A to Z of N. Ireland Punk Bands

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The Tinopeners were a melodic four-piece band that hailed from East Belfast. They consisted of teenagers Alasdair Moore (Vocals/ Rhythm Guitar), Chris Burrell (Lead Guitar), Garth Evens (Bass) and Philip McClelland (drums). Bored with the current music scene and inspired by fellow east Belfast band Rudi, The Tinopeners made their live debut at Campbell College in early 1978. The Tinopeners being second on the bill to a heavy metal band!

For the next 3 years the band gigged extensively around Belfast supporting bands such as Rudi, Rhesus Negative, The Idiots and Protex at venues like The Harp Bar, The Pound, The Crescent and Youth Clubs, generally anywhere that would have them. Alasdair Moore “Yeah we played a lot of Youth clubs because of our age. We also played one time in the Silver Dollar in Buncrana. We played there with a band from Derry whose name escapes me. I do remember though that Fergal Sharkey was in attendance in the audience. We practised most Saturday afternoons in an Orange Hall in Craigantlet. It’s the one Rudi used to use too. There’s actually footage of Rudi using it in the movie Shellshock Rock”.

By 1979 Philip had left the band and was replaced at the drum stool by Bill Reid. The band had also caught the attention of George Doherty’s Rip Off Record label and they ventured into the studio to lay down four tracks for a proposed Rip Off single. Clive Culbertson produced the single, which was eventually released on Logo Records. The single “Set Me Free” c/w “I’m Not Your Type” was released in 1979. The remaining recorded tracks “I Want You” & “I Don’t Wanna Be” were eventually released by various labels. In 2010 Sing Sing Records of New York City released the track ‘I Want You” on their compilation album of Rip Off Records recordings. Sing Sing Records also reissued the band’s original 7” single. In 2020 Cherry Red Records featured The Tinopeners track ‘I’m Not Your Type’ on their Shellshock Rock (Alternative Blasts From Northern Ireland 1977 - 1984) compilation box set. French label Fish and Cheap Records also issued ‘I Want You’ c/w ‘I Don’t Wanna Be’ as a limited edition vinyl 7-inch vinyl single in 2024. Set Me Free has also featured on a number of compilation releases over the years, including Gary Crowley’s Punk And New Wave 3 CD box set in 2017, Cherry Red’s Kids On The Street compilation 2022, Castle Music’s compilation CD White Dopes On Punk 2010, plus a number of other unofficial releases.

By 1981 the punk scene in Belfast was changing and The Tinopeners decided to call it a day, Alasdair Moore recalls, “One of our last gigs was in The Pound supporting Rudi. Towards this time skinheads were coming in and I remember there were Skinheads on one side and punks on the other. It all got a bit out of hand and that’s when I decided I’d had enough. We got our gear off the stage as quickly as we could and left”.