Monday, August 12, 2013

Listening To Music: SPAZ writes about the joys of being a music fan/geek...



    Listening To Music...

     Many years ago, I started this journey...  it started most likely as an infant or toddler, hearing the music my parents would play.  Anything from Frank Sinatra to Buddy Holly to The Beatles.... Mentally going through their record collection (which doesn't exist anymore, unless its boxed up in the garage), I remember so many different types of things they listened to.  Easy Listening, Rock, Pop, Folk, R&B... so much that I remember seeing as I would dig through their stacks of 45s and LPs over and over again...  While my older sister Dana liked music, it was really my brother Mike and I who lived for it.  My folks always used to tell us that they could put us in front of the TV when The Monkees was on and know that we'd stay put for 30 minutes until the show was over.  And this is when it first aired in 1966 (I was 3, my bro was 4). I remember loving The Monkees at that young age and even having the Monkees hand puppet.  We also had a Herman Munster doll, too.  We weren't spoiled but they knew what we loved....

     I really found my own way in '77 when Punk and New Wave took hold. I remember buying LPs, riding my bike home (or walking) from Licorice Pizza, slipping the headphones on, putting the needle down on the record and just getting lost in the music. I used to sit on my bed with my back against the wall, knees in the air with the LP cover and inner sleeve propped up in my lap.  Even though I knew every inch of that album cover, all the credits and the lyrics to the songs, I'd go through that same ritual every day.  For hours sometimes.  I'd play the music so loud that I'd see the lights flicker in the room, look up and there would be my mom or dad (or siblings) standing in the doorway, waving their hands in the air, trying to get my attention. I'd quickly pull the headphones off to see what they wanted.  Of course, whoever it was always had to make a comment about how I listened to the music too loud before they'd tell me what they wanted (it was either dinner time or I forgot to do a chore or something).  But as soon as I was back in my room, I'd slip on the headphones again, put the needle back down on the record and be transported back to wherever I was before...


     The first time I would spin a new album, it always had to be a solo experience under a set of headphones.  That first time, I didn't want to listen with a girlfriend/wife, family member or friend.  I wanted to devote all of my attention to that album, which is one of the reasons I would turn it up so loud - I wanted to block everything else out.  That first initial listen was MY time.  I didn't want to play it out of the speakers nor did I want to hear the album while I was shopping (or working) in a record store. If it did get played, I'd purposely tune it out and not try to take any of it in.  No, I wanted to 'experience' the album on my own.  I didn't care if it was an old Tom Jones album or a new Undertones album - I wanted to BE one with the album and understand it.  To some, a record was a collection of 12 tracks but for me, it was a whole piece of art divided into 12 movements. And I would eventually dissect that artistic statement and decide which parts I liked and which parts I didn't. Sometimes, a song would take quite a few spins before it began to sink in.  The sign of a great album is one that has a different favorite moment each time you listen to it.  

     The LP cover was part of that experience as well. One of the big thrills was taking the wrapper off that album and inhaling the glorious smell that had been trapped within the album sleeve and finally released once I broke the seal.  I was always disappointed if there was just a stock inner sleeve and nothing special like lyrics, pictures, liner notes, whatever...  But it's not like that ruined my experience! I would often get lucky and find a UK version of an album that had a slim cardboard inner sleeve, which was far more sturdy than the paper ones on U.S. pressings. Besides, the UK pressings might have a glossier cover than it's American counterpart and THAT was also a nice bonus - especially if you were paying a little more for the import copy!
     

     When you hear something that moves you, it gives you goosebumps but not in an R.L. Stine kind of way. It's almost electrical... and definitely magical.  It reaches right down to your soul and captures you, enthralls you, entertains you.  It could be the way the harmonies float above the music or it could be an unexpected chord change.  Be it a gorgeous piece of classical music or raw and dirty Punk Rock, it is going to do something to you - something with you - that you don't expect.  Music is interactive and encourages you to react in some way.  It will make you think... make you cry... make you dance... make you do something.  If it doesn't, then you are not connecting to it. But wait for the chorus... or the next track... or the next album.  Something is bound to touch you.  That is why we have such vivid memories of the first time we heard a particular song or album.  If you connected to it, then it will always bring those memories flooding back.  Personally, I can throw on some track from the '80s and it brings me back to great days with friends, record shopping and discovering new music.  I can hear a song from the '70s and I'm back spending a summer's day at the beach with my mom and siblings. Memories are faded pictures if I try to recall them without a musical signpost... but once I hear that music, those memories suddenly become vibrant 3D movies and I can often times picture the most minute details...   

     People who don't connect with music don't understand the passion that many of us have.  Its an affliction, it's an addiction, it's a habit... and it's love.  Music doesn't talk back to you, but it does talk TO you.  Music doesn't break your heart, but it can be heart-breaking. Music is life and life is music.  It's that simple, really.  There's nothing pretentious about it, nothing sinister and nothing wrong with it.  Music connects to people emotionally and it's up to them to decide how deep they want that 'relationship' to go.  If you grew up buying records, tapes or CDs to listen to your music, then that connection is deeper than someone who has only known downloading (legal or illegal).  Those who bought physical, tangible product made an effort to do so: travel to the record store, searched around for whatever it is you wanted to buy, came home, threw it on the turntable, put on your headphones or cranked up your speakers and played it.  Unfortunately, those who download don't have a piece of product in their hands.  They click on a button, wait a few moments and then play it.  This lack of 'commitment' takes away from the experience and the listener doesn't always feel the 'worth' of the songs they are listening to. There's certainly nothing wrong with buying downloads and many of my friends do that nowadays, but at least they appreciate what  it used to be like.  The download generation does not.  And don't get me started on streaming, a platform that I barely tolerate.  Sometimes, it's necessary but again, there's no commitment from the listener. Just click and play.  Where's the fun in that?


     But in the end, my opinion about what you listen to and where and how you get your music is invalid. What matters is what it does to you. If it moves and inspires you, THAT is what matters. Now, go and listen to some music and let it overcome and overwhelm you.  

Happy listening,
Stephen SPAZ Schnee  

Saturday, August 3, 2013

10 Reasons Why You Should Be Excited About A NEW Album From DOG TRUMPET!


DOG TRUMPET 
Is
REG MOMBASSA
and 
PETER O'DOHERTY



Dog Trumpet has a NEW double (2CD) album due on August 12th, 2013. It is called Medicated Spirits. You can purchase it through their website HERE

Why should you care?  

Here are 10 very valid reasons:

  • Because Dog Trumpet features two enormously talented singer/songwriters who also happen to be two of Australia's finest artists. 
  • Reg did the artwork for PiL's Greatest Hits album!
  • For 20+ years, Reg and Peter used to be members of one of Australia's finest Pop combos, MENTAL AS ANYTHING. 
  •  Mental As Anything did THIS song (btw, that's Reg on slide guitar and Peter on bass):

  • Reg and Peter are brothers. 

  • Reg Mombassa is one of the coolest names in Rock. But alas, it is not his real name.  I reckon those who have known him since he was a wee lad probably still call him Chris O'Doherty.  
  • Peter O'Doherty is NOT Pete Doherty, the drug addicted dickhead from The Libertines and Babyshambles.  Peter O'Doherty is the melodically-gifted basshead from Dog Trumpet. And formerly of Mental As Anything. 

  • Dog Trumpet has already released five albums:
Two Heads One Brain (1991)

Suitcase (1996)

Dog Trumpet (2002)

Antisocial Tendencies (2007)

River Of Flowers (2010)

  • Their 2013 release, Medicated Spirits, is a double album (on two CDs). Not many bands have enough quality material for one album, let alone a double.
  • Dog Trumpet has released some amazing material in their 20+ year career.  Including songs such as these: 








So, what are you waiting for?  Time to head over to www.dogtrumpet.com and order Medicated Spirits.


You can purchase it through their website HERE



BLANKET OF SECRECY: The Walls Come Down


The Walls Come Down:

The Unveiling Of BLANKET OF SECRECY

By Stephen SPAZ Schnee


1982 was a year filled with excitement and change in the music world.  Punk had smashed things up a bit five years earlier, making way for a new musical movement that had morphed into a myriad of subgenres including New Wave, Post-Punk, Synthpop and Power Pop amongst others. During the year, many artists released albums that are now considered ‘career defining’ moments including Michael Jackson (Thriller), XTC (English Settlement), Prince (1999), Madness (The Rise & Fall), The Jam (The Gift), Dexy’s Midnight Runners (Too Rye Aye), Duran Duran (Rio) and The Clash (Combat Rock). Even newer bands were making their mark with debuts from ABC, Culture Club, R.E.M, Marshall Crenshaw, A Flock Of Seagulls and Yazoo causing quite a stir on the scene.
     One album that was released that year was the debut by a mysterious trio by the name of Blanket Of Secrecy.  Released on Warner Brothers in the U.S. as Ears Have Walls and on F-Beat in the UK as Walls Have Ears, the album was a breath of fresh air that both accepted the challenge of musical change while also remaining firmly rooted in the art of classic Pop songwriting. Listeners may have been intrigued by the lack of information on the identities of the band members, but the music spoke for itself. From the opening track, “Say You Will,” to the instrumental closer “B.O.S. Theme,” the album was filled with instantly memorable tracks that stuck with you long after the needle lifted from the inner groove. The album was, and remains, a pure Pop masterpiece. 

     “Say You Will” was lifted as the album’s first single and instantly created a buzz.  The opening acoustic guitar hook was juxtaposed by a simple electronic backdrop that added a warm atmosphere to the recording.  The vocals floated above the music like a cool breeze, inviting the listener into a world where heartache and hope co-existed in equal measures.  A stunner of a track, the song gained solid airplay and was destined to become a hit.  But then, for reasons to be explained later, Warner Brothers pulled the plug on the single and radio stopped playing it. “Say You Will” may not have achieved the level of success that many had predicted (and that it deserved), but there was still an album in the shops and there was still a chance for Blanket Of Secrecy to leave their mark.
     Some bands may have one great song in them and release an album that doesn’t come close to living up to the single’s potential. Blanket Of Secrecy had no shortage of great songs that equaled the majesty of “Say You Will” – “Yo Yo”, “Close To Me”, “Remember Me And You”, “Tell Me Baby”, “Photograph”, “Something I Don’t Need” and “Lovers” (penned by Huang Chung’s Jack Hues and Nick ‘De Spig’ Feldman) immediately come to mind. Not content to stick with one formula, every track on the album was a revelation.  Even if the lyrical content wasnt always upbeat, the joy in creating each of the songs came through in the recording. 
     While the songs and performances were top notch, much can be said of Roger Bechirian’s production.  As an engineer or producer, Bechirian had already been involved with many seminal recordings of the era including albums from The Undertones, Squeeze, Elvis Costello & The Attractions, Nick Lowe, Huang Chung, Lene Lovich, Dave Edmunds and many others.  He was one of the few producers that a music fan could rely on when making purchasing decisions – if Roger produced it, then it must be good! Up to this point, he was in the same respected league of producers such as Clive Langer & Alan Winstanley, Hugh Jones, Pete Solley, and a few others. Its as if Bechirians involvement meant the quality of the album was most certainly guaranteed. 
     But just who were Blanket Of Secrecy? When the album came out, their identities were shrouded in –you guessed it- secrecy. The album’s back cover featured a photo of a trio with their backs turned towards the camera. The songs were credited to Tinker/Tailor apart from “B.O.S. Theme”, which was penned by Tinker/Tailor/Soldier. “Say You Will” was co-written by Spy and “Yo Yo” credited Sailor as co-writer. While some caught wind of the identities of the main players (the name Peter Marsh was used in several reviews), the record-buying public were left in the dark.  Huang Chung’s Jack Hues and Hogg played on the album, but offered only musical assistance on a few tracks. Ultimately, rumors began circulating that the members were from well-known bands and couldn’t contractually reveal themselves. It was even suggested that Blanket Of Secrecy was, in fact, The Attractions recording under a pseudonym. Alas, they mystery remained unsolved for the time being.


     With an album in the shops and the support of their record company, plans were afoot to put the band out on the road, which would have revealed their true identities while exposing the band to a bigger audience.  Tentatively scheduled to tour as the opening act for Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Blanket Of Secrecy finished up recording their second album so it could be released in a timely fashion. But just as things began to move forward, Blanket Of Secrecy evaporated into thin air.  The tour was cancelled, Say You Will was deleted, their second album was shelved and the band simply disappeared. Some had speculated that they may have never actually existed as more than a one-off side project, but time has proven otherwise
     Some 20 years later, in the age of the internet, die-hard Blanket Of Secrecy fans found each other in forums, on blogs and on websites devoted to lesser-known bands.  The rumors were still active, but the fans’ dedication to the band remained strong, even though little was known about them.  That is, until a fan by the name of Gary Maher stepped forward.  Seems he had done a little research back in 1984
     When I called Warner Brothers, some secretary told me who the band members were. Gary explains. The names didn't mean much to me except for Roger's, but I wrote the names down on an index card, stuck it in my copy of the album and forgot about it. Years later, I came across the index card and realized that their identities were still shrouded in secrecy to the rest of the world, so I started to spread the word.
     What Gary had discovered unmasked the trio once and for all - the members of Blanket Of Secrecy were Roger Bechirian (AKA Soldier/director, executive producer, keyboards, percussion and backing vocals), Pete Marsh (AKA Tinker/lead vocals, guitar, keyboards, percussion and backing vocals) and Andrew Howell (AKA Tailor/bass, guitar, keyboards, percussion and backing vocals). Maher had, indeed, cracked the case, but now that enquiring minds knew who they were, they obviously wanted to know what, when, where, why and how!
     For the first time ever, all three members of Blanket Of Secrecy have decided to set the record straight, once and for all.  No rumors.  No gossip.  Just facts. 
  

STEPHEN SPAZ SCHNEE: Tell me a little bit about your careers before Blanket Of Secrecy.  
ROGER BECHIRIAN: I was house engineer at Eden Studios in London.  I worked with a broad range of artists and producers, developing my own style of recording and later production.  I left after seven years to go my own way with the help of manager Jake Riviera. 
ANDREW HOWELL: I had been a bass player in the school band and played one of my first gigs at The Royal Albert Hall to celebrate the 200th anniversary of American independence on July 4th, 1976.  I did that with Michael J McEvoy (American) who is now a successful film and TV composer.  From there, I joined a Punk outfit called The Rats who changed their name to The Red Lights after The Boomtown Rats turned up from Ireland.
PETE MARSH: After splitting with my band Easy Street in ‘79, Polydor signed me as a solo artist.  I worked for a while with film composer and legendry synth man Vangelis.  We wrote and produced four tracks, one of which, "Don’t Be Foolish", was a single released in 1980.  I also recorded and released a version of "Close To Me" (then called “You Say You Wanna Love Me”) which was produced by Godley And Creme (10cc).  I then formed a New Wave band, Twist.  We gigged for a while and recorded an album which was produced by Roger Bechirian, whom I had worked with before on Easy Street stuff.   With Roger’s encouragement, I bought myself a TEAC 4-track reel to reel recorder, a nice microphone, a drum machine and keyboard and started to experiment.

SPAZ: How did the three of you meet?
ANDREW: I went on a tour in Paris, France with a guy called Frankie Marshall, where we did a session for a publisher recording one of their up and coming songs.   Pete Marsh joined us to perform the vocal track and thats where we formally met.  From there, he asked me to do a session on his demos and thats where it all began.  It was on the demo session that I first met Roger
ROGER: I had known Pete for some time.  Easy Street would spend time at Eden studios recording demos.  As a young trainee engineer, I got those sessions and we became good friends.  I later produced an album for Pete with his new band Twist.  It was around that time I was introduced to Andy.
PETE: I met Andy at one of The Red Lights gigs in South London and later on we worked in Paris.  I knew he was a great bass player and very talented musician.  I was looking for someone to collaborate with on my new songs and Andy's approach was perfect.  We wanted to make a record that was Pure Pop but eclectic and different.  With Rogers encouragement, the B.O.S. project started to take shape.

SPAZ: When you first started writing and recording the tracks, was it your intention to become a recording entity or just to release a little creative steam and write a few songs?
ROGER: From my point of view, I was never going to be on stage or any of that.  I wanted to record and produce the records and have a hand in the direction of the band with our then-manager Jake.
PETE: Roger convinced Jake and Peter Barnes from Plangent Vision Music (UK publisher), of the potential in the band, time at Ampro Studio was booked by Jake. The studio at that time belonged to Nick Lowe.  It was originally built by Tony Visconti in the basement of his house and some of the great Mark Bolan and Bowie tracks were recorded there.  We spent a couple of months recording demos and some of the tracks went on to become masters on the B.O.S.  album.  On the strength of those recordings, Jake negotiated a deal with Warner Bros. Records in Burbank, and we swiftly made plans to go to Rockfield Studios in rural Wales to finish the album.  
ANDREW: There was no doubt in my mind that this was going somewhere.  Once the demos were finished, Roger and Pete asked me to join the project full time, and full time it was.  Oh no, dear me no, this was never a little thing.

SPAZ: Who came up with the whole idea of recording under pseudonyms?  It was a brilliant concept that established that B.O.S. were more focused on the music, and not a desire for celebrity.  But do you think it ultimately hurt the band?
ANDREW: A pub-based brainstorming session. 
ROGER: We, Andy, Pete, Jake and I, had met at a pub near Jake's office.  We were trying to come up with a name.  Jake had the idea of keeping things secret.  He didn’t want it known that I was a part of a band because he didn’t want to distract from my engineering and producing career.  Crazy but true! So thinking of ‘secret’ led to all the slogans people got used to in the war: 'Careless talk costs lives', 'Walls have ears'… which led to ‘a blanket of secrecy.’ So there’s the name, there’s the concept, a hole in one! After that, the names for each of us came from the idea of spies code names.  All a bit silly, but it worked.
ANDREW: It was a brilliant concept but as the whole thing collapsed anyway, I dont think it did us any harm.  In fact, it helped to create a kind of cult image for the band.
PETE: A difficult concept to market but, at the time, I thought it was brilliant!
  
SPAZ: The album certainly contains plenty of electronic elements, but how did you feel about the project being lumped in with the Synthpop brigade?
PETE: True, the album has been branded Synthpop by some commentators but there was a lot of real playing going on.  We were always looking for performance and spontaneity.
ROGER: I didnt think about that.  We had a unique sound.
ANDREW: We were certainly ahead of our time in the way we approached the writing and recording process.  I don’t suppose we could be referred to as much else by those who pigeon hole music.  But it didn’t sum us up very well.  We were much better than that.  I wouldn’t call a Casio 202 and a tiny little drum machine “plenty of electronic elements.”  The album was “played.” We had no drummer and had to overdub different parts of a real kit to build the rhythm tracks.  No sequencers, no midi, and no flying faders mind you - we had a filthy great desk and Studer A80 24 track machine to play with.  I suppose they’re electronic.

 SPAZ: How were the songs written and recorded?  Did one of you come up with an idea and the three of you would build upon it?
ANDREW: Pete and I would get together at his place in Blackheath and just mess around with a Dr.  Rhythm drum machine, a Casio 202, a guitar, an acoustic and bass to see what would happen.  Then we started to build the ideas on a four track reel to reel.   It didn’t always work but that was the usual approach to the things we wrote together.  Once we had an idea on tape, Roger would listen to it and, once the deal was struck, then we went to Ampro Studios in Shepherds Bush to do proper 24 track versions.
PETE: It was a blast - lots of ideas bouncing around.  The backing tracks were always being updated but when it felt right, it was time for me to record my vocals.  Sometimes I couldn’t better the guide lead vocal so it would survive.  Next was my backing vocals which took ages, sometimes up to 24 tracks mixed down to stereo pairs.  In those days, the recording process was long and laborious.  Roger was very much the technical brains behind the project.  He would engineer and use his studio expertise to create a recording environment that was relaxed and fluid.
ROGER: Andy had a bigger input with the finished article, although he might not admit it.  We all, Jake, me, his publisher and various A&R people involved in the project, could see the enormous talent in him.

Jack Hues (Huang Chung)

SPAZ: How did you get involved with Jack Hues and Hogg from Huang Chung?  Was Lovers ever recorded (though unreleased) by Huang Chung or did they write that for B.O.S.?
ANDREW: I didnt know Jack.   He was a friend of Pete and Rogers who had worked with Huang Chung before. 
PETE: I had known Jack for some years.   We even did some gigs together in South East London.  One day, he played me a new song called "Lovers." He said it wasnt suitable for his Huang Chung project and he suggested I try it.  I loved the song and Roger and Andy agreed. 
ROGER: They were all part of the Deptford posse, Pete, Jack, Chris and Glen from Squeeze.  They all knew each other and their wives all knew each other.  Jack didnt think that Lovers was right for Huang Chung and offered it to Pete.  I wanted it orchestrated and asked Jack to do the arrangements, which he was delighted to do. 
PETE: Jack wrote a fabulous orchestral score.  I still have the original manuscript. 
ROGER: He also conducted the string section.  I'll never forget the string players, after getting the take in the studio, all taping their bows on their music stands, clapping for Jacks first time conducting and what they felt was a good score.

SPAZ: Say You Will received a lot of attention when it was released as a single and is still fondly remembered as your most well-known track.   Were there any other songs off the album that were earmarked as being the follow up single?
ROGER: Close to Me

SPAZ: The album was titled Walls Have Ears in the UK but Ears Have Walls in the U.S.  Do you remember why the title change?
ANDREW: We got into the idea of mixing things up a bit.  I thought it went with the concept but we had lengthy discussions as to whether anyone (America, sorry!) would get it.  I prefer Ears Have Walls: otherwise, its just Elvis Presley. 

SPAZ: How did the front and back cover art come about?
PETE: When the album was ready for release, we worked with the brilliant artist Barney Bubbles on the cover design.  He created a unique plasticine model which was then photographed (The original model disintegrated shortly after Barneys death in 1983). Photographer Brian Griffin went to great lengths to disguise our identities.  We ended up with a very moody and evocative video for the single Say You Will which was directed by Barney and lit by Brian in his studio where the whole film production took place.


SPAZ: Was there a lot of material left over from the album sessions?
ANDREW: There was quite a bit of material overall.  We had been very busy and prolific little bunnies.  The extra ideas went on the second album but there are a few others floating around.  I think Roger and Pete have numerous cassettes of the four track stuff.  I ate mine.
ROGER: I will have some of them out as exclusive tracks and later as part of the second album launch.

SPAZ: Had the band played live by this point?  Or were there at least plans to play live?
ROGER: Not at that point.  But during the making of the second album, Jake came to Rockfield studios, where we were recording, and told us we were on Tom Petty's world tour! We had to think about getting a band together. 
ANDREW: Pete and I did one little gig at a South London pub in Lee Green, The Old Tigers Head, to try things out.  There were plans afoot, after the release, to do a world tour supporting Petty but sadly not to be.   That would have been a blast.

SPAZ: What is the story behind the unreleased second album?
ANDREW: Jake was so convinced the first album would be massive and wed be too busy touring to get back to the studio.  So, after the first one was finished, we took a short break and went back to Rockfield to lay down some more tracks.  
ROGER: Jake didnt feel we would have time to record and get it out in time otherwise.  It features some amazing guest stars.
PETE: We couldnt wait to get back in the studio because we had so much new material and wanted to keep the creative flow going as long as possible.  Fortunately, Roger was able to get us back into Rockfield again.  We recorded a number of new songs live in the studio with Attractions drummer Pete Thomas. 
ANDREW: Personally, I think the second album had a great deal of promise and there are loads of tracks on it that easily match Walls Have Ears

SPAZ: Pete appears on Nick Lowes The Abominable Showman album (produced by Roger), which also features an unreleased Blanket Of Secrecy song.  Was Roger working with Nick at the same time as the B.O.S. album?
ROGER: I was producing the album with Nick.  I brought Pete in for backing vocals.   Pete also did the backups for me on a Robert Ellis Orrall duet with Carlene Carter.
PETE: Yes, Nick covered one of our songs, "Cool Reaction. 

SPAZ: What happened after the Walls Have Ears release?
ANDREW: You know that famous image of an Angel on one shoulder and the Devil on the other whispering in our ears? Well lets just say that the Devil won out.  I should state that this was not the whole band/team.  It came totally out of the blue and devastated us especially Roger and I, Jake was particularly hit. 
PETE: I was tempted by other offers.  Basically, I lost my way and I regret it!

SPAZ: What other projects have you been involved with since B.O.S. demise?
ANDREW: I went on to work with Simon Byrne and Roger on an album Called Dream Crazy which got signed up to Epic Records in New York.  We wrote “Heart And Soul”, which appeared on The Monkees album Pool It, which Roger produced.   After that, I did some work with a few of Roger’s projects, helping singers with backing tracks and ideas.  I did an audition for The Kim Wilde band but I was too good! Kim was cool though and a friend of Carlene Carter, who the Blankets worked with on C’est C Bon.   I helped produce Dr. And The Medics first single and recorded (in my studio) a few local bands.  I fell in love and quit the biz.  I much prefer being with Alex.
PETE: I carried on songwriting and got involved with a music library.   In 2006, I moved to France and teamed up with some brilliant French musicians.  Ive written loads of new songs and done many concerts.  Im really enjoying playing live again. 
ROGER: I carried on engineering and producing, later setting up my own production company in New York. I then drifted into management, signing Tom McRae to BMG. He basically began the whole singer/songwriter movement. Then Irish band Bell X1 signing to Island/Universal. They became the second biggest band out of Ireland after U2 (whom they supported), playing to stadium audiences and gaining a following around the world.   

SPAZ: Were you aware of the bands internet presence over the years and the well-deserved respect and devotion of your fans? Are you still surprised by the effect your music has had on people? Gary Maher certainly made his mark by exposing the bands members a while back
ANDREW: I only became aware of it when I did a free trial on the internet and found Gary’s page.   It was through him that Roger and I got back in touch after a 12 year gap.  I AM BLOWN AWAY by the fact that we have any fans at all.  I had no idea that the music had had such an effect.   In fact, Gary almost made me cry at one point telling me how much he loved the album.  When he found out I was only 22 at the time, he commented on how mature an album it was for someone so young to be involved in.  Mature? Moi? Anyway, I count Gary as a real inspiration as well, so there!
PETE: Im surprised and very pleased that the band has so much interest on the internet.  Ive spoken with Gary and really appreciate his devotion!

SPAZ: While you are all in touch these days, did you manage to stay in contact over the years?
ROGER: I'd been in touch with Andrew but not with Pete until recently.
ANDREW: We had previously got back together as B.O.S. and some new songs were recorded but that was a long, long time ago.  I bumped into Pete at a giant DIY store in Charlton and it turned out we had been living just round the corner from each other (literally), in Plumstead SE18, for about 11 years! Anyway, Ive seen more of Roger than Pete.
PETE: When Roger told me he wanted to remaster the album, I contacted Andy and suggested we write some new stuff.  Over the last six months, weve written and recorded 16 new songs.  Ive really enjoyed it.  We did it all on the internet, exchanging files and ideas on the web.  You couldnt do that in the 80s.  Now, its up to Roger to mix it


SPAZ: What inspired Roger to go back and remaster the album for release?
ROGER: Its part of an ongoing idea I have to release a bunch of things I've been part of over the years.
ANDREW: For me, there is a need for closure.  A lot of time, money and hard, although enjoyable, work went into the album and Roger applied all his many and various talents to the tracks.  Indeed the whole album is a part of him and it only exists, as it does, because of him.  He is a consummate professional as well as a creative genius and therefore, this is something that just has to be done although, he would probably never admit it.  Thats my opinion anyway.

SPAZ: How do you feel about the project now, some 30 years later?  Do you believe that it has stood the test of time?
ROGER: Yes I do, strangely.  I'm not sure if its down to the fact that I know the work so totally.  Every fader push, EQ tweak, FX, performance, and over dub every little detail.   But I do think we had captured a certain magic between us, we created something new and unique.  It was a magical moment.
PETE: I feel the album still sounds original.  Memorable songs, great performances, great vocals, brilliant production. 
ANDREW: I still love the whole idea of having been involved on such an amazing project.  Project seems such a mercenary term.  It was the best and the worst of my musical experience.  And we wouldnt be having this conversation if it hadnt stood the test of time.

SPAZ: With the digital re-release of Walls Have Ears, what is next for B.O.S.?
ANDREW: The release of the previously unheard second album but only the Good Lord knows exactly what then.  If it takes off to a reasonable degree then there are other songs all ready to go, enough for a third album.  Anyone interested in funding it?
PETE: Hopefully, at least three more albums.  Keep the dream alive!

SPAZ: If possible, can you share your memories of the albums tracks?

Say You Will
ROGER: I knew this was the hit.  I wanted the acoustic guitar riff to sound like an earthquake.  I spent ages choosing the right ad-libs from Pete at the end of the song.  He sounds amazing.
ANDREW: Without a shadow of a doubt at all, “Say You Will” is the most fantastic song I have ever worked on.  The bass line and acoustic guitar riff are totally brilliant.  The vocals awesome… I remember being face down on the desk with the monitors at full blast not able to believe what I was hearing.  There are some pretty good sound systems around today but to be in the control room at Rockfield studios on the night the mix got played back blows them all away.  There I said it - best musical moment in my life.

 Young Heart
ANDREW: Young Heart has a fast and finger-stretching bass part which I wrote in the key of F! I can still feel the pain in my left hand today, but a great Pop song and well worth the blisters.

Love Me Too
ANDREW: Another great and quite fast song with a brilliant vocal from Pete again!

Remember Me And You
ANDREW: Remember Me And You was great fun to record, a real rolling along track with a brill catchy chorus. 

Long Cool Glass
ANDREW: Long Cool Glass had a bottle of wine being opened on tape.  We deliberately got the timing wrong so we could drink a load of the stuff.   Unfortunately, the more we drank, the more out of sync we got.  We got there in the end but felt very ill the next day..
Photograph
ANDREW: Photograph is one of my favorite tracks.  I love the bass line and guitar echoes.  And if you believe in that sort of thing, the lyrics are almost prophetic.  You could have been a star, travelled the world far and wide.

Yo Yo
ANDREW: Pete wrote Yo Yo with an old mate of ours, Ron Chadwick, who was a surrealist artist, I have a painting of his hanging on the wall in my music room.  Its the Beatles with storm clouds gathering in the distance.  Again, very fast with loads and loads of vocals and a very infectious feel and chorus.

Close To Me
ANDREW: Close To Me is another favorite.  Fantastic feel and the sounds are mainly from the old Casio which made the track so special, too much of anything else would have lost it.

Something I Dont Need
ANDREW: Good idea.  I remember Roger spending hours creating the effects on the vocals in the middle section Ahhs. Great sound.

Tell Me Baby
ANDREW: Real rocky track which tested Petes stamina, not! He sang this with relish and real feeling as well.  Late night session I recall.

Lovers
ANDREW: Like I said before, great string arrangement by a very skilled musician (Jack Hues) and a fantastic job by Roger who put his heart and soul into the track.
ROGER: Great vocal performance and great string arrangements.

B.O.S. Theme
ANDREW: B.O.S.  Theme started life with me, I think, but grew in the studio.  Started out as a bit of fun but ended up with a very haunting sound.   I loved playing on it.   It should have been picked up for TV.
ROGER: I recorded rain outside the studio and mixed it in to the chorus.  Andys bass parts are just great and made the tune.

Feather In My Hand
ANDREW: Another killer riff with some cool power chords in the chorus, quirky vocal in the verse and another excellent example of Petes vocal range. 

In The Garden
ANDREW: I seem to recall that grew out of something else and starts to point to where we were going. Weird and wonderful thats really all I can say.
ROGER: The backing track was from something else I had been working on.   Everything else was pasted on top. 

     Thirty years after the album was released, Roger has gone back to the original tapes and remastered them.  While there have been numerous bootleg versions floating around on the internet over the past decade, the band is officially reissuing the album as it was meant to be heard. The warmth of the recording and the full and crisp sound brings the band’s music to life again.  The timelessness of the songwriting and performances still sound fresh and invigorating.  This release will be rapturously embraced by their long-time fans, but it also gives a whole new generation the opportunity to hear one of the greatest unsung Pop albums of the past 30 years.
    
Special thanks to Andrew Howell, Roger Bechirian, Pete Marsh and Gary Maher.

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Thursday, August 1, 2013

An EXCLUSIVE Interview With WANG CHUNG's Jack Hues!



Cool On Craze:

An EXCLUSIVE Interview with 
WANG CHUNG’s Jack Hues

By Stephen SPAZ Schnee

     In 1986, there were very few people in the civilized world that didn’t feel the need to ‘Wang Chung tonight,’ although most of them didn’t know what Wang Chunging was!  Well, all one had to do was look at the song title itself for inspiration: “Everybody Have Fun Tonight.” So, in essence, to ‘Wang Chung tonight’ meant to do whatever it took to have fun.  And listening to Wang Chung was certainly part of that equation.  But the Wang Chung story didn’t start there – their journey to success began nearly a decade earlier…
     In 1977, musicians Jack Hues and Nick Feldman, who had already been through a few different bands together, formed an outfit called 57 Men which also featured drummer Darren Costin, bassist Leigh Gorman and vocalist Glenn Gregory.  However, within a year and a half, the band split up.  Gorman would later become bassist for a pre-fame incarnation of Adam & The Ants. This line-up of the Ants left Adam’s employment under the direction of manager Malcolm McLarenand formed Bow Wow Wow with Annabella Lwin. Vocalist Gregory would eventually find fame as the frontman in Heaven 17
     By 1980, Hues, Feldman (using the pseudonym Nick de Spig), and Costin (as Darwin) had formed Huang Chung.   Releasing a few independent singles over the next year the band expanded their line-up by adding saxophone player Dave Burnand (Hogg) and then inked a deal with Arista Records. They released two singles during ’81 and then another single and their self-titled debut album in 1982.  A perfect blend of Post-Punk, Pop and Art-Rock, the album’s unique chord changes and arrangements were entirely different than any of their contemporaries. Huang Chung was not your average New Wave band although “Hold Back The Tears” could have been a massive chart-topper had the band played the Rock ‘n’ Roll game. Avoiding Rock clichés may not have earned them huge sales, but it laid the groundwork for what was to come. 


     In 1983, the band reappeared as a trio (Hogg was out), with a modified band name (Wang Chung) and a new label (Geffen). The first single, “Don’t Be My Enemy,” received airplay on U.S. radio stations and the buzz began to grow.  The next single, “Don’t Let Go,” earned frequent MTV plays as well as radio spins. Their second album, Points On The Curve, was released in early 1984 and then the band finally had their first bona-fide ‘big’ hit single with “Dance Hall Days.”  By 1985, Costin had left the band and Hues and Feldman wrote and performed the soundtrack to the William Friedkin-directed To Live And Die In L.A. They also recorded “Fire In The Twilight” for the soundtrack to The Breakfast Club.
     The following year, Wang Chung-mania went global when they released the singles “Everybody Have Fun Tonight,” “Let Go,” and “Hypnotize Me” and the parent album, Mosaic. While the music was slicker than their ’82 debut and Points On The Curve, there was no denying when listening to the songwriting and unique arrangements that this was Wang Chung. The band had moved forward while still retaining their sense of self.  When they released their fifth album, The Warmer Side Of Cool, in 1989, their Art-Rock roots were showing through while their more commercial side took a back seat.  Old fans loved it, of course, but radio couldn’t grasp anything beyond the album’s first single “Praying To A New God” and Wang Chung’s momentum slowed considerably.  By 1990, Wang Chung was put on ice.
   Hues and Feldman have reunited a few times over the next 20+ years, but finally made it semi-permanent when they released their 2012 album Tazer Up! digitally and plotted a tour of the U.S. in 2013.  At a recent rare UK gig, drummer Costin joined the band onstage for an all-too-brief reunion.  As the band prepped for their tour, the Culture Factory label reissued remastered versions of Points On The Curve and Mosaic in beautiful mini-LP sleeves.  With all of this activity, could a revival of Wang Chung-mania be far behind?  Once can only hope so!
     Stephen SPAZ Schnee caught up with Jack Hues as he geared up for their current U.S. tour to discuss the new album, the reissues and all things Wang Chung…

    
SPAZ:  You’ve got a new album, Tazer Up!, plus two reissues (Points On The Curve and Mosaic) and you are just about to start a tour of the U.S.  How are you feeling about things right now?
JACK HUES: I Feel Good NanananananaNa

SPAZ:   Going back to the beginning, I’ve read that you two met through an ad that Nick had placed looking for musicians?  Can you tell us a little about that?
JACK: I had just left the Royal College of Music and had figured out that being the next Mahler was going to be a little more tricky than I imagined. I moved permanently to London with my first wife who was expecting our first son. I earned money teaching guitar, but I looked around for bands to work with and did a few auditions. Nick was the only person who seemed interesting, doing something original - and he had a fantastic drummer - Paul Hammond (RIP) who had recently quit Atomic Rooster. He is still one of the greatest drummers I ever worked with. He could play a straight, unwavering 4/4 beat on bass drum, snare and hi-hat AND roll a cigarette at the same time. He had a great sense of the inner time of a song - not just the surface tempo. Nick was writing these great Punk songs with major 7th chords in them, jazzy sounding chords. Later, I showed Nick some of my songs and was inspired to write for the band and Nick was “big” enough to encourage it - the creative bond was established back in those early days.

SPAZ:  Under the original name of Huang Chung, you released a few indie singles that were considered Post-Punk but actually leaned towards Art-Rock.  Can you tell us about some of your influences?
JACK: The strongest underlying influence at that time was David Bowie. The harmonic/melodic sophistication of “Drive in Saturday” and “Life on Mars,” the Funk-Rock of Station To Station and David Live and the instrumental sides of Heroes and Low. He was a great education for a musician, plus his sense of style and alter-egos. But UK Punk was important for me in blowing away the complacency of looking at “music” as a “trained” musician. I remember Jack Bruce saying he spent 5 years “unlearning” what he had been taught at music college. I’m not sure how you “unlearn” things, but you realize there is a lot more to it than being technically secure. So influences at that time were the Sex Pistols and The Clash, Siouxie And The Banshees, Television, early Blondie, The Tubes, Talking Heads. Also Chic and Chaka Khan for the Funk and Todd Rundgren, Little Feat and Ry Cooder for the playing and the songwriting.

 

SPAZ:  By the time the self-titled debut had been released, what had inspired you to move in a more sophisticated direction?  The songwriting had a lot more depth than your average chart fodder...
JACK: Growing up listening to The Beatles and 60’s/70’s pop. Part of it’s appeal was that there was a fantastically attractive and exciting surface, but just below it was a subversive “message” speaking directly to you - “I’d love to turn you on” or “Turn off your mind relax and float downstream,” “Everybody must get stoned,” and “Let’s spend the night together,” “You’re not alone”. Also the music sounded simple, but when you learnt to play it, it was constantly shifting in unexpected ways. So, for me, the trick has always been to present an attractive surface that lures the listener in, then challenges them with a strange lyric, or structure or chord change so that they come with you on the journey. Music is particularly effective in communicating directly with the emotions, bypassing linguistic logic, or subverting it, to create a highly personal experience.

SPAZ:  Why didn’t you use a pseudonym like Darwin, Hogg or Nick De Spig?
JACK: Jack Hues is a pseudonym... my real name is Jeremy Ryder. Jack Hues is a play on “J’accuse” - after the pamphlets by Emil Zola and Graham Green - amusingly pretentious I thought at the time...

SPAZ:  Looking back, how do you feel about that debut album? “Hold Back The Tears” is still one of my fave Wang tunes…
JACK: I like it. It is very undiluted in its statement of who we were/are. We made the album with Rhett Davies (Roxy Music) as producer - he did a great job, but there was a lack of vision at the record label and they put us back in the studio to redo some of it with Roger Becherian. Roger is a great guy, part of Blanket of Secrecy, with whom Nick and I worked around that time. Roger was much less interventionist than Rhett and I think his tracks lack the intensity of Rhett’s work. I love Nick’s bass playing on Huang Chung - Rhett got an amazing sound. The Roland Space Echo was the secret weapon on that album!

SPAZ:   Was Huang’s version of “Dance Hall Days” actually released as a single?  I’ve read conflicting reports… and I’ve never actually owned a copy…
JACK: I don’t think it came out. Not with our blessing anyhow. Tim Friese-Greeneproduced it and I hated what he did to it! I get what he was trying to do - to knock us off center and try to create something “new and exciting.” I love his work with Talk Talk, in fact Colour of Spring and Laughing Stock are among my favorite albums by an “80’s band” - well, by any band - but we were not in sympathy in 1982.

SPAZ:  Was the name change to Wang Chung meant to make it easier for the consumer to pronounce the name correctly?
JACK: That was the thinking. Having made the Huang Chung album and been round the block with press and gigs we realized that the name was a barrier to people getting the band. Our little in-joke was not funny to the outside world, so we were ready to change it when we moved to Geffen Records. But we struggled to come up with anything else and David Geffen said he liked the name but that we should re-spell it to make it easy to pronounce. So we did... Huang Chung does have a specific meaning, but the idea was always that we wanted a name that was a “sound” without “meaning.” The Chinese characters that we used for the first album cover further removed the “name” to a “meaningless” realm - “meaningless” in an unattached, Buddhist way. Anyway, changing the spelling seemed to further that process, so I was ok with it.


SPAZ:  With Hogg out and Nick and Darren reverting to their birth names, Points On The Curve was a move forward for the band.  Did you purposely try to create something a little more commercial with this album?
JACK: Taking on David Massey as our manager (without whom we would have not left Arista and signed to Geffen), signing to Geffen, recording with Chris Hughes and Ross Cullum at Abbey Road 2 - all this felt like a big step up. Also “Dance Hall Days” was a huge asset - when I wrote it I played it to Nick and he immediately heard the potential. Everyone we played it to in the business - you could almost see the dollars signs in their eyes and they started to be very nice to us! So I think we realized that “Dance Hall Days” could be a hit, that there was a bigger game to play and that working with Chris was moving things to a higher level. It wasn’t a conscious change - I think all the new people involved created the new version of the sound of the band. So it wasn’t like we were thinking, let’s be more commercial, we were just riding the horse the way it was going.

SPAZ: “Don’t Be My Enemy” was actually the first single and did get some airplay here on KROQ.  Second single “Don’t Let Go” received MTV coverage. And then the hits really kicked in with “Dance Hall Days.”  Do you remember having much say so in what would be picked as a single?
JACK: Not really. In those days, the guys who did promotion at Geffen treated it like an arcane science - I remember they would know chart positions in any given week of hits, how many weeks on the chart, weekly sales - they would just fire numbers at you like it all meant something - so we were happy to leave it to them. But I think there was enormous pressure on them not to f*** it up! So they tried to soften the ground with “Enemy” and “Don’t Let Go” before releasing “Dance Hall Days.” Maybe, with hindsight, it would have been better to go with “Dance Hall” first, but hey - it all worked out ok.

SPAZ:  Were you blindsided when “Dance Hall Days” became as big as it did?  Or had you been preparing for that first big break?
JACK: I think I had been preparing since I was eight years old! But nothing can prepare you for the real thing! I found it exciting, but very stressful and confusing.


SPAZ:  You lost Darren at this point and continued as a duo.  Was it hard to lose another member in such a short time frame?
JACK: A well framed question... Darren is a wonderful person, larger than life in every way and we recently played together again in London at a sort of “homecoming” after 25 years! It was a delight and he raised the whole thing to another level. Making Points On The Curve was not easy for him because 1983 was the year of the Linn Drum and The Fairlight - early computers that were very slow to program and difficult to coax into life. All the drums were done on those machines, and although the drum fills and the approach were all Darren’s work the actual playing was done through programming these bloody computers. So Darren got very bored! The subsequent tour supporting The Cars saw all three of us under pressure in different ways. At the end of all that it felt somehow natural that Darren would do his own thing - he needed the space to express himself and not sit around for another year waiting for the hi-hat part to be finished on a new Wang Chung album.

SPAZ: You were asked to do the soundtrack to To Live And Die In L.A. because William Freidkin was a fan of Points On The Curve, especially the track “Wait.” Was it more of a challenge to write music for a film than the pop charts? Because of your classical background, I was thinking it might be the opposite…
JACK: As you rightly anticipate, it was a tremendous release for me. I was working on the music for what became “City of the Angels” on the soundtrack when Billy called us. Like “Wait,” it had a fast tempo with slow moving chords and I was trying to turn it into a 3 minute pop hit! When we got the call from Billy I turned it into a 12 minute instrumental! Perfect! Haha. You mention my Classical background. In truth I don’t have a Classical background. I learnt guitar and how to read music from the age of 8, but my parents were not into Classical music at all. My grandparents were into “light Classical” music, sort of easy listening Classical, which I loathed and my experience of Classical music as a working class kid in Britain was through comedy shows like Morcambe and Wise and Monty Python taking the piss out of it. I was obsessed with Rock music and all my musical activities were in bands with school friends from around the age of 12. It wasn’t until I was 18 and I went to University that I started to really get into Classical music, indeed I spent all of the 80’s listening to Classical music and learning what I had never known due to my lack of a “Classical background.” My background is 60’s and 70’s Pop/Rock and especially The Beatles, Cream, Hendrix, Led Zep, Yes and Genesis. That is where my penchant for long form structures comes from. You can’t divide these things up neatly - of course there is always going to be an overlap but, to me, having a “Classical background” implies a certain English, middle-class experience and that was not what I had growing up.


SPAZMosaic was a great Pop record but still contained that unique Wang Chung sensibility to it in terms of the songwriting.  Do you feel you reached a pretty good compromise between what you wanted to do and what the label wanted you to do?
JACK: For me personally, Mosaic meant letting go. To Live And Die in LA was a great experience and I think it contains some of our best music, but it was regarded by Geffen as a commercial flop - no number one single. So we were under pressure to create a hit. John Kalodner (our A&R guy at Geffen), Nick and David (our manager) wanted to work with Peter Wolfwho had just had hits with “We Built This City” and “These Dreams.” Peter lived in LA but was originally from Vienna so we created a plan where we would start the album in London, then move to Vienna, then finish it in LA - those were the days!! In Vienna I used to go off round the museums and go to the opera and I left them to get on with it! It sounds like I am distancing myself from Mosaic which I don’t mean to do - there is some great work on that album, but I consciously stepped back on that record and stopped fighting every battle over every little detail. In that sense Mosaic is a much more collaborative record between me, Nick and Peter and yes, a successful compromise.

SPAZ:  “Betrayal” is particularly powerful.  Was that song written from experience?
JACK: It is about a friend of mine. I like that song because it incorporates the central “Love” theme of Tchaikovsky’s “Romeo and Juliet” Fantasy-Overture. The three chord motif that underpins the end of the verse structure, gradually transforms into the much more chromatic version of those chords that Tchaikovsky used. Of course the song is about the break up of a “childhood-sweethearts” romance - as the lyrics unravel the breakdown, recounting “what happened,” the music gradually assembles those fabulous romantic chords so that by the end the “love theme” is in full bloom, even though the relationship is over - the two elements work in opposite directions. Our original demo was much more stark - drum machine and string synth - I never really liked the lush version on the album and that version also has a “chorus” that should never have been there - that song suffered more than most on the record from being straightened out.


SPAZ:  “Everybody Have Fun Tonight”:  big hit then, blessing or curse now?  I happen to think it’s still a great, uplifting Pop track… as is the timeless and joyful “Let’s Go”…
JACK: “Everybody Have Fun Tonight” and “Let’s Go” - they were fun to make, I loved the sessions with Siedah Garrett and the backing singers, the horn players. They come from a good place and represent Peter, Nick and myself working at our best. Blessing or curse? Those songs took us in a different direction from which there was no return - but they have bestowed many blessings upon me, so... I’ll go for blessings.

SPAZ: Three years on, you released the Warmer Side Of Cool album, which found you leaning more towards your arty side. Was it a tough album to make after achieving a huge amount of success with Mosaic?
JACK: Yes - I was trying to say, NO we’re not just a Top 40 MTV band and Nick was shouting YES we are!! This was the pendulum swinging back to me writing arty, complicated stuff and Nick trying to keep us on the commercial rails! And Peter Wolf trying to referee the whole thing. If you listen sympathetically there are some ambitious ideas, but I think I had a lot of work to do on myself, both personally and as a writer - success is not a good teacher, let’s put it like that!

SPAZ:  Were you disappointed that it didn’t do better?
JACK: I guess I was disappointed, Nick too - we felt let down by everyone for not getting behind it. I was very aware of the Geffen guys taking a view on it - essentially, this is never going to fly so lets not spend any more money on it. But hey - welcome to the real world. It’s the music BUSINESS. I think they would have supported another album if we had had the vision to see where we actually were, but with hindsight I think neither Nick nor I could step far enough back to see what was actually there. I remember thinking I just wanted it all to stop so I could get off! But I realize now that the one thing you never do on a roller-coaster is to try and get off!


SPAZ:  Did Wang Chung officially break up or did you just set things aside for a few years?
JACK: There was no “legal” break-up. Nick actually got very ill around that time and I did another soundtrack for Friedkin for his movie The Guardian so that sort of naturally drew us apart. Then David Massey decided to go and work for Sony, so that was like Brian Epstein leaving the Beatles - if you’ll forgive the inflated metaphor. I don’t think things could have been any different really - Saturn was in my Horoscope big time and there was no beating that - I am sort of joking and sort of not...

SPAZ:  Over the last 25 years or so, you recorded an unreleased solo album and worked with Strictly Inc (a duo with GenesisTony Banks) while Nick was ½ of Promised Land (with Culture Club’s Jon Moss). Would you two still get together to write material and see what happened?
JACK: No, not as in the old way of going round to each other’s houses and playing ideas. But once Nick was ensconced as an A&R mogul I used to go and see him and listen to what he was signing and he had me produce a couple of his artists. I produced an album for Arkana which I still consider to be a great record -there was a track called “Skin” which is so advanced in it’s sound world - Ollie Jacobs, Arkana’s front-man is a genius and I don’t say that lightly - but it got lost in all the record company politicking.  I remember going to see Nick one time and he played me “Justify Your Tone” by a young songwriter called Will Bates. I loved it and he said, “I knew you would, but we’re not signing him” - then he played me two horrendous pieces of shit and said, “I knew you’d hate them and we are signing them!!” So we know each other, me and Nickie! But I went home and demo’d “Justify” and it’s on Tazer Up! I love the lyric on that tune. “Kiss my mind and dry my eyes please” - wonderful.

SPAZ:  Your new album, Tazer Up!, is now available.  How did you go about choosing which songs would make the album?
JACK: We worked on it, off and on, over quite a long time - from around 2006. We did set a criteria of making the record like an 80’s record ie. drum machines, synths, electric guitars, but no drum loops, guitar solos... of course there are drum loops and guitar solos because it’s important to contradict yourself... At the same time I released two albums with my “Jazz” group, The-Quartet on Helium Records - Chris Hughes’ label with Chris producing - so I got all my more questionable tendencies out on those records... haha. No, I think the “Jazz” influence is a healthy one. I always put “Jazz” in inverted commas because I am not a Jazz musician per se, but the idiom is one that has transformed my understanding of what music is, and in particular what it is to be a performer. But to answer the question - we selected the best 10 songs, or the 10 that would fit together. There are more and some new ones that will make up another album. We were talking about this year, but it will take longer. But there is a further body of work, fans will be glad to hear.

SPAZTazer Up! is not the Wang Chung of the ‘80s, but it’s uniquely Wang Chung.  Did you have a clear idea in mind when you went about creating the album?
JACK: Love us or feel totally indifferent about us, we do sound like we sound - it takes no effort. It would be impossible not to sound like Wang Chung. So there is no clear conscious thing “in mind”. We like to mix up genres and hop from one thing to another just like bands did in the good old days. Each track on a Beatles album was almost a separate persona - so too The Kinks, Pink Floyd, Led Zep - always creating hybrids unlimited by “genre” - those bands created their “genre” - anyway, we like genre-bending and with a distinctive core sound you can do that.

SPAZ:  At one of your recent London shows, you were joined by original drummer Darren Costin.  Are there plans for him to rejoin the band?
JACK: Yes, we are working with Darren on the recordings from that show and he will play with us again in the UK I’m sure. He will also play on some of the new album so I think Darren will be more involved. I see Wang Chung as a sort of experimental laboratory really, rather than a band. We try out things, we drift into new genres and people come and go - I like that more and more rather than trying to be the same old guys doing the same old thing. In the U.S., we are using American musicians for our upcoming tour.


SPAZ: What’s next for Wang Chung?
JACK: A U.S. summer tour and a new album - some time...

SPAZ:  What are you currently spinning on your CD, LP and DVD players?
JACK:
CD –
Mozart String Quartet in A Major K.464 - The Hagen Quartet
Opposites - Biffy Clyro

LP –
Thelonious Monk plays Duke Ellington
Exile on Main Street reissue - The Rolling Stones

DVD –
Le Règle du Jeu – directed by Jean Renoir
The American Friend – directed by Wim Wenders
Cloud Atlas – directed by The Wachowskis and Tom Tykwer



Thanks to Jack Hues

Special thanks to Jocelynn Pryor, Doug Weber and Richard Le Besnerais


SUMMER 2013 U.S. TOUR DATES

 
Jul 24
Mayo Performing Arts Center w/ The Fixx
Morristown, NJ
 
Jul 25
Erie Canal Harbour Central Wharf w/ The Fixx
Buffalo, NY
 
Jul 26
The Arcadia Theatre w/ The Fixx
St Charles, IL
 
Jul 27
OH-Lounge - Hollywood Casino w/ The Fixx
Columbus, OH
 
Jul 30
Northern Lights Theatre w/ The Fixx
Milwaukee, WI
 
Aug 01
Four Winds Casino Resort - Hard Rock Cafe w/ The Fixx
New Buffalo, MI
 
Aug 03
Santa Clara Fairgrounds
San Jose, CA
 
Aug 04
Assembly
Sacramento, CA
 
Aug 10
Mandalay Bay Beach w/ A Flock of Seagu...
Las Vegas, NV
 
Aug 16
Canyon Club w/ DIZZYLILACS, All...
Agoura Hills, CA
 
Aug 17
The Coach House w/ The Reflexx, You...
San Juan Capistrano, CA
 
Aug 23
New Wave Club
Bellflower, CA
 
Aug 24
Ramona Main Stage
Ramona, CA
 
Aug 31
Stage 305 - Magic City Casino
Miami, FL




POINTS ON A CURVE




MOSAIC