Photo: UFFA
A place that is often the topic of conversation, both true and misguided, UFFA has a unique place as a cultural hub in the alternative scene in Trondheim. At its core, UFFA is intended for punk rockers and people looking for a community outside the normal options available to them.
Photo: Torleif Kvinnesland
Since its creation at the start of the 1980’s, UFFA has harboured political controversy, great music, and an ever growing, close-knit community. The history of the place has only added to the legend of UFFA.
The original UFFA came into being when a group of punk rockers who were fed up with the lack of opportunities available to them with the established youth and free-time clubs, and other organised activities around Trondheim. They grew tired of waiting for the municipality to give them a place of their own and took matters into their own hands during which they occupied a vacant house in the middle of the city. In their eyes, there weren’t a lot of places you could be if you were into punk rock or the alternative scenes for lifestyles, music, and art – so they decided to create their own: a place for the people that didn’t fit in playing football, or in singing the school choir, or the marching band. The clubs at the time were too organized for the original UFFA gang, as they weren’t happy being told there were set times where you had to do one thing or another. So they said ‘F*ck that, we want to do what we want.’
At their first house, this group of folk squatted illegally until the city decided to let them have it. During that time they formed what UFFA has become today: a haven. This was a place where anyone could come in to make their own kind of music, their own activities, and all of it organised by people that want to take part. The focus was mainly on punk music, but that also goes hand-in-hand with art and political movements – often with a healthy dose of anarchist views.
The good times in the original UFFA house didn’t last long. In 1982, only about one year after the place had finally received affirmation by the local government and established the punk scene in Trøndelag, the house was set alight again. Tragically, Eddie, a young man involved at UFFA, lost his life during the blaze. He is still remembered today at UFFA and immortalised in artwork around Trondheim.
Photo: UFFA
After the fire that razed the first UFFA house the folk there started looking for support to find a new home. They came across an old, abandoned kindergarten on the Northeast side of town that had originally started as a garage and warehouse for Nazi Germany during the occupation of Norway. After that, it became a Red Cross kindergarten in the post-war period. Then finally the plot of land was used as a cemetery for Lademoen Kirke, for the people that were too poor, weren’t baptised, and/or criminals who didn’t deserve to be buried on church grounds. This is where the punk rockers decided to make their home. The history of the ground they occupy ads to the vibe of UFFA – many of the people there are pretty happy knowing that they are using land once used by the Nazis in a positive way.
From the time UFFA raised its flag over their new location, the community kept up with its mission of hosting killer concerts and their Pøbelrock festival, and continuing to create a space that stood for rebellion against the bourgeois. They continued to support like-minded folk and showed strong community unity.
Just shy of UFFA’s 30th anniversary, in 2010, UFFA was burned down for a second time, again under some suspect circumstances. This sat heavily on more than just the UFFA community and it has not been forgotten by the wider music scene.
The iconic ‘Ska Dancer’ artwork on the side of the current building was salvaged from the skeleton of the second house by a local Buran resident who cut it down from the side of the building while dodging the police that had cordoned off the area. It found a new home in Svartlamoen for a little while and although well-loved in the area, it was a constant reminder of the loss that occurred.
Photo: Torleif Kvinnesland
Without a home to call their own the people at UFFA spent nearly three years hanging around a firesite and struggling to convince the Trondheim City Council to let them stay on the same land to build a new house. The original plan was to place them elsewhere in the city, but the UFFA community organised demonstrations in the streets, in an attempt to get the backing of the wider community in Trondheim. They did indeed get the support of a wider audience, from other similar youth movements around Norway, and around Europe.
With the positive backing from the community, eventually their patience and efforts paid off. UFFA succeeded in convincing the people in charge of the rebuilding process via a written letter asking not only for a new building or location (and kicking out whoever was already using it), but to keep the land they had already been using for nearly three decades. In addition they received a shipping container to use as a temporary structure – a temporary home. Those shipping containers are still in use today at UFFA, completely outfitted for use as band practice rooms – filled with instruments and sound equipment. Their art and graffiti covered exteriors also serve as a great backdrop for some of the outdoor events held at the site.
It was another year before a larger structure appeared in that mythical little forest on Inherredsveien after the efforts of a man from Stavanger, lovingly referred to as ‘the action man’ by the people down at UFFA. This man came to Trondheim and managed to cut through the crap and get a new house built for them at an affordable price. Once again, in the same place as it adorned before, the ‘Ska Dancer’ was hung back where he belonged.
UFFA started as and has continued to be one of the best places in Trondheim for music, and it’s not just punk rock anymore. Almost every single weekend you’re liable to catch a live show. It can be a punk rock group from far-flung places like Siberia or the United States, or something a little more local, or it might even be a night of electronic music with predominately local artists working to keep the club scene in Trondheim alive. Maskin Massakren, for example, which started on unsteady ground with the punk rockers, has become some of UFFA’s most popular events.
Photo: Torleif Kvinnesland
The concerts have been a part of UFFA since the very beginning. Their annual summer festival, Pøbelrock (which is a pretty awesome direct translation of Hooligan Rock), has been going on since 1982 – with the exception of only one year. Shows at UFFA vary from bands and artists that are relatively unheard of, to bigger names – Fugazi, for example who played a show at UFFA at the start of their meteoric rise. Bands have travelled from all over Europe for a chance to play at UFFA. Yet there is still a big focus on Norwegian-made bands because supporting the punk rock environment in Norway is one of UFFA’s main goals.
Even in the years following the fires, when they didn’t have a house or a stage, they still put together festivals and concerts. Even in the containers they hosted plenty of very, very intimate concerts – with room for about 20 people.
In today’s time of charging hundreds or thousands of kroner to take part in festivals, UFFA keeps it simple with very low cover charges, and runs as a non-profit – usually around 50 or 100 kroner. All the money that they earn from concerts and festivals is put right back into UFFA – whether it used for upgrading the studios, upkeep of the house and café, providing meals to anyone who shows up to the house on a Tuesday, or booking new acts to come and play a show.
UFFA isn’t for everyone, but the doors there will always be open for anyone who wants to show up.
- Bradley Kurtz
With its emphasis on music, it comes as no surprise that UFFA is responsible for a number of the famous bands coming out of Trondheim. Some of the most notable are Motorpsycho, Dum Dum Boys, Brutal Kuk, Blånæggel, amongst many others.
Like any gathering of punk rockers, UFFA isn’t without its fair share of controversy. Most of it is in good fun and from the outside looks much rougher and with more pointy edges than it actually is. Deep down they are a good group with strong core values who choose to carry them in the realness of who they are. The people there take poignant stances against fascism, racism, homophobia, and most other –ism’s.
However, some of UFFA’s actions in the recent past hasn’t gone over well with the wider community. But it can be said that that’s part of being punk rock, pushing a few buttons and blurring the boundaries of socially acceptable demonstrations, art, and music. Much of it has been positive as well; for instance, anti-fascism and the anarchy and punk rock ethos. UFFA was behind organising the large anti-neo-Nazi demonstrations and events that swept through Trondheim back in the mid 2000’s, which earned decent amount of respect from the community.
Photo: Torleif Kvinnesland
While people, trends and interests come and go, the ethos of UFFA hasn’t changed much. It is still very much a family type affair with a cohesive community. Everything from concerts to the organization itself, is run through people giving their thoughts, opinions, and time. The ‘do it yourself’ attitude is strong with UFFA. They’re extremely welcoming as a whole, and it doesn’t matter how many studs you have on your jacket or dress like a punk, as long as you’re not acting like a jerk you are more than welcome to spend time at UFFA.
The people at UFFA are often an easy target for others when talking about things they don’t fully understand. It is rare in Norway to find a group of people with such open, friendly and non-judgmental views (or, at least they keep their judgments to themselves). UFFA is a sterling example of a ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’ scenario.
UFFA is many different things to many different people. It can be a place to jam out and practice with your band, to hold up political ideals that you find important, do nothing and just hang out by the fire with other like-minded people, or pop in for a free vegetarian meal. Some people come by and hang out for a year or two, sometimes a little bit more, and some people are UFFA for life.
UFFA isn’t for everyone, but the doors there will always be open for anyone who wants to show up. To find your way there, just look for the church then look for the black flag in the forest. The Ska Dancer will welcome your arrival.
"You can't drink oil". Photo: Torleif Kvinnesland
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