
Brigadier Ambrose
Bring The Ruckus
The Bristols
Broken Banjo
The Buff Medways
Calling Nova
Cakewalk
capitalH
Carpetburn
CarCrashTelevision
Cerulean Echoes
Cherubs
Chevouge
The Chatham Singers
Billy Childish and the Blackhands
The Claim
The Clockwork Spiders
Congress
Cracked Actors
Lupen Crook
Crustaceans (The)
Crybaby Special
Crystal Tips & Alastair
CTMF
Thee Cuss Words
The Daggermen
Graham Day and the Forefathers
Graham Day and the Gaolers
Death Awaits Us
The Deccas
The Delmonas
The Dentists
Dirtie Bertie
Dirty Vibes
The Discords
Doubt
The Drunken Popes
Dumb Angel
The Earls of Suave
The Effectives
Eleusia
Envy
Exoskeletons
Feed the Rhino
Five Days Time
Floreat
The Flowing
The Flying Isaacs
Fortune West
Frau Pouch
From Fags To Niggers
Galileo 7
The Germans
Get Rekt
Gin
Godsends
G-Pid
Groovy Uncle
The Godless Reds
The Hamelins
Thee Headcoatees
Thee Headcoats
Heaven Sent
The Herbs
The Hiding Place
Hold Your Fire
Houdini
Jack Gedge
The James Taylor Quartet
Josh Carson
Jack Ketch and the Crowmen
Kid Harpoon
KILL RPNZL
Len Bright Combo
The Len Price 3
Let Our Enemies Beware
The Long Weekend
The Lovedays
The Love Family
The Masonics
Men from Memphis
mexicoFALLZ
Thee Mighty Caesars
The Milkshakes
Millions of Brazilians
The Mindreaders
Sexton Ming
The Musicians of the British Empire
Naked
Near Ruin
Needs Must
The New
Niltones
Nine Days to No One
Nutty Gig
The Offbeats
One Day Elliot
The Only Sun
On Margate Sands
Oubliette
The Objectors
Paperfriend
Petburger
Petts
Phineas Fogg
Pity Party
Planet Mushroom
Point IV
The Pop Rivets
Power in Motion
The Pressure
The Prime Movers
The Prisoners
The Product
Punching Swans
Pure Joy
Punyfish
Professional Biscuit Thief
Quad Riot
The Reg Varney Trio
Robert Underwater
Rocking Richard and Whistling Vic Templar
The Round
Racket Boyz
Saracen
Saturday Sunset
Science Noodles
Second Sun
Sergeants' Mess
The Shagmonroes
Silence Remains
The Singing Loins
Slaves
The Solarflares
The Spangalitos
Sparrows
Thee Spartan Dreggs
Spyder Byte
Stabilisers
Stringer
The Stormkings
Story Books
The Strookas
Swinging Time
Sworn to Secrecy
The Syndromes
Tape Error
That Massive Bereavement
The Bluesmothers with Seven String Les
Theatre Royal
These Guilty Men
Timmy Tremolo
Things That Blink
The Men With The Golden Gonads
ThePARADE
Together, We Fight
Tollervey and the Terminators
The Tour
The Trainset
Take A Stand
Underground Heroes
Univited Guests
Unknown Impulse
UpCDownCLeftCRightCABC+Start
The Vandebilts
The Vermin Poets
Vlks
WhiteDevilWhiteDevil
Wiremother
The Wild
Wipeout
Wooden Dogs
Ye Ascoynes D'Ascoynes
Billy Childish
Holly Golightly
Wolf Howard
Stuart Turner
Dan Melchior
Ben Jones
Graham Day
V/A - Medway Powerhouse, Vol One (LP) Hangman, 1987
V/A - Medway Powerhouse, Vol Two (LP) Hangman, 1987
V/A - Medway Powerhouse, Vol Three (LP) Hangman, 1988
V/A - Medway Powerhouse, Vol Four (LP) Hangman, 1989