Editing Nick Kent

{{EngvarB|date=September 2022}}
{{short description|British music journalist}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2018}}
[[File:Nick Kent 2014.jpg|thumb|Kent in 2014]]

'''Nick Kent''' (born 24 December 1951) is a British [[rock critic]] and musician, best known for his writing for the ''[[NME]]'' in the 1970s, and his books ''The Dark Stuff'' (1994) and ''Apathy for the Devil'' (2010).

==Early life==
Kent, the son of a former [[Abbey Road Studios]] [[sound engineer]], began his career as a writer at age 21 in 1972,{{what?|reason=If he was born 24 December 1951 and he began writing aged 21 in 1972, that narrows the precise date of his first writing down to an eight day window!  Is there any reference to support this?  If not, this should be modified.|date=January 2020}} inspired by [[Jack Kerouac]] and [[Hunter S. Thompson]].<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/bookreviews/7264546/Apathy-for-the-Devil-A-1970s-Memoir-by-Nick-Kent-review.html ''The Telegraph. Apathy for the Devil: A 1970s Memoir by Nick Kent''] 20 February 2010</ref> 

Kent's writing talent was evident at college when, after analysing [[James Joyce]]'s ''[[Ulysses (novel)|Ulysses]]'', he was recommended to apply for further English study. But after dropping out of two universities he started to make a name for himself as a [[music critic]] in London's [[underground music]] scene.{{fact|date=January 2022}}

==Career==
Along with his contemporaries, such as [[Paul Morley]], [[Charles Shaar Murray]], [[Paul Rambali]] and [[Danny Baker]], Kent is widely considered one of the most important and influential UK [[music journalist]]s of the 1970s. He wrote for the British music publication ''[[New Musical Express]]'', moving to ''[[The Face (magazine)|The Face]]'' later on in his career.  Kent's writing predominantly covers the lives and music of [[rock-and-roll]] musicians. His [[prose]] is laced with images of self-destruction and [[compassion]], exploring the reality of being an artist in the late twentieth century. Kent is the author of two books: ''The Dark Stuff'', a collection of his journalism, and ''Apathy for the Devil: A 1970s Memoir,'' which is an autobiographical account of his life and experiences in the 1970s, published in March 2010.

In the mid-70s, Kent played guitar with an early [[incarnation]] of the [[Sex Pistols]],<ref name="nme">[https://web.archive.org/web/20121119212635/http://www.historyofnme.com/2012/01/30/interviews-with-nme-journalists-nick-kent/ "Interviews With NME Journalists: Nick Kent,"] ''[[NME]]'', 30 January 2012.</ref> and performed briefly with members of the early punk band [[London SS]], under the name Subterraneans. [[Brian James (guitarist)|Brian James]], later of [[The Damned (band)|The Damned]], said of him: "Nick is a great guitarist, he plays just like [[Keith Richards]]. He's always trying to get a band together but he just can't do it. Nerves, I guess. It's a shame, though, because he loves [[rock 'n' roll]] and he's a great bloke."<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Thompson |first=Dave |author-link=Dave Thompson (author) |date=7 February 1992 |title=The Damned |url=https://www.rocksbackpages.com/Library/Article/the-damned-3 |magazine=[[Goldmine (magazine)|Goldmine]] |access-date=19 June 2018 |via=[[Rock's Backpages]] |url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Kent's relationship with the [[punk rock]] scene was strained. Already a well-known music critic and a [[symbol]] of the music industry, he was assaulted by [[Sid Vicious]] with a motorcycle chain<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2010/08/nick-kent|title=Q&A: Nick Kent on the 1970s, Keith Richards, and the Current State of Music Journalism|last=Spitz|first=Marc|magazine=Vanity Fair|access-date=2017-12-23}}</ref> in the [[100 Club]]. Kent relates the incident in Johnny Rogan's book on rock management, ''Starmakers & [[Svengali]]s''; in ''[[The Filth and the Fury]]'', director [[Julien Temple]]'s 2000 documentary of the Sex Pistols; in [[Jon Savage]]'s book ''England's Dreaming''; as well as in his own books, ''The Dark Stuff'' and ''Apathy for the Devil''. Despite this infamous incident, Vicious claimed in a 1977 interview that Kent was "good fun" and that "he bought me a meal a little while ago, it was really nice of him".<ref>{{Citation|title=BBC Radio 1: Rock On (The John Tobler Interview)|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOHhwitG4OM|language=en|access-date=2019-05-19}}</ref> In the film ''[[Sid & Nancy]]'', there is a scene where "Dick Bent", described by Pistols follower Brenda Windzor ([[Kathy Burke]]) as "a wanky journalist who doesn't appreciate the Pistols", is assaulted by [[Sid Vicious]] ([[Gary Oldman]]) at one of their gigs.

Kent also had bad relations with the early punk incarnation of [[Adam and the Ants]], starting with his ''NME'' review of the soundtrack album to [[Derek Jarman]]'s film [[Jubilee (1978 film)|''Jubilee'']] in which Kent labelled [[Adam Ant]] a [[Nazi]] sympathiser on account of the featured song "[[Deutscher Girls]]". In retaliation, Ant sarcastically name-checked Kent in the song "Press Darlings" (later a [[B-side]] of the Ants' No. 2 UK [[hit single]] "[[Kings of the Wild Frontier (Adam and the Ants song)|Kings of the Wild Frontier]]" and on the US edition of the [[Kings Of The Wild Frontier|hit album of the same name]]), claiming that "If passion ends in [[fashion]], then Nick Kent is the best dressed man in town..."<ref name="nme"/> In addition, then-Ants guitarist [[Matthew Ashman]] assaulted Kent with a potful of [[jam|strawberry jam]] in the queue outside [[London Borough of Camden|Camden]]'s [[Camden Palace Theatre|Music Machine]] venue.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Smith |first=Dominic |date=14 May 2010 |title=Nick Kent, Corn Exchange, Church Street, Brighton, May 15 |url=http://www.theargus.co.uk/brightonfestival/x_brighton_festival_2010/previews/festival_previews/8166061.Nick_Kent__Corn_Exchange__Church_Street__Brighton__May_15/ |access-date=29 November 2024 |website=The Argus}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Long |first=Pat |title=The History of the NME |publisher=[[Pavilion Books]] |year=2012 |isbn=9781907554773 |pages=155}}</ref>

==Personal life==
In 1974, Kent began dating and moved in with [[Chrissie Hynde]], later lead singer of the band [[The Pretenders]], after she began working at ''NME''. Throughout the 1970s, Kent was a heroin addict.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://thequietus.com/articles/15484-chrissie-hynde-interview-simon-price|title=Talker Of The Town: Chrissie Hynde Interviewed By Simon Price|last=Price|first=Simon|work=[[The Quietus]]|date=10 June 2014|access-date=2015-10-17}}</ref>

Kent currently lives in [[Paris]] with his wife, and contributes articles occasionally to the British and French press, most notably ''[[The Guardian]]''.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/profile/nick-kent?INTCMP=SRCH Nick Kent author page], ''[[The Guardian]]''. Accessed 10 June 2012.</ref> He is the father of [[synthwave]] musician James Kent, best known as [[Perturbator]].

==Books==
* ''The Dark Stuff: Selected Writings on Rock Music'' – foreword by [[Iggy Pop]] (1st edition: 1994, [[Penguin Books]]; updated 2nd edition: 2002, [[Da Capo Press]])
* ''Apathy for the Devil: A Seventies Memoir'' (2010, Da Capo Press)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{YouTube|qHUGsoQ_5Vk|The BBC Archive (1978) — Don't Quote Me: Rock, Pop and Press}} - Kent interviewed by [[Brian Redhead]]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kent, Nick}}
[[Category:1951 births]]
[[Category:British expatriates in France]]
[[Category:British music critics]]
[[Category:British music journalists]]
[[Category:Melody Maker writers]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:NME writers]]
[[Category:Rock critics]]