[kj] Drowned in Sound meets Youth from Killing Joke
Nick Scott
npscott at blueyonder.co.uk
Tue Nov 17 05:41:55 EST 2015
Although not in time for the UK tour now clearly ;)
>
> On 17 November 2015 at 10:34 Jim Harper <jimharper666 at yahoo.co.uk> wrote:
>
>
> Nice to hear The Hum will be making a return to the setlist!
>
> Jim.
>
>
> On Tue, 17/11/15, Nick Scott <npscott at blueyonder.co.uk> wrote:
>
> Subject: Re: [kj] Drowned in Sound meets Youth from Killing Joke
> To: "A list about all things Killing Joke (the band!)"
> <gathering at misera.net>
> Date: Tuesday, 17 November, 2015, 10:20
>
>
>
> Thanks for posting this Paul, nice read.
>
> On 17 November 2015 at 01:03 Paul
> <dubecho at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS meets Youth from Killing Joke
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> by Dom Gourlay November 16th, 2015
>
>
>
>
>
>
> When Killing Joke put out their first album in the
> summer of 1980, no one could have predicted they'd be
> here, thirty-five years later, talking about their sixteenth
> long player. Least of all the band themselves. Nevertheless,
> that's where they find themselves having released said
> record Pylon some five days earlier. Today's midweek
> charts reveal the album currently stands at the heady
> heights of number eleven, their highest chart placing since
> 1985's Night Time. For a band who've operated
> outside of the mainstream throughout their lifespan, these
> are celebratory times.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Currently halfway through a near sold out UK tour that
> will see them enrapture a jam packed Rock City in a few
> hours time, the four-piece - Jaz Coleman (vocals), Kevin
> "Geordie" Walker (guitars), Martin
> "Youth" Glover (bass) and "Big" Paul
> Ferguson (drums) - might be in their twilight years yet
> their music still pushes boundaries with every subsequent
> release.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Having just returned from an in-store at the
> city's Fopp Records, DiS sat down with Youth - himself
> an esteemed producer in his own right - to discuss both his
> and the band's currently hectic schedules. But first,
> the conversation starts right here...
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ---
>
>
> DiS: You've played Nottingham Rock City
> numerous times over the years. What's so special too you
> about the city and the venue?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: I think we've played here fifteen times.
> Its got a special connection for me because one of my great
> aunts lived here. She was deaf and blind and worked on the
> local newspaper. Even in her late eighties she was still
> working for them. Whenever we played here I'd go round
> to her flat and fetch her. She'd be chain smoking
> Gauloises, have the TV and radio on full blast and she would
> this thick, gloopy coffee.Which she'd drink constantly
> while tapping away on her typewriter doing local stories. So
> we'd bring her down here and the staff were always
> really good. They'd bring her in with her wheelchair and
> look after her. And she loved the band. I think we were
> always loud enough for her to hear and get the experience.
> I've still got a cigarette box of hers I carry around.
> She was a favourite aunt of mine so I've always got fond
> memories of coming here and seeing her.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: Do you feel there's quite a
> connection between the band and Nottingham audiences? I
> remember as a teenager whenever 'Pssyche' or
> 'Love Like Blood' came on during one of their club
> nights the Rock City dancefloor would fill up in
> seconds.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: Nottingham's the heartland of England
> isn't it? It's not quite the Midlands - East
> Midlands right? - but it's got a great rock heritage.
> The shows have always gone down well here and we've
> enjoyed playing them.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: Your latest album Pylon came out last
> week. Did you think you'd be sat here 37 years after the
> band started talking about the releae of your 16th long
> player?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: No I didn't. I thought the band would last
> six months to a year really, so it's amazing. But we
> were ambitious, there's no doubt about it. We always had
> our hearts and eyes set on the same targets and we had every
> intention of taking them on in a big way. Yet at the same
> time we weren't bothered about it! We were just happy to
> get away with doing it. It's especially great now
> because we finally have the experience and expertise
> we've learned to make records the way we always wanted
> to. Which is possibly why the new album's going down so
> well. We worked out a good modus operandi how to make them
> well. We might have got lucky with this one? All of them
> have really great lyrics but this one seems quite complete.
> Even though people still talk about our early albums as
> being great records - which to a degree they are - we were
> never entirely satisfied with them at the time. We're
> never very satisfied anyway but with this one I think we
> managed to get everyone fairly satisfied. And that's a
> good feeling. Plus I think it's great we still have
> something to say as a band and we're still engaged,
> present and relevant.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: Your last three records - 2011's
> Absolute Dissent, MMXII the following year and now Pylon
> rank among your finest for me. So I'd wholeheartedly
> agree that Killing Joke are as if not more relevant now than
> they've ever been. Particularly when put alongside many
> other bands who've reunited purely in the name of
> nostalgia, which is something you've never
> done.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: It's interesting because a lot of bands of
> a similar age to us - they're not up for making new
> records. Most of them haven't made a record for at least
> twenty years, and the further up that mountain you get, the
> colder the wind blows. So they end up deliberately avoiding
> it because they don't know how they got there in the
> beginning. Or things have changed so much they don't
> have the urgency or passion to do it again. Whereas luckily
> for us we've never really stopped. The band have made
> three albums in the last five years and I'm making
> records all the time with other artists. It's brought
> the whole band up to steam a bit. Absolute Dissent was more
> of a regrouping and a little self referential. MMXII was a
> bit more focused but we also experimented a lot on that.
> With this one we just decided let's go really heavy and
> that's how it came out. We also spent a lot of time
> writing this one. Two or three two-week heavily focused
> sessions in Prague, which ended up garnering thirty or forty
> really strong ideas. So eventually we worked them down to
> sixteen songs and then we finished up with the ten that made
> it onto the album.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: Of the six that didn't make Pylon, do
> you see yourselves revisiting them in the future?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: Well, originally when we were making MMXII we
> had this track called 'In Cythera' which our
> guitarist Geordie really hated. But eventually it became the
> lead single off the record and I actually think it's the
> greatest single we've ever done. With this album we had
> a similar track called 'Love Is The Law' which again
> Geordie doesn't like because there's very little
> guitars on it, and I think it's possibly the second
> greatest single we've ever made. So we decided as a
> group - reluctantly on my part - to leave it off the album
> although Geordie has said he would consider revisiting it
> with extra guitars on. So maybe we'll put it out next
> summer? We're certainly not short of material. We're
> all writing a lot. There wasn't a dull moment during the
> writing sessions. We had lots of ideas. It was just a matter
> of getting them all down.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: That sounds quite frustrating. Are there
> a lot of disagreements when it comes to deciding which
> tracks to release?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: We are a workers collective and we're all
> very strong alpha males with strong opinions. Sometimes we
> have a tendency to murder songs early on, just to give them
> a chance. It's about putting them in the ring and facing
> the seven-headed hydra, and if they work we're generally
> in unanimous decision. If it doesn't - if two of us want
> to work on it a little further it usually gets to the point
> where all of us are on board or none of us want to fight for
> it. It's difficult, it's challenging and it's
> frustrating. It's also really democratic so if three of
> us don't like something but one does and they've
> pushed at it we'll usually give it a chance. It all
> depends how hard someone is prepared to fight for that song.
> And even then, by the time the lyrics are added and a few
> other things are changed it's completely different to
> the song you first brought to the table anyway!
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: Were there any other songs on the record
> which you had to fight for?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: Yeah, and a lot of them didn't make it. Two
> of my favourite songs didn't make it,
> 'Apotheosis' and 'Panopticon'. They're
> both on the bonus disc. There was another song which was
> based around a Barry White bassline. We got quite far down
> the road with it but then it got dropped late on. But
> they're the classic sabotage techniques we know and love
> Killing Joke for really. And I do like that. If the songs
> are good enough they'll end up on a b-side or EP anyway.
> I guess it's our infantile arrogance which allows us to
> self-sabotage to that degree. And get away with it!
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: You've described the last three
> albums as being a triptych of ideas. Will the next record be
> in a similar vein or are you hoping to do something
> completely different?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: Every record we make feels like the last record
> we'll ever make and then we're here again so I
> don't know. I would imagine we'll make another album
> and I'd expect it to have a different vibe. Our records
> tend to reflect where we are emotionally as individuals and
> that's generally changing.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: Pylon is currently number eleven in the
> midweek charts which is your highest position in thirty
> years. Do you consider the charts relevant?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: As relevant as they ever were I guess. It's
> a great result for us and good affirmation that we're
> still relevant. Even though they're not that important
> every band would like to be number one when they put a
> record out. So to go top twenty is an amazing thing for us
> and a bit of a surprise really. We've always found
> ourselves tucked away in a cult minor league somewhere so
> this shows there's still a lot of support for the band
> out there.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: Tom Dalgety produced the album having
> also worked on the last record. Are you big fans of his
> work, particularly what he did with the Royal Blood
> album?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: We liked what he did on MMXII so we were happy
> to let him do a big chunk of the engineering and production
> on this record. Most of the recordings were done by the
> three of us - me, Geordie and Paul - with a little in-house
> engineer in Prague. In fact, he wasn't there a lot of
> the time so I engineered most of it. Then Tom came in and
> did some individual tracks with us. Paul didn't want
> anyone there when he was doing the drums so it was just him
> and Tom with me ringing up every couple of hours saying
> "Make sure he does this!" or "Forget
> that!" or "Cover yourself with this!" And it
> worked out fine. His drums came out fantastically well and
> we were all happy with how it sounded. Then Geordie did some
> guitar overdubs with Tom and mixed it. That was great
> because when I take the full weight and responsibility for
> that side of things it incurs a lot of resentment from the
> rest of the band. Because I'm in the band. You know, why
> should he have more power than the rest of us? Especially
> when I signed the band to my label. That was a nightmare!
> It's better to just be the bass player and a
> co-producer, so another co-producer can take some of the
> flak.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: Does your work with other artists impact
> on what you bring to Killing Joke? For example, has there
> ever been a time when you've heard something in the
> studio and immediately thought that would work on a Killing
> Joke record too?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: Whatever I do informs everything else I do to
> some extent. I tend not to compare or compromise projects
> with other projects I may be involved with. I have clear
> boundaries. They are two totally different disciplines so in
> lots of ways, no. The only time it becomes a problem is if
> the managers fuck it up and they double book me. It's
> been fairly smooth in that department mainly because the
> others are always busy as well. If it was just me the band
> were waiting around for that might cause a problem but
> it's not, so everything usually works out OK.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: What other projects are you working on at
> present?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: I've been working on the Spiritualized
> record and more recently, the new Jesus & Mary Chain one
> which is a big deal as it's their first record in
> seventeen years.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: How are they getting on?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: Well, the Reid brothers are still talking to
> each other! That's good, and the songs are phenomenal.
> It's sounding great. We're at the halfway stage now
> so it should be ready by the end of the year.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: What about the Spiritualized
> album?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: I recorded around twenty-two tracks with Jason
> (Pierce) then we took a break so he could do some summer
> festivals. And then he came back and decided he wanted to
> throw the whole thing away and start again. He does have the
> capacity to do that every now and then. He's a very
> challenging artist who has a very high criteria of what
> he's looking for. So I don't know what's going
> on there at the minute or whether I'll be working on it
> again.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: With such a vast back catalogue to choose
> from, are there any records you're not particularly fond
> of or try to avoid when putting together a live
> setlist?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: I don't really go towards Revelations or
> Night Time that much, but the rest of the band really want
> to do them, so we've agreed to do 'The Hum' and
> 'Eighties' at some point. I don't really like
> those records so I'd prefer not to but then there are
> other songs I never really liked the recorded versions of
> yet we made them sound killer live. We're in a good
> position having such a big canon to play around with.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: Your fanbase also covers a wide
> demographic, especially since the last three
> albums.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: That's right. We travelled that journey
> throughout the demise of the tribes. People are more open to
> diverse sounds now. We've opened everything up from just
> dub and trance mixes which is a reflection of how people are
> today. Acid house changed a lot of that. I remember hearing
> Phil Collins play George Clinton followed by U2 followed by
> Phil Collins and the place would be going crazy!
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: You're already scheduled to tour
> America in the early part of 2016. What does the rest of the
> year hold for the band?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: We're also planning to go to Europe,
> Australia and Asia so a large chunk of next year will be
> spent touring with possibly a few festivals in there as
> well.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: What advice would you give to new bands
> just starting out?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: Get your vision and manifesto together and if
> you're really connected with it, see what happens.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> DiS: Are there any new artists you've been
> impressed with recently?
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Youth: I really like the new Tame Impala album. The
> new Fuzz record is great too.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ---
>
>
> The album Pylon is out now on Spinefarm Records.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> http://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4149534-dis-meets-youth-from-killing-joke
>
>
>
>
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