Brief explanation… if you are one of the very
few who read Fear & Loathing in its’ early days (1989-1997) you may
remember that I developed a habit of following Faith No More tours around the
UK. I wasn’t the only one and, in fact, sometimes there’d be several dozen
people going from gig to gig in whatever desperate form of transport we could
muster. Having interviewed the band at one of their very first gigs in the UK, and
subsequently on various occasions, they’ve always been very cool, approachable
and down to earth, keeping in touch even after they originally split. In recent
years, since their reunion, they’ve been just as friendly and hospitable, and,
while their UK
tours are now much shorter, several of the old crowd have done our best to
attend the shows. This following article originally set-out to be an interview
but, in the event, never really came together as such (we were always too busy
just hanging-out and having a few beers to get as formal as an interview…) So
it’s ended up as a tale of gigs, friends, music and fun. And a bit of mud. It’s
not meant to be self-indulgent, so I hope it doesn’t come across that way. If
you’ve ever been on tour, or followed a band around on tour, even just for a
few dates, you’ll know what it’s like and hopefully this captures some of the
reasons why a few of us still enjoy doing it, even if we are older and wouldn’t
even consider the idea of sleeping in a car or on the floor of a squat anymore…
*** STOP PRESS *** (wow,
I’ve always wanted to do that !) This
article was published online on 23rd August and inevitably, within
48 hours I got an email response to a bunch of questions I sent out back in
June. I hadn’t wanted to nag them, you see, as I knew everyone was busy, but I also
didn’t want the rest of the article hang around too long. Anyway, with it being
only on the website (so far) I still had the option of re-editing and posting the
extra material. Can’t do that with a printed fanzine (unless you have a
plentiful supply of tipex…) Most of this
remains the same, but the questions and answers can now be found at the end and
of the article and, I think, are a good addition to the overall piece. Don’t
say that I never go that extra paragraph for my readers...
Faith No More are back on tour in Europe, following the release of their excellent new
album, ‘Sol Invictus’. When the dates are announced, we look into which of the UK shows we can
get to. Obviously, the two nights in London,
probably Download, and maybe Glasgow.
I check the train-fares – return tickets to Glasgow
from London are
£120 each ! Jesus, for that price, I’d want my own private carriage ! But while
I’m fuming about this, I get a message from my old friend Richard telling me
that FNM are going to be playing in Krakow,
where he currently lives with his girlfriend Iwona. They’re thinking about
going, so I decide to look up the cheapo flight deals. A return ticket to
Krakow costs only £59.00, half the cost of a train to Glasgow. Figure that one out. At that kinda
price I can’t afford not to go...
And that’s how I end up with an early start, following a late night in London, but with everything prepared for a quick departure. I had to be at Stansted by 6.30, so taxi booked for 6.00. Any other day of the week and I would have been able to take a later flight, but Sundays have much less choice. So I’ve got everything packed and ready to go, with alarm set for 5.40. All I’ve got to do is get dressed, clean my teeth and drink a coffee. Does this go according to plan ? Does it Hell. I manage to sleep right through the alarm and am only awoken by the taxi-driver knocking on the door. Shit ! Dress, clean teeth, skip coffee, grab bag and into the taxi in five minutes. At least the roads are virtually empty at this time of the morning, so I still arrive in plenty of time.
The one thing about early morning flights is that no-one’s lively so it’s usually a quite relaxed journey. It’s about two hours to Krakow, so I can relax a bit and wake up properly. Once there, Richard an Iwona have offered to meet me, so I walk out to the pick-up point. This turned out to be a little unsettling. Unbeknown to me, Krakow airport has had major renovations since the last time I was there and when I go through the exit, I get this nasty feeling that I’ve arrived at the wrong airport. It is the kinda stupid thing that I would do, after all. But, no, I’m just confused. Richard and Iwona arrive promptly, laugh at my stupidity, and drive back to their apartment. They’ve got a lovely place, right at the top of a block of apartments, with great views over the city. Strangely, I’m feeling wide awake, so after catching up, some snacks and a swift beer, we all head into the city centre. First thing I notice as we walk out of their building is a huge billboard advertising the new FNM album. I knew the band were popular in Poland, but I’m beginning to realise just how much.
This time of year, it gets really warm in Krakow, so it seems natural to stop for some refreshments once we’re in the town centre. The first bar we visit has a nice garden area, but it’s so hot we opt for the cellar, which is a lot cooler. There are some great beers in Poland and the prices are ridiculously cheap in comparison to the UK. But at the same time, you just don’t see people getting out-of-control drunk. I mean, I’m sure it happens in some places, but most people just seem to drink at a nice, relaxed pace and enjoy themselves rather than just drinking as much as possible in the shortest space of time. Much more civilised.
Time for a change so we head towards another bar. It’s really good just to be hanging out, enjoying a few beers. No pressure. After a while, it’s time to eat, so we cross the main square to a nice Italian restaurant and have some excellent pizzas, before heading back to the terrace bar overlooking the main square for some final drinks. Richard and Iwona have both got work the next day, so we can’t be too late and my lack of sleep from the previous is finally catching up with me.
And that’s how I end up with an early start, following a late night in London, but with everything prepared for a quick departure. I had to be at Stansted by 6.30, so taxi booked for 6.00. Any other day of the week and I would have been able to take a later flight, but Sundays have much less choice. So I’ve got everything packed and ready to go, with alarm set for 5.40. All I’ve got to do is get dressed, clean my teeth and drink a coffee. Does this go according to plan ? Does it Hell. I manage to sleep right through the alarm and am only awoken by the taxi-driver knocking on the door. Shit ! Dress, clean teeth, skip coffee, grab bag and into the taxi in five minutes. At least the roads are virtually empty at this time of the morning, so I still arrive in plenty of time.
The one thing about early morning flights is that no-one’s lively so it’s usually a quite relaxed journey. It’s about two hours to Krakow, so I can relax a bit and wake up properly. Once there, Richard an Iwona have offered to meet me, so I walk out to the pick-up point. This turned out to be a little unsettling. Unbeknown to me, Krakow airport has had major renovations since the last time I was there and when I go through the exit, I get this nasty feeling that I’ve arrived at the wrong airport. It is the kinda stupid thing that I would do, after all. But, no, I’m just confused. Richard and Iwona arrive promptly, laugh at my stupidity, and drive back to their apartment. They’ve got a lovely place, right at the top of a block of apartments, with great views over the city. Strangely, I’m feeling wide awake, so after catching up, some snacks and a swift beer, we all head into the city centre. First thing I notice as we walk out of their building is a huge billboard advertising the new FNM album. I knew the band were popular in Poland, but I’m beginning to realise just how much.
This time of year, it gets really warm in Krakow, so it seems natural to stop for some refreshments once we’re in the town centre. The first bar we visit has a nice garden area, but it’s so hot we opt for the cellar, which is a lot cooler. There are some great beers in Poland and the prices are ridiculously cheap in comparison to the UK. But at the same time, you just don’t see people getting out-of-control drunk. I mean, I’m sure it happens in some places, but most people just seem to drink at a nice, relaxed pace and enjoy themselves rather than just drinking as much as possible in the shortest space of time. Much more civilised.
Time for a change so we head towards another bar. It’s really good just to be hanging out, enjoying a few beers. No pressure. After a while, it’s time to eat, so we cross the main square to a nice Italian restaurant and have some excellent pizzas, before heading back to the terrace bar overlooking the main square for some final drinks. Richard and Iwona have both got work the next day, so we can’t be too late and my lack of sleep from the previous is finally catching up with me.
I wake in the morning with the strange
sensation that I can’t move my legs. My god, what was I drinking ? Turns out
Richard’s cat, Shady, had decided to sneak up on my snoozing mass and fallen
asleep over my knees. She looks so comfortable that I decide not to wake her
and stay in bed for another half hour (…even though I had intended to go
jogging… honest…)
Richard has wisely taken a day-off at short notice and, as the concert isn’t until the evening, we catch a bus into the Kazimierz area, the old Jewish Quarter of the city. We have some breakfast at one of the bars before searching out one of the semi-mythical spots in Krakow. Richard has lived in the city for ten years and never even knew about this place ! The city has very few record shops, but one, High Fidelity has a bizarre reputation, if some of the comments on the internet are to be believed. First of all, it’s not some much a shop as a front-room, and there’s very little to identify it from outside unless you already have an idea where it is. Secondly, the owner is known to be a little particular about the treatment of his stock. If someone enters the shop and interferes with the records in what he considers an unacceptable manner, they’re likely to be told to leave in no uncertain terms ! I had located the shop on a previous visit, but it also has unpredictable opening hours so I hadn’t been able to investigate. This time, though, we’re in luck. Once inside, the owner asks us about what we’re looking for and directs us to the appropriate selections, asking us to be careful with the records and not to disturb the alphabetical order. This being said, he does have an interesting selection of records and they are in rather good condition, so he does know what he’s doing. As I flick through the records, I can see that he’s paying attention to what I’m doing, but that’s okay. I found several nice items, reasonably priced, so I was happy. At the end of the visit, we shook hands and he asked us to come back. Obviously, we had passed the test !
One more stop, this time at the Alchemia bar, where we bump into a couple of Richards’ friends, Robin and Caroline. Nice excuse for another beer, and very good it is, too, before finally heading back to meet Iwona.
Faith No More are playing at the Tauron Arena which can actually be seen from their apartment, but it still doesn’t prepare me for how large the place actually is.
As I’ve said, I knew they are popular in Poland, and with this being their only Polish date on the current tour, it was going to be busy, but this place is huge, not much smaller than the O2 Arena in London. The place isn’t packed, but probably about 75% full, so that’s still a lot of people ! We arrive early as we were unable to find out if there would be any support bands and didn’t really know when FNM would be onstage, but at least that meant we were able to sort out the tickets fairly easily. Roddy had promised to put us on the guestlist, but being my usual paranoid self, I’ve already thought of numerous things that could go wrong. I’d even asked Richard to teach me the Polish for ‘Don’t you know who I am ?’ just in case… But, of course, there’s no problems. Roddy’s left us a set of passes that allow us to go pretty much anywhere in the arena, so obviously we pick the VIP area right in front of the stage (with occasional excursions back to the bar…)
As it turns out, there are actually two support bands. The first is a Polish Hard Rock group called Speculum who play a fairly trad-style but with occasional hints of more contemporary trends. They’re not bad, but probably better suited to smaller venues. The second band, though, have a much more inclusive sound. Dubioza Kolektiv are from Bosnia and manage to mix Rock, HipHop, Reggae and Ska as well as traditional Bosnian folk music to create a really lively, enjoyable set. They also put on a really entertaining show, with plenty to watch, and it’s hard not to get on their side. Additionally, plenty of their lyrics are in English, which helps them translate more easily to a wider audience. They’re actually due to come to the UK at the end of this year, and I could imagine them finding themselves a whole new bunch of fans.
During their set, Iwona spots Billy watching the band from the audience. I go over to say ‘Hi’ and, unsurprisingly, it was he who invited Dubioza Kolectiv to play at this show. Good call !
Richard has wisely taken a day-off at short notice and, as the concert isn’t until the evening, we catch a bus into the Kazimierz area, the old Jewish Quarter of the city. We have some breakfast at one of the bars before searching out one of the semi-mythical spots in Krakow. Richard has lived in the city for ten years and never even knew about this place ! The city has very few record shops, but one, High Fidelity has a bizarre reputation, if some of the comments on the internet are to be believed. First of all, it’s not some much a shop as a front-room, and there’s very little to identify it from outside unless you already have an idea where it is. Secondly, the owner is known to be a little particular about the treatment of his stock. If someone enters the shop and interferes with the records in what he considers an unacceptable manner, they’re likely to be told to leave in no uncertain terms ! I had located the shop on a previous visit, but it also has unpredictable opening hours so I hadn’t been able to investigate. This time, though, we’re in luck. Once inside, the owner asks us about what we’re looking for and directs us to the appropriate selections, asking us to be careful with the records and not to disturb the alphabetical order. This being said, he does have an interesting selection of records and they are in rather good condition, so he does know what he’s doing. As I flick through the records, I can see that he’s paying attention to what I’m doing, but that’s okay. I found several nice items, reasonably priced, so I was happy. At the end of the visit, we shook hands and he asked us to come back. Obviously, we had passed the test !
One more stop, this time at the Alchemia bar, where we bump into a couple of Richards’ friends, Robin and Caroline. Nice excuse for another beer, and very good it is, too, before finally heading back to meet Iwona.
Faith No More are playing at the Tauron Arena which can actually be seen from their apartment, but it still doesn’t prepare me for how large the place actually is.
As I’ve said, I knew they are popular in Poland, and with this being their only Polish date on the current tour, it was going to be busy, but this place is huge, not much smaller than the O2 Arena in London. The place isn’t packed, but probably about 75% full, so that’s still a lot of people ! We arrive early as we were unable to find out if there would be any support bands and didn’t really know when FNM would be onstage, but at least that meant we were able to sort out the tickets fairly easily. Roddy had promised to put us on the guestlist, but being my usual paranoid self, I’ve already thought of numerous things that could go wrong. I’d even asked Richard to teach me the Polish for ‘Don’t you know who I am ?’ just in case… But, of course, there’s no problems. Roddy’s left us a set of passes that allow us to go pretty much anywhere in the arena, so obviously we pick the VIP area right in front of the stage (with occasional excursions back to the bar…)
As it turns out, there are actually two support bands. The first is a Polish Hard Rock group called Speculum who play a fairly trad-style but with occasional hints of more contemporary trends. They’re not bad, but probably better suited to smaller venues. The second band, though, have a much more inclusive sound. Dubioza Kolektiv are from Bosnia and manage to mix Rock, HipHop, Reggae and Ska as well as traditional Bosnian folk music to create a really lively, enjoyable set. They also put on a really entertaining show, with plenty to watch, and it’s hard not to get on their side. Additionally, plenty of their lyrics are in English, which helps them translate more easily to a wider audience. They’re actually due to come to the UK at the end of this year, and I could imagine them finding themselves a whole new bunch of fans.
During their set, Iwona spots Billy watching the band from the audience. I go over to say ‘Hi’ and, unsurprisingly, it was he who invited Dubioza Kolectiv to play at this show. Good call !
Finally, it’s time for FNM themselves. After
a long break of Henry Mancini tuneage (yay !) while the stage is set-up, the
lights reveal Roddy alone at the keyboards and the sinister, brooding ‘Motherfucker’
opens the show. The rest of the band gradually appear onstage and the songs
builds to its’ crescendo, before they launch into the twin assault of ‘Be Aggressive’ and ‘Caffeine’.
They’ve won the audience already, so it’s time for a quick breather
(‘Evidence’) before they get ‘Epic’ out of the way, followed by another new
song, ‘Black Friday’. As it continues, the set is a great mix of songs from
‘Angel Dust’ onwards (only ‘Epic’ from ‘The Real Thing’) so this really suits
me. Half a dozen songs from the new
album and although a lot of people seem unfamiliar with them as yet,
they still go down well. ‘Midlife Crisis’ includes another mid-song insert,
this time a sorta funky soul song which Iwona recognises as ‘Strawberry Letter
23’ by the Brothers Johnson (apparently featured on the Pulp Fiction soundtrack…)
It’s another great reminder of the
bands’ versatility and Mike Pattons’ incredible vocal range. In fact, it’s
around this point that Richard tells me that he’s really impressed. He had been
a FNM fan from very early on, but had kinda lost interest after ‘The Real
Thing’ went huge. Having not been familiar with the later albums, he’s now
beginning to review the situation and realising that he’s got some listening to
catch up on.
‘Cuckoo For Caca’ sounds particularly harsh tonight, while ‘Easy’ follows as a timely respite. ‘Separation Anxiety’ and ‘Matador’ continue the impressive new material, and the set ends with ‘Ashes To Ashes’ (now rightly considered one of their finest singles) and ‘Superhero’, perhaps the most instantly-enjoyable track from the new album. Unsurprisingly, the calls for an encore ring out even before the band have all left the stage, and they’re soon back for more. ‘Sol Invictus’ introduces a tense, deceptively downbeat air, followed by the lighter tones of ‘This Guy’s In Love’, before the finale is completed with the ever-playful ‘We Care A Lot’. And then, after 90 minutes of up, down and sideways twists, it’s all over.
‘Cuckoo For Caca’ sounds particularly harsh tonight, while ‘Easy’ follows as a timely respite. ‘Separation Anxiety’ and ‘Matador’ continue the impressive new material, and the set ends with ‘Ashes To Ashes’ (now rightly considered one of their finest singles) and ‘Superhero’, perhaps the most instantly-enjoyable track from the new album. Unsurprisingly, the calls for an encore ring out even before the band have all left the stage, and they’re soon back for more. ‘Sol Invictus’ introduces a tense, deceptively downbeat air, followed by the lighter tones of ‘This Guy’s In Love’, before the finale is completed with the ever-playful ‘We Care A Lot’. And then, after 90 minutes of up, down and sideways twists, it’s all over.
The arena empties fairly quickly but the
security are pretty helpful and far-from the sorta jobsworths you’d find at similar
venues in London.
The only problem is that no-one seems to know where we go for the aftershow.
Eventually, we’re taken to the side of the stage and asked to wait. No-one’s
really sure what’s going on, but it is sorta interesting to watch the speed in
which the stage is dismantled.
Eventually, one of the staff comes over and takes us to a rather empty
catering room backstage. There’s about a dozen people all just sitting around
and no-one’s saying anything. This doesn’t look like much of a party and I’m
beginning to think we’ll be heading home soon, when someone comes into the room
and calls out my name. She explains that we can go with her to the bands’ own
room and a few seconds later, we’re all meeting up. First time I’ve seen
everyone since the new album was released, so there’s a lot to talk about, but
as usual, it soon descends into jokes and gossip. Richard and Mike swap some
CDs (they’ve both released Sleaford Mods records, y’see) and I get to question
Roddy about his Sasquatch opera project. Mike Bordin wants an update on John
Cooper Clarke and Billy plays the genial host as always (he really ought to run
a bar, it would be be soooo popular…)
Eventually, it’s time for departure, so we say our farewells and head back to the carpark, only to find it locked up. Oops ! We find the security office, and they radio someone to let us pick up the car, no problems at all. Could you imagine the sort of hassle that would have entailed back in London?
Eventually, it’s time for departure, so we say our farewells and head back to the carpark, only to find it locked up. Oops ! We find the security office, and they radio someone to let us pick up the car, no problems at all. Could you imagine the sort of hassle that would have entailed back in London?
Next morning, my final day in Krakow, but there’s time for one final trip into the city
centre and another wander around. We get some lunch at a great vegetarian
restaurant and a few obligatory beers, before heading back to the apartment as
Richard has to go to work in the evening. My flight home isn’t until 9.30, so
Iwona is able to give me a lift back to the airport and everything seems to be
going smoothly.At the moment, I’ve got my whole journey planned out. Flight to
Stansted, over an hour to get through Customs and then catch a scheduled bus
back to Chelmsford, leaving me with 20 minutes to catch the last train back to
Witham. But the inevitable happens and the flight is delayed by 45 minutes. Okay,
I think, still no problem. I’ve got one of them new-fangled biometric passports
and that’s supposed to speed up the whole system. Things actually improve and
the flight makes up about 15 minutes on the way back, so now I’m not even
slightly worried. Until we reach Stansted. I’m directed towards the new
Passport checks. The queue is huge and extremely slow-moving. Just to make
things even more irritating, after about 30 minutes, I get to a point where I
can see the checking-points for the old-style passports and people who were
behind me when I got off the plane are now clearing the gates while I’m still only
halfway down this queue. Welcome back to the UK. It sometimes seems that they
make airports as awkward as possible on return, just to remind you that you’re
back on British soil. Finally I get through the gate and I’ve got less than ten
minutes to get on the bus. I make it, but only just. Relax, I’ll get home. But
now I’ve got to deal with the trains and it’s almost beyond doubt what will
happen. I arrive at Chelmsford
and the last train is running late ! I’ve only got a seven-minute journey from
here to Witham, but after waiting for the train, it extends to nearly 40minutes
! Utter bastards ! Eventually, I get home, but it’s after 2.00 and I’m due in
at work for 9.30. Oh well, at least it was for a good cause…
The Heed, which must be respected at all times...
Saturday morning, reasonably early and we
pick up the Chevy from the car-hire. Yeah, style, speed and luxury or not.) Load
up the boot and away we go. Kerry and Karen are understandably terrified as
they’ve never been in a car with me driving before (I did nothing to allay
their preconceptions…) but it all goes pretty well until I inadvertently
turn-off on the A1 instead of the M1 (well, motorways really do all look the
same !) Kerry has his first raging fury of the day, but his expert map-reading
also comes in handy and we’re soon back on course. Only one pit-stop, at a
rather forgettable service station, and then onwards until we encounter the
traditional hold-up. Still not really sure what caused it, but suddenly we’re
in a queue of traffic moving at a snails’ pace with flashing lights telling us
the maximum speed is 50 mph (if only.) We waste over an hour like this and
then, just as suddenly, everything starts moving and we’re on our way again. No
time now to book in at the Travelodge first, as planned, but that’s not a major
problem. We reach our junction, and see a sign for Download, but then we come
to the first roundabout, there’s nothing. Where do we go? Time for Kerry’s
second raging fury, but Karen is quick to the rescue as she produces a SatNav
from her Utility Belt and once again, we’re heading in the right direction.
We get to Castle Donington, but with grey skies above us and drizzling rain as the welcome, we know it’s not looking good. Heading into the carpark, we’re stopped by the attendants and tell them we’re looking for the guest carpark. ‘Have you got your passes’, they ask. No, not yet, of course, we have to park the car first and go to the Box Office to collect them. ‘Well, in that case, you’ll have to pay £25 to park the car in the normal carpark and come back later when you get the passes. Then we’ll let you move your car and you can get a refund…’ Money-grabbing jobsworth bastards ! Cue much gritting of teeth, but we’ve got a schedule to keep and this has to be done. We park-up and head towards the box office, where we meet our old friend and cohort from the old FNM tours, Lawrence, and his wife Eve. They’d arrived earlier, but were already having problems of their own. The Box Office was telling them their names weren’t on the list, even though we’d had confirmation from Roddy. So now we’re a bit worried that our names might be missing as well, but luckily this doesn’t add to the hassles. So what to do ? I volunteer to take a trek through the festival grounds and see if I can find anyone to sort things out. Even the guest area is ankle deep in mud and getting through the maze of tents and security checks takes ages, but eventually, I find them. Everyone is looking well and cheerful, and Roddy is visibly-surprised that the names weren’t on the list. Time for Tim (the Tour manager) to kick some butt ! He obtains a copy of the guest list, where Lawrence and Eve’s names are clearly included. He asks the Production staff why some of the names on that list are not on the Box Office list ? They fluff. Grovelling apologies later, they’re in touch with the Box Office and the names are back on the list. Most peculiar. And now, as it’s almost impossible to get any phone reception, I’ve got to traipse back through the swamplands to let the others know what’s happening. But it doesn’t stop there – the Box Office has now found the list with all the names on it, but are quibbling over which Pasess they’re going to give out. Another 15 minute wait, and it’s finally resolved but, ye Gods, I’ve never known so much trouble getting in to a festival. Probably one of the main reasons why I try to avoid the damn things.
We get to Castle Donington, but with grey skies above us and drizzling rain as the welcome, we know it’s not looking good. Heading into the carpark, we’re stopped by the attendants and tell them we’re looking for the guest carpark. ‘Have you got your passes’, they ask. No, not yet, of course, we have to park the car first and go to the Box Office to collect them. ‘Well, in that case, you’ll have to pay £25 to park the car in the normal carpark and come back later when you get the passes. Then we’ll let you move your car and you can get a refund…’ Money-grabbing jobsworth bastards ! Cue much gritting of teeth, but we’ve got a schedule to keep and this has to be done. We park-up and head towards the box office, where we meet our old friend and cohort from the old FNM tours, Lawrence, and his wife Eve. They’d arrived earlier, but were already having problems of their own. The Box Office was telling them their names weren’t on the list, even though we’d had confirmation from Roddy. So now we’re a bit worried that our names might be missing as well, but luckily this doesn’t add to the hassles. So what to do ? I volunteer to take a trek through the festival grounds and see if I can find anyone to sort things out. Even the guest area is ankle deep in mud and getting through the maze of tents and security checks takes ages, but eventually, I find them. Everyone is looking well and cheerful, and Roddy is visibly-surprised that the names weren’t on the list. Time for Tim (the Tour manager) to kick some butt ! He obtains a copy of the guest list, where Lawrence and Eve’s names are clearly included. He asks the Production staff why some of the names on that list are not on the Box Office list ? They fluff. Grovelling apologies later, they’re in touch with the Box Office and the names are back on the list. Most peculiar. And now, as it’s almost impossible to get any phone reception, I’ve got to traipse back through the swamplands to let the others know what’s happening. But it doesn’t stop there – the Box Office has now found the list with all the names on it, but are quibbling over which Pasess they’re going to give out. Another 15 minute wait, and it’s finally resolved but, ye Gods, I’ve never known so much trouble getting in to a festival. Probably one of the main reasons why I try to avoid the damn things.
What time do the band start ?
Anyway, yet another hike through the mud but
we get to the backstage area.We’ve been told we can watch from the side of the
stage, so we wander around looking for a suitable spot that’s out of the way
but has a decent view, but then there’s more problems. One person tells us
where we can watch from, another comes along and tells us to go somewhere else,
and then another tells us we’ve got passes for the wrong stage altogether !
It’s getting painful, when suddenly, we bump into Bill’s wife, Margaret. At
last, a friendly face, and she’s also more than happy to sort things out for
us. As it transpires, there’s actually a viewing platform, but it had been
hidden by all the extra waterproofing around the mixing desk. As such, it’s not
the greatest view, but at least now we can watch the gig without further trouble.
Wouldn’t it have been good if the people that were being paid to run the stage
knew these things ?
The set is introduced with the ‘Midnight Cowboy’ ntro, before Roddy begins the slow-burning ‘Motherfucker’ once again. From there, it’s a shorter but fairly similar set to Krakow, with only the unpleasant surroundings of Download making a major difference. But FNM play a really tight set, with ‘Be Aggressive’ and ‘Caffeine’ quickly setting the pace. ‘Midlife Crisis’ goes into a jazz-funk break in the middle section again, but this time, instead of the Brothers Johnson track, they play ‘Midlife Crisis’ in the new style, which works surprisingly well before blasting back into the final piece of the song. Mike seems intent on having fun, firstly messing around with one of the stage security and borrowing his headphones, and then wondering down the offstage ramp to sing up-close and personal with the audience. The set closes with ‘Ashes To Ashes’ and ‘Superhero’, maybe not their greatest hits, but played with such power they make perfect sense. Plenty of applause brings them back for an encore, where ‘Strawberry Letter 23’ makesits’ own appearance, followed by ‘Sol Invictus’ and then a final boisterous romp through ‘We Care A Lot’. And due to the scheduling, that really is the end, certainly leaving the audience wanting more and, as more than a few people commented, leaving headliners Muse with one Hell of an act to follow. (We didn’t hang around to see them, but by all accounts, FNM stole the show…)
The set is introduced with the ‘Midnight Cowboy’ ntro, before Roddy begins the slow-burning ‘Motherfucker’ once again. From there, it’s a shorter but fairly similar set to Krakow, with only the unpleasant surroundings of Download making a major difference. But FNM play a really tight set, with ‘Be Aggressive’ and ‘Caffeine’ quickly setting the pace. ‘Midlife Crisis’ goes into a jazz-funk break in the middle section again, but this time, instead of the Brothers Johnson track, they play ‘Midlife Crisis’ in the new style, which works surprisingly well before blasting back into the final piece of the song. Mike seems intent on having fun, firstly messing around with one of the stage security and borrowing his headphones, and then wondering down the offstage ramp to sing up-close and personal with the audience. The set closes with ‘Ashes To Ashes’ and ‘Superhero’, maybe not their greatest hits, but played with such power they make perfect sense. Plenty of applause brings them back for an encore, where ‘Strawberry Letter 23’ makesits’ own appearance, followed by ‘Sol Invictus’ and then a final boisterous romp through ‘We Care A Lot’. And due to the scheduling, that really is the end, certainly leaving the audience wanting more and, as more than a few people commented, leaving headliners Muse with one Hell of an act to follow. (We didn’t hang around to see them, but by all accounts, FNM stole the show…)
Wondering back around the stage, we meet
Margaret again and she takes us to the bands’ own area. Shortly, Bill and Roddy
appear (Bill provides the beers again) and we all sit around on the obligatory
festival plastic garden chairs (perfect for this kinda weather) and catch up. I
meet Carol, who runs the FNM Blog, for the first time, and also have a chat
with (both) Mikes. Jon is a bit quiet and elusive, but that’s just the way he
is. Still the new boy, even after 18 years.
Bill had told us that we had to finish all the beers before we could leave, but we failed. Karen was driving back to the hotel and consequently not drinking. If only she had been able to join in, I’m sure she would’ve cleaned-up those last dozen bottles ! But it’s time to go, and it’s been a good end to the day. Especially nice to see Lawrence… I was trying to figure it out, must’ve been about twenty years since we last saw him, but we all just started chatting again as if we’d seen each other a few days ago.
We manage to get to the car-park, actually manage to get our money refunded, and then get back on the road before the mass exodus. We’ve only got a short drive to Burton, where we’re staying for the night, so it all works out in the end.
Bill had told us that we had to finish all the beers before we could leave, but we failed. Karen was driving back to the hotel and consequently not drinking. If only she had been able to join in, I’m sure she would’ve cleaned-up those last dozen bottles ! But it’s time to go, and it’s been a good end to the day. Especially nice to see Lawrence… I was trying to figure it out, must’ve been about twenty years since we last saw him, but we all just started chatting again as if we’d seen each other a few days ago.
We manage to get to the car-park, actually manage to get our money refunded, and then get back on the road before the mass exodus. We’ve only got a short drive to Burton, where we’re staying for the night, so it all works out in the end.
A fairly early start on Sunday morning and
this time Karen is in the driving seat, heading up to Glasgow. It goes pretty smoothly, this time
with lovely weather to accompany us. If only that had been the case at Download
while we were out in the open… No delays, so we’re able to book in at the
Travelodge in plenty of time and then go out for something to eat. There seems
to be a lot of choice in the area, but veggie options quickly narrow down the
scope and we end up in a Burger King. Their bean burgers have always been a
reliable stand-by.
None of us have ever been to the Academy before, but we’re reliably informed it’s only a short walk away. We still almost get lost, but then spot the venue just around the next corner. It’s a nice old thirties style venue, and there’s a large, lively crowd hanging around outside. We wait for some other FNM tour veterans to arrive, Mole and Tracey, and then pick up our passes. Already, there’s a definite feeling that this gig is going to be a great one.
As it turns out, we’ve got some great seats right in the front row of the balcony. We get there early as we’re keen to see the support band, The Pop Group. Not an obvious choice, many would consider, but as old favourites of several FNM members, they’d been invited to play at two of the UK dates. I have to admit, I’d never been a huge fan of the band. I loved their rhetoric, but musically, it never really came together for me. Maybe part of the problem had been the typical, tinny production of that era, which, when combined with listening to them on the Peel show on a dodgy little transistor, was never going to translate the full effect. But here, with a powerful PA behind them, it all started to make sense. Suddenly, the bass sound was massive and the erratic rhythms came into a life of their own, providing the perfect backdrop for Mark Stewarts visceral observations of modern culture. There had been some concern about how they would be received by an audience possibly expecting something less confrontational, but for the most part, they get a great response. One idiot threw a glass at the stage, but Mark Stewart just stared him down and there were no more problems. Older songs like ‘We Are All Prostitutes’ and ‘She is Beyond Good And Evil’ sound so much more powerful than I’d ever heard them before, while tracks from their recent album are a bold continuation of their original work. I had been curious to see this band, and by the end of the set I was highly impressed. I must get a copy of that new album soon.
None of us have ever been to the Academy before, but we’re reliably informed it’s only a short walk away. We still almost get lost, but then spot the venue just around the next corner. It’s a nice old thirties style venue, and there’s a large, lively crowd hanging around outside. We wait for some other FNM tour veterans to arrive, Mole and Tracey, and then pick up our passes. Already, there’s a definite feeling that this gig is going to be a great one.
As it turns out, we’ve got some great seats right in the front row of the balcony. We get there early as we’re keen to see the support band, The Pop Group. Not an obvious choice, many would consider, but as old favourites of several FNM members, they’d been invited to play at two of the UK dates. I have to admit, I’d never been a huge fan of the band. I loved their rhetoric, but musically, it never really came together for me. Maybe part of the problem had been the typical, tinny production of that era, which, when combined with listening to them on the Peel show on a dodgy little transistor, was never going to translate the full effect. But here, with a powerful PA behind them, it all started to make sense. Suddenly, the bass sound was massive and the erratic rhythms came into a life of their own, providing the perfect backdrop for Mark Stewarts visceral observations of modern culture. There had been some concern about how they would be received by an audience possibly expecting something less confrontational, but for the most part, they get a great response. One idiot threw a glass at the stage, but Mark Stewart just stared him down and there were no more problems. Older songs like ‘We Are All Prostitutes’ and ‘She is Beyond Good And Evil’ sound so much more powerful than I’d ever heard them before, while tracks from their recent album are a bold continuation of their original work. I had been curious to see this band, and by the end of the set I was highly impressed. I must get a copy of that new album soon.
The Pop Group... I was very impressed !
Glasgow
has a bit of a reputation when it comes to their audiences, but in my
experience, it’s always been one of the best places to see a band. The crowds
are lively, boisterous and often drunk, but the atmosphere is always great and
enthusiastic. Things may get pretty rowdy, but I’ve never seen any trouble. Of
course, if the band wasn’t up to much, it might be a totally different
situation, but that’s not something I can comment on.
From the very beginning of the set, there’s a real connection between the band and the audience. The only complaint was that the sound was perhaps too loud, causing some problems onstage, but out front, it just added to the occasion. In fact, the version of ‘Epic’ was probably the most brutal rendition I’ve ever heard ! As they’ve been doing throughout the tour, the basic set is pretty much the same, but several songs are added and others omitted, no doubt to keep themselves on their toes as much as the audience. ‘Land of Sunshine’ makes an early appearance, straight after ‘Motherfucker’ and, after the tension of the opening track, results in the crowd bouncing along with the infectious melody. ‘Midlife Crisis’ actually seems to be eclipsing ‘Epic’ as the audience-favourite on this tour, while ‘Ugly In The Morning’ is another sheer blast of power. There’s a lot of dialogue with the audience, with Mike making some typical wind-up remarks, but the audience taking it in the right spirit. I don’t think he ever got his deep-fried Mars bar, though… No change to the inevitable encore tonight, but after the relatively slow versions of ‘Strawberry’ and ‘Sol Invictus’, the crowd go berserk for the final vibrancy of ‘We Care A Lot’. If the level of applause was anything to go by, FNM could have continued playing for the rest of the night, but curfews had to be obeyed.
From the very beginning of the set, there’s a real connection between the band and the audience. The only complaint was that the sound was perhaps too loud, causing some problems onstage, but out front, it just added to the occasion. In fact, the version of ‘Epic’ was probably the most brutal rendition I’ve ever heard ! As they’ve been doing throughout the tour, the basic set is pretty much the same, but several songs are added and others omitted, no doubt to keep themselves on their toes as much as the audience. ‘Land of Sunshine’ makes an early appearance, straight after ‘Motherfucker’ and, after the tension of the opening track, results in the crowd bouncing along with the infectious melody. ‘Midlife Crisis’ actually seems to be eclipsing ‘Epic’ as the audience-favourite on this tour, while ‘Ugly In The Morning’ is another sheer blast of power. There’s a lot of dialogue with the audience, with Mike making some typical wind-up remarks, but the audience taking it in the right spirit. I don’t think he ever got his deep-fried Mars bar, though… No change to the inevitable encore tonight, but after the relatively slow versions of ‘Strawberry’ and ‘Sol Invictus’, the crowd go berserk for the final vibrancy of ‘We Care A Lot’. If the level of applause was anything to go by, FNM could have continued playing for the rest of the night, but curfews had to be obeyed.
Afterwards, there’s some confusion about
what’s happening with the aftershow, but in a total contrast to the lack of
help at Download, the staff in Glasgow
are really friendly and do their best to sort things out for everyone. After a
bit of confusion, they make the upstairs bar available and we all head up
there, soon to be joined by Roddy and Bill (who, of course, has brought the
beers…) The bouncer who’s been keeping an eye on proceedings produces a
bottle-opener and helps everyone with their bottles. He’s a nice, cheerful
bloke and treating everyone decently, even if he is doing his job at the same
time. Anyhow, lots of chatting, some gossip about Killing Joke (we all love
them so I won’t repeat the stories) and then, suddenly the beers have run out !
Bill is just about to go and fetch some more, but then decides on an easier
plan of action. Instead of bringing the beers back up to the bar, he might just
as well take us to the beers. He leads us all back down to the dressing room,
which also gives us a chance to catch up with everyone else. It’s not a
particularly large room (which explains why the aftershow wasn’t there in the
first place) but it’s not too crowded and just right for everyone to sit
around, have a quiet drink and a chat. After the loud and lively show, I guess
this was the chillout !
It’s around 1.00 by the time everyone leaves, and we take the short stroll back to the Travelodge. We know the way, now. It may have been a long drive to get to Glasgow, but it had definitely been worth the effort.
It’s around 1.00 by the time everyone leaves, and we take the short stroll back to the Travelodge. We know the way, now. It may have been a long drive to get to Glasgow, but it had definitely been worth the effort.
Next day, another reasonably early start and
I take the first drive. It’s going to be a long journey, but there are few
delays and the weather is nice, so it goes pretty well. We stopped at one point
for some expresso (not very nice, as it turned out) and then a while later,
stop at another service station for lunch. Fortunately, this one has a Harry
Ramsdens’ restaurant so we get some
great veggie pie and chips, a true Northern delicacy. This is also where Karen
takes over for the rest of the drive as we’re now more than halfway back to
Witham. She really gotinto the zone ! I think it took us about seven hours in
total but it didn’t seem too bad, although Kerry & Karen also had another
drive back down to Herne
Bay once they’d picked up
their car from my house and indulged in further coffee. But at least we had
another 48 hours to recuperate before the last two FNM gigs, and both of these
were in London.
Fast
forward to Wednesday afternoon, and everyone meets up at Steve and Anna’s house
in Tottenham. After a bit of hanging around we head down to Camden, where we’ve planned to meet with
others at the Elephants Head. Mole and Tracey, Starkey and Niki, Gayle, Gaye,
and Nykki… yep, the rabble is in town. And just to stress the point, we’re all
wearing our original ‘Girls are Nice but they’re not The Real Thing’ t-shirts.
Just to explain, around 1990, a few of us were getting pissed off with people
turning up at FNM gigs pretending to have been fans for years (instead of just
since ‘Epic’ was a hit.) There was one particular t-shirt with the logo ‘I had
FAITH all along’ which only seemed to be worn by those kinda poseurs, which
proved particularly irritating. So Kerry took it upon himself to design a
t-shirt just for a small bunch of us who really had been following all those
early tours. With a suitably graphic Tom of Finland cartoon and the slogan
‘Faith No More Suck’ across the back (well, it was the same time that ‘Be
Aggressive’ had been released) they were a big hit with the band members
(except Jim…) Mike Patton even wore his
t-shirt in several photo shoots. So they became semi-legendary, at least among
the more avid FNM fans. Certainly, one of Kerry’s greatest creative moments !
Anyhow, time for a few drinks and then
head-up to the Roundhouse. No problems picking up the passes, but
unfortunately, The Pop Group have gone onstage earlier than we expected, so we
miss a few songs. But it’s still very good, even though the audience isn’t as
responsive as it had been in Glasgow.
But I’m sure that more than a few FNM fans will be going out and investigating
The Pop Group further after these shows.
As it turns out, there’s a nice guest area with its’ own bar, just above the side of the stage. Bit of a result, as the venue is packed and we’re going to get a great view up here.
There’s an added surprise for tonights’ show. The Gimp, as featured in some of the recent press-photos arrives on stage as a silent introduction to the band themselves. It’s an almost sinister, unsettling moment, and a perfect accompaniment to the brooding tension of ‘Motherfucker’. Of course, rumours to the true identity abounded – had Jim Martin finally decided to get involved with the bands’ reunion ? Was it George Osborne ? Or Cliff Richard ? The truth may never be known…
The set is fairly regular tonight, with only ‘Digging The Grave’ making an unexpected appearance, although particular mention should go to the excellent version of ‘Matador’ that really stretched the bands’ performance to the highest levels, while ‘Midlife Crisis’ featured the Boz Scagg’s ‘Lowdown’ break in the middle. ‘Sol Invictus’ commenced the encore, but this time it’s followed by a rollicking ‘Everything’s Ruined’ before the ‘We Care A lot’ finale.
The aftershow is in one of the small bars downstairs and, consequently, it’s pretty chaotic. I do get to see Bill, Roddy and Jon briefly, but there’s so many people crammed into such a small area that it’s not very comfortable. We hang around for a while and then head back to Steve and Anna’s house.
As it turns out, there’s a nice guest area with its’ own bar, just above the side of the stage. Bit of a result, as the venue is packed and we’re going to get a great view up here.
There’s an added surprise for tonights’ show. The Gimp, as featured in some of the recent press-photos arrives on stage as a silent introduction to the band themselves. It’s an almost sinister, unsettling moment, and a perfect accompaniment to the brooding tension of ‘Motherfucker’. Of course, rumours to the true identity abounded – had Jim Martin finally decided to get involved with the bands’ reunion ? Was it George Osborne ? Or Cliff Richard ? The truth may never be known…
The set is fairly regular tonight, with only ‘Digging The Grave’ making an unexpected appearance, although particular mention should go to the excellent version of ‘Matador’ that really stretched the bands’ performance to the highest levels, while ‘Midlife Crisis’ featured the Boz Scagg’s ‘Lowdown’ break in the middle. ‘Sol Invictus’ commenced the encore, but this time it’s followed by a rollicking ‘Everything’s Ruined’ before the ‘We Care A lot’ finale.
The aftershow is in one of the small bars downstairs and, consequently, it’s pretty chaotic. I do get to see Bill, Roddy and Jon briefly, but there’s so many people crammed into such a small area that it’s not very comfortable. We hang around for a while and then head back to Steve and Anna’s house.
No real plans for most of the next day,
although I had hoped to set-up an interview with Roddy (it doesn’t happen) so
in the end, we just hang around in Tottenham until late afternoon and then head
back into Camden
for another meet-up at the Elephants Head. I’ve always liked this pub, although
it can get very crowded at times. This isn’t one of those occasions, so it’s
nice to just enjoy a couple of drinks without any rushing. Most of the same
characters are back again for the second night, so it’s almost like a party. We
eventually walk up to the Roundhouse and there’s a couple of problems with the
guestlist, but the box office staff remember us from the previous nice and are
really helpful, sorting everything out. Again, it really makes a difference to
deal with decent people. The people who run Download should be taking notes…
We’ve missed tonights’ support band, Rolo Tomassi, but I’m sure I’ll get another chance some time. The guest area is busier this evening, but we still manage to get a good view. The lights go down, Roddy begins the intro to ‘Motherfucker’ and as the rest of the band arrive on stage, Mike Patton appears with The Gimp on a dog leash. It’s either hilarious or creepy, depending on your sense of humour. Variously, Mike and Roddy order him around the stage, to take various positions as commanded. It was hot enough in the venue for everyone else… onstage in all that leather, it must have been stifling !
The set starts out the same, but then veers off after the first half-dozen songs, with ‘Land of Sunshine’ making another welcome appearance, soon followed by ‘Everything’s Ruined’, a highly unexpected sprint through ‘Surprise You’re Dead’, and a majestic version of ‘King For A Day’ (I’d started worrying that they weren’t going to play it at all on these dates…) No ‘Matador’, sadly, but ‘Ashes To Ashes’ and ‘Superhero’ are the perfect end to the set once again. After a short break, they’re back for the encore and this time we get the excellent ‘Cone of Shame’ for the first time, followed by ‘We Care A Lot’ and then the uber-lounge classic ‘This Guy’s In Love’, ending the set and leaving us in a suitably mellow style…
We’ve missed tonights’ support band, Rolo Tomassi, but I’m sure I’ll get another chance some time. The guest area is busier this evening, but we still manage to get a good view. The lights go down, Roddy begins the intro to ‘Motherfucker’ and as the rest of the band arrive on stage, Mike Patton appears with The Gimp on a dog leash. It’s either hilarious or creepy, depending on your sense of humour. Variously, Mike and Roddy order him around the stage, to take various positions as commanded. It was hot enough in the venue for everyone else… onstage in all that leather, it must have been stifling !
The set starts out the same, but then veers off after the first half-dozen songs, with ‘Land of Sunshine’ making another welcome appearance, soon followed by ‘Everything’s Ruined’, a highly unexpected sprint through ‘Surprise You’re Dead’, and a majestic version of ‘King For A Day’ (I’d started worrying that they weren’t going to play it at all on these dates…) No ‘Matador’, sadly, but ‘Ashes To Ashes’ and ‘Superhero’ are the perfect end to the set once again. After a short break, they’re back for the encore and this time we get the excellent ‘Cone of Shame’ for the first time, followed by ‘We Care A Lot’ and then the uber-lounge classic ‘This Guy’s In Love’, ending the set and leaving us in a suitably mellow style…
Which proves to be appropriate as the next
thing that happens is a fire alarm, and everyone has to evacuate ! I don’t
think I’ve ever known this to happen at a gig before and, although the building
is emptied rather smoothly, there’s quite a long break before we’re allowed
back inside for the aftershow. In fact, it’s not even clear if we’re going to
be allowed back inside, but after a while we get the all-clear and sneak back
through the rest of the crowd. Fortunately tonight, the gathering (it wasn’t
really a party) was in the upstairs bar, so there’s a lot more room. Roddy is
feigning irritation with Mike Patton – ‘He tried to get in on the Gimp. The
Gimp is my thing !’ (As it turns out, The Gimp, unmasked, was also there. You
wouldn’t believe who he was ! Unfortunately, we’re all sworn to secrecy…) It’s
another nice, relaxed end to an evening, chatting, joking and hanging out. As
is usual on such occasions, there’s a lot of silly photo’s that we’ll pretend
to regret the next day, but what the Hell ? We’d regret it more if we didn’t do
it !
The bar closes at 1.00 but we hang around finishing our drinks for some time longer and then head outside. More group photo’s and then we all go our separate ways (stopping only for late-night bagels in Finsbury Park – one of the very best after-hours snacks !) Back in Tottenham and it’s time for a good nights’ sleep.
The bar closes at 1.00 but we hang around finishing our drinks for some time longer and then head outside. More group photo’s and then we all go our separate ways (stopping only for late-night bagels in Finsbury Park – one of the very best after-hours snacks !) Back in Tottenham and it’s time for a good nights’ sleep.
A reunion is a business-option in itself for those
bands who’ve maintained their reputation since splitting up and, while I’m not
naïve enough to claim that FNM were not interested in the financial rewards of
their initial reformation, I think they’ve gone on the prove that, unlike many
in a similar position and with such ongoing popularity, they’ve chosen to
continue the path they always taken. They’ve done things their own way, taking
chances creatively and always moving forward. They’ve produced a new album
that, instead of taking the easy-option and merely re-hashing their previous
successes, has instead jumped ahead in the same way that ‘Angel Dust’ did after
‘The Real Thing’, and the same way that ‘King For A Day’ and ‘Album Of The
Year’ did after their predecessors. It’s for those reasons that ‘Sol Invictus’
is going to stand-up among all their other albums in years to come. FNM are
still challenging themselves and their audience and, in the music industry,
that’s a real achievement. For Faith No More to continue, it has to be done
properly, and they’ve maintained their integrity while others would only be
concerned with maintaining their sales. For that reason, they will continue to
influence whilst others will just generate tribute bands. Maybe they’re not to
everyone’s taste, but listen carefully and I’m pretty sure you’re going to find
something.
Anyway, as I said right back at the
beginning, I was able to do a brief interview by email after the UK dates had
finished. I think this is a good epilogue (even if the timing could’ve been
better !) Email isn’t the best way to
conduct an interview, but I think this has worked. With luck, a proper
face-to-face interrogation will also happen some time soon, but in the
meantime, this will try to bring things up to date…
Firstly, it’s taken Faith No More a while since their initial reunion in 2009, before writing, recording and releasing new material. Was there a sense that you had to take some time to get it right before you could put out a new Faith No More album?
Roddy ; Absolutely. There was much more at stake this time around. Our label, so no one to answer to. We really felt that we had to get it right. Also, the amount of time that had passed… So many bands who reform put out new records that don’t capture much. I guess that’s a shitty thing to say and I’m sorry, but I feel really let down by a lot of those scenarios. So I think we felt like we really didn’t want to do something unless it was creatively valid and could hold up to our previous catalogue.
So, I’m assuming it must also have been equally important that everyone was involved and happy with the new material ?
Bill ; If not everyone was happy with it, then it wouldn’t have been a Faith No More album. It would have been something else. So, yeah, that was more important than anything.
It certainly sounds as if ‘Sol Invictus’ has had full input from everyone in the band…
Roddy ; Yes and no. Billy is always kind of the firestarter, so to speak. He wrote a shitload of songs to begin with. I think he’d been writing sorta Faith No More sounding stuff for a long time before we actually started fleshing out a new record. He had a lot of ideas and started formulating them into songs really early on. I have to admit, I was kind of lazy and hesitant at the start, but when it became clear that we were gonna make a new record, I think I wrote, like, seven songs… But only two of them made it on to this record. By the time my songs got in to the mix, Mike P was already working a lot on the Billy songs, so my new batch got short changed a little bit. I mean, no hard feelings about it, that’s just the way it went. And, of course, we all kind of added stuff here and there to the Billy songs. I suppose the writing process was a little bit separatist in a way, but it’s kind of funny, because in a lot of ways I actually feel more connected to this record than I do for most of the others, perhaps with the exception of the very first one.
Everyone in the band has been involved with other projects in the interim years. While the album still very much sounds like a Faith No More album, do you think all these different aspects helped to bring something new to the album ?
Roddy ; Definitely. Everyone brought new ears and attitudes to the process. Our different projects really form who we are and it was fulfilling to be able to have these different perspectives going into the recording process. More than anything, I think we all listen to each other a lot more and I think that has something to do with us all branching out since the break-up, too. Once we were gone and finished, I certainly learned to appreciate us more than I had. And I know I like us a lot more as people now, collectively and individually.
Bill ; I think it was always the kind of idea that we’d work on our unique strengths as a unit, but also exploring new places in the process. In fact, in that regard, I don’t think this album had such a different to our approach in the past. But I guess it’s hard to say without any sort of objectivity, really.
You’ve taken the opportunity to perform several of the new songs live, in some cases quite some time before they were eventually recorded. Was that an attempt to try them out alongside the more familiar songs, and maybe see how they might develop ?
Roddy ; I think that playing those songs just came as a result of wanting to share some new stuff with the fans. That was pretty important to us. We got to the point where we didn’t want to play shows anymore, unless we could also play something new. Playing the old songs over and over after a while started to feel kind of cheap. Actually, I don’t think the new songs changed too much from live performance to being recorded. They stuck pretty much to the way we wrote them, so it wasn’t really testing the water so much, when we first played them live. We just wanted to add something new to our live shows.
Strangely, the song ‘Motherfucker’ is the first Faith No More track to feature Roddy so prominently on vocals. It’s also quite different to the lead vocals you’ve sung for Imperial Teen. How did it all come together ?
Roddy ; I initially recorded ‘Motherfucker’ in my studio in LA. I kind of wanted to steer our new batch of songs in a more personal direction. I felt that sometimes, with the older stuff, we’d avoid addressing ourselves, the individuals in the band. So I set about trying to write a piece about us and what we went through as kids, in the process of becoming who we became. And also the ways that we were kind of duped into believing we were something we weren’t. I also wanted to lambast the record industry, particularly as we’d recently freed ourselves from the shackles of that… Anyway, I originally did a vocal track just to give Mike P something to sing to, you know, like a reference point. But he liked the way I sang it and suggested that we just stuck with my vocals on the final version. So I ended up re-recording it with Billy in San Francisco, and there ya have it.
Faith No More albums have always featured very distinctive, individual artwork, and this one is certainly no exception. Does everyone get involved with the choice of artwork ? And what’s the story behind the photo-images used on ‘Sol Invictus’ ?
Bill ; The brainstorming can get quite laborious at times, but in this case, I originally suggested these Halloween photos and it turned out that Mike P was already familiar with them, as they came from a book that he had at home ! Between the images, the title and the new material, it all just seemed like a great fit and the whole band agreed on it.
Finally, this is the first album that you’ve released on the bands’ own label, Reclamation. Mike P is obviously involved with the Ipecac label, and Bill has been running Kool Arrow for quite some time, so was it your intention to have a totally new imprint for the ‘Sol Invictus’ album ? Do you have any further plans for the label, for example, would you consider releasing records by any other artists ?
Bill ; Well, Reclamation goes through Ipecac’s distribution system, but it’s a very separate entity. If for some reason, anything happened to Ipecac, or our relationship with them were to end, Reclamation would still control the masters. But at the same time, they already had the network in place, so it was good for all of us for Reclamation use it. But as far as what the imprint means or could do outside of ‘Sol Invictus’, there are a lot of places we could go with it but I think it’s still too early to say…
I hope this little bonus has intrigued you. Now, go out and investigate ‘Sol Invictus’. It’s a damn fine record and worth every penny. You can trust me, I’m a civil servant (no irony intended…)
Firstly, it’s taken Faith No More a while since their initial reunion in 2009, before writing, recording and releasing new material. Was there a sense that you had to take some time to get it right before you could put out a new Faith No More album?
Roddy ; Absolutely. There was much more at stake this time around. Our label, so no one to answer to. We really felt that we had to get it right. Also, the amount of time that had passed… So many bands who reform put out new records that don’t capture much. I guess that’s a shitty thing to say and I’m sorry, but I feel really let down by a lot of those scenarios. So I think we felt like we really didn’t want to do something unless it was creatively valid and could hold up to our previous catalogue.
So, I’m assuming it must also have been equally important that everyone was involved and happy with the new material ?
Bill ; If not everyone was happy with it, then it wouldn’t have been a Faith No More album. It would have been something else. So, yeah, that was more important than anything.
It certainly sounds as if ‘Sol Invictus’ has had full input from everyone in the band…
Roddy ; Yes and no. Billy is always kind of the firestarter, so to speak. He wrote a shitload of songs to begin with. I think he’d been writing sorta Faith No More sounding stuff for a long time before we actually started fleshing out a new record. He had a lot of ideas and started formulating them into songs really early on. I have to admit, I was kind of lazy and hesitant at the start, but when it became clear that we were gonna make a new record, I think I wrote, like, seven songs… But only two of them made it on to this record. By the time my songs got in to the mix, Mike P was already working a lot on the Billy songs, so my new batch got short changed a little bit. I mean, no hard feelings about it, that’s just the way it went. And, of course, we all kind of added stuff here and there to the Billy songs. I suppose the writing process was a little bit separatist in a way, but it’s kind of funny, because in a lot of ways I actually feel more connected to this record than I do for most of the others, perhaps with the exception of the very first one.
Everyone in the band has been involved with other projects in the interim years. While the album still very much sounds like a Faith No More album, do you think all these different aspects helped to bring something new to the album ?
Roddy ; Definitely. Everyone brought new ears and attitudes to the process. Our different projects really form who we are and it was fulfilling to be able to have these different perspectives going into the recording process. More than anything, I think we all listen to each other a lot more and I think that has something to do with us all branching out since the break-up, too. Once we were gone and finished, I certainly learned to appreciate us more than I had. And I know I like us a lot more as people now, collectively and individually.
Bill ; I think it was always the kind of idea that we’d work on our unique strengths as a unit, but also exploring new places in the process. In fact, in that regard, I don’t think this album had such a different to our approach in the past. But I guess it’s hard to say without any sort of objectivity, really.
You’ve taken the opportunity to perform several of the new songs live, in some cases quite some time before they were eventually recorded. Was that an attempt to try them out alongside the more familiar songs, and maybe see how they might develop ?
Roddy ; I think that playing those songs just came as a result of wanting to share some new stuff with the fans. That was pretty important to us. We got to the point where we didn’t want to play shows anymore, unless we could also play something new. Playing the old songs over and over after a while started to feel kind of cheap. Actually, I don’t think the new songs changed too much from live performance to being recorded. They stuck pretty much to the way we wrote them, so it wasn’t really testing the water so much, when we first played them live. We just wanted to add something new to our live shows.
Strangely, the song ‘Motherfucker’ is the first Faith No More track to feature Roddy so prominently on vocals. It’s also quite different to the lead vocals you’ve sung for Imperial Teen. How did it all come together ?
Roddy ; I initially recorded ‘Motherfucker’ in my studio in LA. I kind of wanted to steer our new batch of songs in a more personal direction. I felt that sometimes, with the older stuff, we’d avoid addressing ourselves, the individuals in the band. So I set about trying to write a piece about us and what we went through as kids, in the process of becoming who we became. And also the ways that we were kind of duped into believing we were something we weren’t. I also wanted to lambast the record industry, particularly as we’d recently freed ourselves from the shackles of that… Anyway, I originally did a vocal track just to give Mike P something to sing to, you know, like a reference point. But he liked the way I sang it and suggested that we just stuck with my vocals on the final version. So I ended up re-recording it with Billy in San Francisco, and there ya have it.
Faith No More albums have always featured very distinctive, individual artwork, and this one is certainly no exception. Does everyone get involved with the choice of artwork ? And what’s the story behind the photo-images used on ‘Sol Invictus’ ?
Bill ; The brainstorming can get quite laborious at times, but in this case, I originally suggested these Halloween photos and it turned out that Mike P was already familiar with them, as they came from a book that he had at home ! Between the images, the title and the new material, it all just seemed like a great fit and the whole band agreed on it.
Finally, this is the first album that you’ve released on the bands’ own label, Reclamation. Mike P is obviously involved with the Ipecac label, and Bill has been running Kool Arrow for quite some time, so was it your intention to have a totally new imprint for the ‘Sol Invictus’ album ? Do you have any further plans for the label, for example, would you consider releasing records by any other artists ?
Bill ; Well, Reclamation goes through Ipecac’s distribution system, but it’s a very separate entity. If for some reason, anything happened to Ipecac, or our relationship with them were to end, Reclamation would still control the masters. But at the same time, they already had the network in place, so it was good for all of us for Reclamation use it. But as far as what the imprint means or could do outside of ‘Sol Invictus’, there are a lot of places we could go with it but I think it’s still too early to say…
I hope this little bonus has intrigued you. Now, go out and investigate ‘Sol Invictus’. It’s a damn fine record and worth every penny. You can trust me, I’m a civil servant (no irony intended…)
Now, where could I put my bass...