The punk band inspired by Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange is one of cinema’s most iconic and influential masterpieces. The 1972 dystopian drama, adapted from Andrew Burgess’ novel of the same name, introduces the sociopathic Alex DeLarge, who occupies his days with aggressive violence and other uncivilised antics.
Kubrick’s study of psychology and society is stamped as a landmark in easing control of violence in cinema. It is referenced across other forms of media. These tributes range from the use of Nadsat words or phrases to visual elements from the film.
DeLarge, thanks to his interesting physical design and persona, is one of cinema’s most iconic and recognisable characters. He crosses over to the medium of music, such as when Led Zepellin’s John Bonham dressed up as the character for a tour in 1975, and Blur mimicked his imagery in their video for ‘The Universal’.
One of the lesser-known acts who sought inspiration in DeLarge and A Clockwork Orange is a punk band that gained some attention by playing dress-up.
Molodoy were a Sheffield-based band that channelled a clockwork orange-themed style and attitude. With frontman Garry Warburton, who took up the name Alex, Ian Lindsey on guitar, Paul Nicholson on bass and Bob Snell on drums, the group would perform dressed as the Droogs from the film.
Their name is taken from the original book and is a Nadsat slang term with Russian-derived colloquialisms. It translates to “horrorshow,” which is a reformulation of khorosho – the Russian word for “good.” Its meaning can also be connected with “young”.
The group released a demo in 1977, five years after A Clockwork Orange was released, that included tracks titled ‘Alex’ and ‘Death’s Doll’.
It’s claimed that they were a memorable experience when performing live. However, the fact they dressed up as Alex and his gang poses questions since the group committed acts of both physical and sexual violence against innocent civilians. This isn’t the only controversy surrounding the film’s inspiration in other forms of art and culture since A Clockwork Orange was linked to several murders.
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