It’s a bit of an obvious answer, but i’ll say “wait until the next one”. We’ve done loads of things, and it’s difficult, after so many years, to view the records with anything like fresh ears. In fact, how I feel about the albums, and which one I think was best seems to change from day to day!
Have fun is definitely at the top of the list. For me, I think it’s about doing what we used to do, but trying to hang on to the memories, and drink in the entire experience. We still get to do gigs, tour, play abroad – and i’m determined to enjoy all of these as much as I always did, and hopefully even more. Being able to still play feels like a bit of a privilege, and i’m more aware of that, as the years go by.
don’t be such a dickhead
Loads, and Loads. In the UK, the shows at the T&C, in Kentish Town. The Hummingbird, in Birmingham, and JB’s, in Dudley. In Europe? There was one in a tiny bar in Zurich, that should have been a disaster, but was really incredible. In the US? There was a show at the Academy in NYC where the energy level was quite unbelievable. Also, The first time we played at the Metro in Chicago. that’s the show that was released on CD, you can hear how mad it was. Also, the two shows we did back-to-back in SF, for a radio station. Two in a row nearly killed us, but by the last few songs, I was totally euphoric, just functioning on absolute adrenalin.
JJ tunes – Maryland, Broken Bones, It’s The Winning That Counts. WWYK, for live gigs. Other peoples stuff – anything by Lowgold, The Flys, Wim Mertens, Bill Nelson’s Red Noise, Gloria Mundi & Ultravox!
Still listen to PE, though for classic hip-hop, I prefer the earlier albums. AC/DC? Same again – earlier is better. Current favs? Run The Jewels, New Pornographers, Lucius.
Hotel? Hello, The Sandpiper, in Manchester. There were bolts on all of the room doors, should have had one on the main entrance, to stop you getting in, and staying there. It was an absolute shithole. If you ever tried to trash the place, you ended up improving it. Backstage? Europe seemed to have backstage areas that were rather poor, but that’s probably because we were playing toilet venues to begin with.
I have less answers to those questions than I did, all those years ago – but the difference is that now, I don’t care, that I don’t know.
Jerry always seemed slightly reluctant, but that’s because stylists always seemed to earmark him for the daftest outfits. Would my kids wear the clothes? Well, mine spend most of the days dressed as Batman, or Ninja Turtles – so they probably wouldn’t bat an eyelid.
Single – In The City, The jam. Album – the Clash – the Clash. We don’t really sound anything like those tow, but I think they made me who I am, and I guess that feeds into the band, somewhere.
So, hopefully, you’ll have seen by now that we have reissued our Japanese-only compilation album “Scratched”, on vinyl, for the first time. It’s two pieces of heavyweight vinyl, marbled blue and yellow – so it matches the artwork. Speaking of artwork – we got the original designer Stylorouge to redo all of the design, and bring it up to date. It’s as faithful as we could have made it, to what came out in the 1990s. Totally chuffed with how it looks – and for those of you who have a copy – just look at it, it’s ace!
Read MoreGIG NEWS! We’re back out on the road, for shows in November!
Read MoreThe last Twitter listening party was amazing, and we’re doing it again! This time, it’s “Perverse”, and it’s going to be even better – hopefully, with your help. It was all the tweets from you, that made it such a blast last time, so get involved again!
March 16th, at 8pm (GMT) – see you there!
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