The Art of Longevity Series 6, Episode 5: Gaz Coombes

Let’s face it, there is a patchy record for solo artists that began in popular 90s bands. Some crossed the rubicon to a credible solo career and some didn’t. While Gaz Coombes enjoyed the full glare of the spotlight of the second half of the 90s with Supergrass, his solo work has surpassed those years in many ways. 2018’s World’s Strongest Man felt like a step forward in this third phase of Coombe’s music career (he has been making music in commercial bands since the age of 15, so let’s call Supergrass his second phase).

Gaz hasn’t felt the need to rush things. Since Supergrass split in 2010 (they came together for a resplendent but brief reunion live tour in 2022) he has released four solo albums, each one a steady progression on the one before. But none of his solo work sounds like the band that first made him a famous face and voice.

What’s been cool about doing these last few solo records is building up this entirely new fan base, not just expecting people to have come over from Supergrass”.

The path to a viable, successful solo career is a pretty precarious one, but it feels like Gaz has found his way on that path. His new album Turn The Car Around continues in the same vein as World’s Strongest Man, showcasing the variety of tricks Coombe’s has in the bag, from classic melancholic songs to nagging grooves and dirty guitar sounds. From this point onwards, he’s pushing himself further. 

“I’ve called this album the last one of a trilogy, just to force myself to look at my career in a different way from now on. I’ve known where I wanted to take it before but this time I’m not sure. I want to do something different, so it’ll be jazz metal”. 

Transcript

2:07

how are you guys are whereabouts are you?

Gaz Coombes: 2:10

I'm very well, thank you. I'm home in Oxford. While I'm in the studio just been TINKERING AWAY. Working on stuff. Yeah. All right. So

Keith Jopling: 2:20

I've got you in your creators, but that's where the magic happens.

Unknown: 2:27

Sometimes, sometimes it's where the procrastination might come in here in a football manager.

Keith Jopling: 2:34

Someone like Nick Cave works office hours. I don't know how that works. But what happens when you walk in there? Do you kind of go in with the intent of just pottering around for a bit and see what happens? Or do you know exactly what your plan is, or at least you know, best laid plans,

Unknown: 2:49

that totally depends really, you know, sometimes it's sometimes, like, I'll come in here to find some inspiration. So, you know, maybe just put around for a bit, a little tiny round, kind of tidy up some cables and, and freshening it up. It's me, you know, putting nice smelling room or something. And I feel like things may be might happen, and then I sit down at the piano or go and have a bash on the drums get a beat together, and then it just sort of it just comes from everything. Unless there's a specific idea that I've got that, that I need to start laying down and becomes a bit more sort of formal. But yeah, I don't keep hours. You know, I I admire that. But it tends to just, you know, yeah, I don't know if my family are always in agreement, but I kind of like being able to just come over here when an idea strikes.

Keith Jopling: 3:37

So it sounds like you're an ambience, sort of person you'd like to get your setup, right. I know where you're coming from on that. So let's talk about turn the car around. Because I've been having a listen, and it's, it's wonderful. So congratulations on it. Tell me something about it that you haven't been saying a lot, you know, what's behind it anything in particular, or any person in particular? What was kind of I know, it's been six years in the making. So tell me something about it.

Unknown: 4:07

Well, six years, I mean, that's kind of funny that that quote, or whatever it was came out, but yeah, I mean, it's it's almost like these previous couple of records were the sort of seedlings for this. And in many ways, it's been sort of building up to it, rather than to working on songs from this album over the last seven years. But um, yeah, you know, it was just a couple of leftover that I hadn't managed to get together from the last record that I knew were really strong. And I just kind of, it wasn't like I kind of ran out of time, but I felt that the last record was good was it was good, as well as I didn't need to add any more to it. I thought it was perfect. So I left these tracks just kind of hanging around. And so they were there sort of the beginnings of this record, really. So they Yeah, then I just kind of built the studio, which was quite mad to being able to do this in 2024 be lucky to be in a creative space. And then came in here and, and then built the rest of the record, you know, it was just, it was over like a two year period. And

Keith Jopling: 5:09

just nine tracks, I have to say I like this is sort of a throwback to, you know, the classic days of of the album, that seems to be a lot of albums coming out these days that are sort of between eight and 12 tracks. And I just think, good riddance, you know, to the horrible 1818 track albums that we had in the CD age.

Unknown: 5:29

Yeah, it's a tricky one. I mean, you know, I just think it's got to be about flow. The length of time is important. But the amount of tracks No, I don't think so. It was 10 tracks for a few months, actually. And I had this one track place to track three, that I was kind of digging, and I was I was kind of into it, but it wasn't, it was proving to be a real problem. And I just couldn't finish it. I couldn't I couldn't see my way through to finishing that track. So I was away on holiday, I think and I had the all the tracks playlisted. And I was kind of listening for a bit listening through and I just deleted that track number three, the problem track and the playlist and then listen through and it just all came into focus, you know, as a record, and I thought that was cool. And you know, the length, the length is fine. You know, I think it's longer than the Supercross out. 38 minutes. Yeah. So it's good. It's I think that's a cool amount of time, so I'm happy with it. Yeah, I

Keith Jopling: 6:30

feel like it's sort of made a comeback, that sort of length in terms of song numbers. I mean, partly because of vinyl, which I think is just a great thing. It's the right format for the work, you know, for a minute there we thought that the album was dead because of streaming, but it seems to have made a comeback, which is fantastic.

Unknown: 6:49

Yeah, you know, and when I when I listen to records, you know, in my house, it's kind of was I suppose different ways of listening to records sometimes I just put word on while I'm kind of posturing around and then an inside a finishes and you and you realize that you're just hearing this kind of crackling and so there isn't necessarily a flow like you might get listen to the record on a on a streaming site or by CD or whatever. But yeah, I think there's something really cool about thinking about the tracks in terms of the album. In terms of the vinyl, and and the way that the side be begins, it's always been something kind of important to me and way the side A and, and that little pauses in between and what what happens between those two tracks.

Keith Jopling: 7:30

The art of longevity is presented with Bowers and Wilkins, the revered British Premium Audio brands, Bowers and Wilkins make some of the world's finest audio products from the iconic 800 series loudspeakers trusted by Abbey Road Studios for over 40 years to the flagship px eight wireless headphones. This is music as the artist intended you to hear it. Can we stop off at a couple of songs, and we want to cover the rest of your career as well. But because the album works, right, it's one of those end to end albums. But the the songs just popped out for me. So overnight trains, the opener, lovely, melancholy opener with you, you know, in a sort of deep baritone. But I love the feel of it. And lyrically, I'm intrigued about the song, can you tell me a little bit about it, lyrically feels quite very personal, and almost intimate.

Unknown: 8:24

Yeah, I guess it started with a scene, you know that. You just try and recognize what's happening around and make observations and I was at home and walked in. And yeah, my wife has sort of sat by the fire kind of writing and, and, you know, the dog was falling asleep. And it was just the I don't know, it's this kind of quite delicate, but romantic little scene. This was during the whole pandemics all that time that we were all at home, you know. And I remember that one moment quite clearly. And that that was just the beginning of that track. And I thought it would be great to open it with a very, very direct lyric, not only to open the track, but open the record with it works

Keith Jopling: 9:01

really well. I mean, it's sort of there's very intriguing bit to me, because it it's almost a picture of domestic bliss, if you like I mean, from that sort of description and being at home. And then the line, it's not the same when you wish for things like summer drives, and overnight trains. This dam will hold the dam must hold is that sort of what's behind that? Is that almost like pulling the rug from under that kind of domestic Ness if you like,

Unknown: 9:30

no, it's just been sick of isolation and life not flowing like it was written during the pandemic. I don't feel like any of these songs should be or this record is a pandemic record in any any way. It was just written during that time and I think I couldn't help certain bits creep out and I think frustration and you know, the need for the pace of life to to be the kind of back where it was. There was a couple of low points and I'm sure everybody You know, suffered at different times in different ways and stuff but yeah, I definitely remember feeling like you're longing for at an early age just to go on a diet a chain somewhere or to sort of not necessarily really extravagant stuff but just you know, you just things you do with your family and experiencing life again.

Keith Jopling: 10:20

Okay, guys, it's always nice to go back and listen when you know, you've had the sort of context from from the Creator. So thanks for that. Okay, next, I feel loop, lizard dream. I love the groove on it. You know, there's the vocal and riff into play as well, which I love is sort of quite Neil Young. Reminds me as well, a little bit of I don't know why but of dragon attack by Queen, which is an album track from the game. Which is fantastic. By the way, if you haven't heard it, do listen. And you'll see what I'm talking about. Probably. But yeah, tell me a little bit about that.

Unknown: 10:53

Yeah, I mean, it's it kind of I think it's it's an angry little bastard that one. Yeah, it was just the beat. You know, the beat and the claps? I think were the first thing that came just the loop. Oh, actually, no, there wasn't there was a little weird sort of noise that I found on the session that I was working on. There was like a kind of plugging in Guitar sort of noise. I don't know, sometimes you just kind of highlight a little bit on on a session and even by accident, and then you press spacebar and it starts looping. And I've found so many accidental loops that way, just kind of, you know, by pressing the wrong buttons or something. It's only a yes, fan salute. And I thought that's kind of cool. So I opened up another session, put that loop in and then start playing drums to it. Got the bead got the rhythm, and then and then the claps came. And then it's just yeah, that that kind of building a bit of a vibe. And then I thought this would be kind of cool if it was quite sparse, but then this kind of quite fucked up. guitar just came out of nowhere, in and out of vocal. So yeah, that was just the idea of how it came about. And then it was a case of trying to try and put it down trying to translate what was happening in my head.

Keith Jopling: 12:07

Okay. Yeah, it's very cool. It comes out really well. And I, you know, it's interesting what you say about the guitar, because I love the way you play guitar in your solo records. I mean, I love to guitar on the Supercross records, but you know, you're not afraid of, you know, noisy, dirty guitar. And where does that come from?

Unknown: 12:25

Just Oh, I don't know your old records. I like that aesthetic, really, of guitar sounds that are, you know, maybe a lot more of, you know, the bleed on old records during recording and less sort of isolated microphones and stuff just leads to these kind of quite very interesting sounds that they don't seem to, I don't know, yeah, it's difficult to describe, but they're not very, they're not modern direct guitar sounds coming at speakers, it's just kind of all there within the track. I mean, even with bass guitar, I love that about recording the room, trying to get some ambient mics on bass guitar. And then you can have this really sort of really low level, stereo bass ambience. And when you're recording solo on your own, it's a kind of good way of almost sort of faking the fact that there's some bleed going on in these microphones, because it's that sort of stuff that really glues everything, as soon as you get sort of like real separated recording, it's often quite hard to, to give it a connection and a sort of a real sort of pulse, you know, and, and so, so yeah, I like doing that stuff. You know, that that's always kind of cool.

Keith Jopling: 13:34

Yeah, as a guitar fan, it's, it's great because it just kind of comes as a bit of a shock. Sometimes it kind of reminds you that you can do all sorts of stuff with with a guitar. Yeah.

Unknown: 13:44

And that's, that's so true. I mean, I've worked with good people, and I've sort of, you know, played with good people, inspiring people. And, you know, a couple of producers along the way have said little things that have just kind of pushed me to somewhere else with my guitar in, you know, during and post supergrass. So, I think yeah, I think I've probably just kind of a lot more into exploring what a guitar can do these days really, you know, and also being an SVP span starting out and speaking span there's not much room for you know, exploring sounds when you're playing live, you know, we're a punk band really you just have to kind of hammer through and play that rhythm guitar and and I was always singing so there was never any time to to do that sort of stuff. So I've yeah, I've loved experimenting with guitar sounds a lot Alright, got

Keith Jopling: 14:32

it. Last one. DanceOn which you said was kind of leftover from World Strongest Man and it makes sense of the album closer I'm a sucker for good album closer and this has got you know, closer kind of all over it so nice and epic.

Unknown: 14:45

Tell me about that. Yeah, and I don't know why that tracks it's so long to to nail down because it was actually in a in a pretty good place, you know, for four or five years ago, but maybe it was lyric. Maybe it was some just finding out where And where I wanted to take it. But yeah, it was never really an obvious closer it's to me it was, in fact, actually what I do like about it was it closes the record in, you know, not after a huge big wig out or like, you know, kind of, yeah, just going on some sort of big finale, it's sort of, because it drops down to the very end of that track, which is kind of cool. And then and then ends. So it's kind of like a kind of nice understated vibe to it as well. But yeah, yeah, I love that track. I was kind of finished with the instrumentation a little around the time I was watching get back a lot on the big screen in the studio with guys, some of the guys in the band, and we had it on the projector and through the coming through the studio speakers and extremely inspiring Chinese, especially when you're I mean, you know, and you've got to be really careful not to kind of rip anything off because you're so kind of consumed with how cool it is. But when you're in the studio working, it's so inspiring to just give something a lift.

Keith Jopling: 16:00

Well, I guess, you know, for musicians even have longevity and their experience. Have you got that get back film. It's gonna It's just that's ready. Go to inspiration now. Now it's out there.

Unknown: 16:12

Yeah. Well, it's just having never seen any of that. Anything like that before the Romans when they would come up on the subtitle, you know, underneath that this is this is from the actual, the performance from the actual record itself. And, and you're in you're seeing them, we're working it out. And it's yeah, I hadn't ever seen anything like it. You know, so it was it was pretty mind blowing.

Keith Jopling: 16:32

Yeah, it's incredible. Have you heard the revolver? No, I

Unknown: 16:36

actually I did. I had a couple of bits that I went straight to all those odd rarities and different weird versions and check through a few of those, which were pretty bonkers. Yeah, but I haven't heard yet. It's quite a big thing to get through. Right. I mean, it can take me a couple of days.

Keith Jopling: 16:51

Yeah, I mean, it's just really interesting. You know, just how much new stuff is going to be on Earth. And it feels like, Okay, this is never going to stop, it's just going to kill that.

Unknown: 17:01

You thought it was probably done the Beatles. And we might have been seeing extra stuff and behind the scenes things and rarities and unused versions for decades for The Beatles. And it's kind of like it just makes you think. And that's what they get back footage from Jesus. You know, you thought you'd seen all the footage.

Keith Jopling: 17:21

Thanks for listening to the art of longevity. I hope you're enjoying the conversation so far. Please take a moment to rate the show. leave a review on Apple podcasts if that's where you're listening and do spread the word. Also, you can sign up via the songs familia web page for our newsletter, artwork, and much more. Back to the conversation. You released a couple of singles from this record. So for when two out by the way, so January, yes,

Unknown: 17:49

January, okay, Friday, the 13th of January. Okay,

Keith Jopling: 17:53

so a couple of singles are out, you've got a bit of, you know, radio support six music and all that. I'm just wondering when you put because you spent a lot of time, you've put a lot of creative energy into making it. So when it's out there, are you ready to promote the hell out of it? Or are you more akan a case of law are built it sort of let people come what's important to you in terms of getting the music out there to your audience?

Unknown: 18:20

I think what's kind of really cool about the last 567 years to these solar records is building up a kind of cool fan base that I really love. I think when you start to get to know, these new fans, and and there's that connection, you know, it's not a case of just simply bringing everyone over from supergrass. It's kind of And that's been something that's, I know, that's been really satisfying and kind of exciting to, to be part of. And so I guess initially, I just think, right, yeah, the album's done, let me get some of this out, and see what they think, you know, see what they recommend. And the self promotion, I always find it hard. And I always have done even with experience that never really changes because because, you know, I've finished the record, and it's done. And I realized I didn't really know, I couldn't really talk to anyone about what the record was about, because it was kind of so recently finished and and when you're when you're making it, you're just right inside it. So it's so hard to be to have yet to be subjective anything so it's weird when it first happens. Yeah, it's kind of weird when you start to have you get calls for interviews and, and to talk about it and but it's also the time when I find that I start working it all out, you know, and I kind of need to release it and let it do its thing and, and work out. You know what I meant when I did it? Because it's kind of coalesced at the time, but that's what I love about creating some at some time. You just create and it's not until sometimes you've finished what you're working on that you do you find out where it's come from, or that you find out what it means to me. sort of thing cuz I get kind of lost in it, at certain points, it can be, like 10 different things, you know, I can be feeling loads of different stuff about it. So it's quite nice to kind of distill it. So mastering when you send off for mastering, it comes back, it's kind of like it's almost kind of like, well, I can't touch it now. It's like nothing, you know, there's nothing that can be done, it's now being turned into two stereo file. There are no changes to be made. And I kind of like that moment, because it means that I can sort of stop fucking obsessing or worrying or, yeah,

Keith Jopling: 20:33

because I guess you must feel like, how do we ever finish something in that respect, because you've got to kind of call it time, even though you might feel it's not finished. And it becomes diminished when, you know, when we listened to it, I guess. Yeah, and

Unknown: 20:47

it was also kind of a friend, it sounds a bit bizarre, but it's like, it was like a friend to me for a couple of years, this record. And again, during some very weird times, it was just the kind of constant everyday that I could come to. And pick from the, at that point, maybe 10 1214 tracks wherever and pick from them and just get some comfort, you know, and enjoyment and a buzz for making music in amongst the kind of odd times that we were going through and, and, you know, bring my family and and bring and let it be a kind of communal space. And so it became so actually when I finished it, I was slightly bereft for a little while, you know, I was sort of, I didn't I didn't have a fucking word on and it's like, you can grieve

Keith Jopling: 21:37

for it for a little bit. But actually, you've shared your friend was with the rest of us now. So now we can take that comfort from it. That's I think that's beautiful guests. I really do. Well,

Unknown: 21:46

that's cool, man. I mean, you know, yeah, it's just, yeah, I can move on to the live stuff. And that's been a that's been amazing. Moving on to the Translate, you get to the stage with with the guys in the band.

Keith Jopling: 21:58

Live, there's something going on at the minute, it seems like there's, there's almost a bit of blood in the water, because we've got, you know, artists are canceling tours and sort of claiming how stressful it is to go on tour. And, and it's a big risk for them. I mean, what's on your mind at the moment in terms of taking this record on the road? Because I know when you play live, it's it's a big thing. You don't cut costs or do anything sort of quietly? No, I

Unknown: 22:25

mean, well, I don't know, man. I think I think I do. I think it's, I think it depends. It depends on the shows, and it depends on the setup. And, you know, over the years, I've worked on different setups. I mean, I went on an acoustic tour back in April this year, with just me, Joe and my die doing sound. And that's really sustainable. That's really that's fine. You know, but yet soon as you look at banned, or any kind of tour bus situation, and then you know, everything you have this kind of crazy withholding tax and stuff. It really is, you know, man, yeah, I'm, it's, it's insane. It really is kind of ridiculous. I can't average Yeah, I mean, you know, I have a very lucky position to sort of get some sort of royalties that come in from from stuff I've done over the years, which is, which is really cool. But that's still, you know, it's not like there's a, you know, I can just go on luxury touring and, and it doesn't affect me. So yeah, that's, that's something that's going to be tricky next year, you know, UK will be fine, you know, that you can sort of make that work in a kind of budget way, but still, you know, keep the scope of the show that you want. But, but Europe, definitely, you know, yeah, I think I'm gonna have to look at that streamline as much as I can without, you know, fucking beat the band, or,

Keith Jopling: 23:44

yeah, it's a funny old time, because it, you know, the prevailing wisdom for a long time in the business was, you know, as an artist, you don't really make money on the records anymore, you go on tour. And, you know, with that sort of set up, you know, maybe under a strain. Yeah, it's sort of a bit of a worry, really, but anyway, I hope to see you on tour. Absolutely. Yeah, I

Unknown: 24:04

don't know, I don't know what the answer is now. You know, it's kind of, it's really tricky. It's kind of just everything seems to have hit at once. And it's not just musicians, you know, in the arts, it's kind of all through life. It's since Brexit, really and then, and then just the kind of the following four years of just kind of utter mayhem with various things that were happening. It's just, yeah, it's left everything just so so uncertain, and really tricky. And don't know really what the answer is, but you just gotta kind of, you know, hold tight and stick with it. Yeah, keep coming and make kind of different decisions. What's

Keith Jopling: 24:43

your setup now as a solo artist? I mean, you're a fully independent artists releasing music on your own label. What matters about that to you now, because, I mean, obviously, we're supergrass. You know, you were kind of in the label system for six album arms. It's really, really different now. What's different for you about it?

Unknown: 25:05

Yeah, I mean, I think at the time for supergrass as well, it was, we were Parlophone. And it was sort of early mid 90s. And it's still had a feel of how the labels work through the 60s and 70s. And kind of quite traditional, but also part of founding small label, you know, subsidiary of EMI and and we had that connection with the people that worked there that there was more than a sort of indie label connection. So we were very lucky for those years to have that relationship. Yeah, for me now. Yeah, I think it's kind of cool. That it seems to come back around to a bit of that sort of vibe. When I with Matador and World's Strongest Man I, I released through Caroline, and I worked with the with a few people that I've worked with, actually on my first solo album, and who I think who I've continued to work with, I've kind of gone where they've gone if you like, but that vibe was really cool it was you go to the offices, and it was just a nice five and really kind of young, enthusiastic, musical creative people with just a different feel to that, that major label kind of the enormity of the money that we were seeing through the late 90s In the early 2000s. and stuff. So there was a bit of reaction to that. And now we're, you know, it's possible to kind of work with really good people, not in that kind of Major League with that major label mentality. So that's what I found.

Keith Jopling: 26:34

I think with with supergrass, you never really compromised anyway. Did you? I mean, in a particularly on, probably throughout, but particularly on those last three records, it felt like you were just being left to do whatever you wanted to do creatively. So you didn't have that kind of meddling aspect.

Unknown: 26:50

That was maybe part of the problems. Direction? Oh, no, I don't know. Yeah, we will pretty much left to do what we wanted. Which, yeah, can be good or bad? Well,

Keith Jopling: 27:04

it did create something like road to ruin, which, you know, pretty much a masterpiece, in my view anyway. So it worked out really well. Yeah, when he sort of when it came to an end, there was that was down to musical differences, if you like, which is the sort of classic and why not put that down as as the reason but we wanted to end on a cliche. Yeah, it makes total sense. Keep everybody guessing. And sort of carving out your solo career. You know, as you mentioned earlier, if you don't mind me saying it feels to me, like the World's Strongest Man was like a really big step forward. I'm just saying that as a listener, I'd love to get your take on it. And, you know, we turn the car around you obviously just progressing from there. So you're kind of on a on a creative role at the minute. I mean, where do you see you sort of taking your solo career next?

Unknown: 27:57

It's time I have no idea I did before, but I don't know if you know, it's, uh, I think I said a little while back that this is like the, this is the end of the trilogy. It's really backwards. I don't know why I said that. I think I said that to sort of put myself into a position where I need to find a way out of that. So like, like, I'd have to stick to that. Basically, once I've said it. It's like an art school exercise. So now, I can't do anything, like, on the next hour, because it's got to be the start of something new. So yeah. It could be, I don't know, jazz, metal, no identity is going to be but yes, something. Just look at it a different way. Just just approach it differently. Have

Keith Jopling: 28:41

you written for others or thought about doing that?

Unknown: 28:45

Yeah, a little bit. So over the years, you know, occasionally, it's quite often things come up. Or opportunities do arise, but kind of that was a bad times, or? Yeah, a couple of the things I've done have been all right. But it has to just yet has to be something interesting for me. I can't Yeah, I don't I'm not really into just going to a room with a stranger and writing for another stranger.

Keith Jopling: 29:08

The art of longevity is brought to you by the song Somalia. That's me. Working with Project melody and audio culture. It's recorded at the cube. London's first member studio for content creators, currently based in West London cube will be opening a second site in Canary Wharf in January 2023. Our cover is by Mick Clark and original music for the podcast is by the neoclassical composer and artist Andrew James Johnson. For that Taylor Hawkins tribute show last year, you appeared on stage but now Rogers yedid Bow is Modern Love, and we're still Copeland you did the places everything, Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic. They strike me as sort of being dream tracks for you to kind of go out and play Have you ever considered doing covers? If you did where would you kind of look around now? Yeah, they

Unknown: 30:03

were good yeah good range from a voice those two tracks somehow just yeah, it's kind of depends on which ones you go for but I did we have made Danny coffee did a whole rats you know, which is really cool Covers Record being on stage with those guys was pretty unreal to be honest yeah it was an amazing experience and even in rehearsals I was stood opposite Stewart Copeland facing him playing drums and he was kind of like pulling all these amazing faces and kind of like winking and nodding and all this sort of stuff. Almost like he was kind of jamming along with kind of going back Yeah, got and gets is kind of a mad little moment. Yes, it was incredible. So once you remember that, that police reunion

Keith Jopling: 30:47

tour, whenever that was I saw that in Twickenham. And it was it was the best stadium show I've ever seen. Like, by far it just like, you know, just incredible.

Unknown: 30:55

The great, great bands, that easily he's an amazing guy as well as is just an incredibly warm and charming and nice guy.

Keith Jopling: 31:04

So you started out incredibly young. We maybe three decades on from like, yeah, yeah, from when you were a, I guess become a professional musician of 15, didn't you?

Unknown: 31:16

Yeah, touring, I'd say touring, I was yeah, in a transit van. Going to gigs around England when I was 15. Yeah, sort of still that to get my homework done. It's always best to do it on the way up to the gig rather than on the way back. And

Keith Jopling: 31:30

you know, it's a tough road to choose as a as a professional musician. How do you look after yourself? Guess I mean, like, health wise, mental health, physical health? How do you look at a year 30 years on from those days now? And looking about that age? What I can say, you're definitely eternally youthful, that's for sure. Less,

Unknown: 31:49

you know, it's all the it's the alcohol and drugs. I didn't know what I mean, you know, you know, I tried to Yeah, I tried to, I mean, I do like to eat good food. I mean, I think luckily, you know, the heavy touring life, you know, when you're kind of literally away for sort of eight months of the year, since having kids, I sort of didn't quite hit it as hard as when we were younger and stuff, you know, with touring and, and just the fact that you can't, you can't sustain necessarily a super healthy life when you're on the road. So much. So no lucky to be at home enough, or at least back, you know, back in Oxford enough to, you know, eat well. But yeah, you know, I should still probably saw out a few things like the smoking and the drinking, but, you know, that's just something you kind of constantly working on, I suppose to try and get to a better place. But yeah, I kind of hold it together. Right?

Keith Jopling: 32:49

Yeah. I mean, you kind of created a bit of a sanctuary there you home in, in Oxford and everything, obviously, families is become like, hugely important to you. Yeah,

Unknown: 32:59

I don't know. It's hard to explain. But there's different intensities going on this every race, we've each got things in our lives that are happening. And that that tends to be, you know, this obviously, always the most important thing. And then before you know it, your family life is it becomes such a huge part of life, even when you're in the middle of making a record or so I kind of I liked that I kind of I missed the kids a lot. And I'm away for a long time. So kind of make little rules to kind of not be away for too long. I mean, I think kind of kick them back and forth. But it's something's on the way for more than three weeks or something.

Keith Jopling: 33:34

And we talked earlier about sort of changes in the industry. And one thing that's really exciting for me, but also I'm intrigued about is that guitar music is so very back and bands are back, it feels like you know, there's just a really, really good scene at the minute for bands, all of which are also very young. And most of them are kind of striving for that longevity that that you've achieved. Who's caught your ear. First of all, is there any one sort of out there at the minute that you're excited about?

Unknown: 34:06

Oh, I don't know. I mean, this various things are kind of here. I mean, you know whether it's digging wet leg recently and squared are good bands. Yeah. Willie J. Healy is guy in Oxford. He guested on my record as well. But yeah, it does seem to be a lot of cool, cool young bands around. I mean, it's sort of

Keith Jopling: 34:33

a very different time for them set starting out to what it was for you back in the day was supergrass. I mean, they must ask you, what do you say to them? Is there longevity advice or any kind of industry little wisdoms that you pass on?

Unknown: 34:48

No, no. I mean, not really. It's kind of so much of it is I mean, you know, there was there was an element of luck of the draw, you know, and hitting at the right time for us because it is so it's so hard. To get through, I think, you know, so I, you know, it's, it's, it's hard, it's a bit of a different game now as well, I don't know if bands have given as much time as we were given, you know, back in the day, but I would feel like almost not informed enough to be able to give them advice on what to do today because they kind of young now, and it's sort of so different. And, you know, maybe there's sometimes more freedom to, to explore your sort of sound, but then less time to do it and more urgency to kind of to get there quicker, either. So it's, it's a tricky one. So maybe any advice that I'd give, probably wouldn't apply, you know? Because it's just different types. You know, you can't you haven't got that luxury of growing maybe and doing some shit, besides playing some crap gigs. You know, just all the things that give you character as a young band, I suppose it's kind of, maybe that's the one thing it seems that you've got to be kind of ready to go. All eyes on you sort of think, interesting times. And it's exciting times, you know, so that's, that's not necessarily negative, but it's just yeah, it's exciting, Fast Times.

Keith Jopling: 36:12

No, I think that is it. I think that's the difference. It's just, you know, having time to mix things up, you know, do an album that's on a completely different track to the one that is the antidote to the one you made before those kinds of things that you could do.

Unknown: 36:26

Yeah, I mean, she's making this record. So quite mad, really, when you think about it, I mean, it's sort of a bit stranger than a bit older than Tranquility Base and stuff. And it's like, they're doing beer, there'll be doing stadiums playing quite odd. music, I love it. But it's when you think about it, it's it's kind of quite cool in a way to begin to do that kind of, you know, because I guess before that you sort of think about Radiohead, being one of the bands that could play the headline Glastonbury, but play some pretty fucking odd stuff. And in our pop band, so yeah, it's a I suppose a banner, Arctic Monkeys got the time and they can kind of do what they want. So yeah, brand new bands, young bands, it's, it's, it's probably quite tricky.

Keith Jopling: 37:09

We haven't got that much time left, guys. One of the questions I do ask is sort of, because this is sort of about looking back in a way but with perspective, if you could get in the in the music time machine, and go back somewhere, to either fix something or do something again, or change something. Is there a particular spot, place and time or album or record or wherever that you go back to?

Unknown: 37:36

Either? No, no, I just nothing. Really, it's no, because any sort of backups or, you know, wrong choice of singles or bad videos, or, you know, I don't know, it's just, it's what it is. I don't think there's anything. There was a few Crossroads moments when we were younger, you know, that we could have done, you know, taken an opportunity and would have been interesting in a sort of slightly those way to see what would have happened, but definitely not not in a regretful way, or we've never done it differently. So yeah, I'm not very prepared for that question. Probably wouldn't maybe worn that dress on David Letterman.

Keith Jopling: 38:15

What was the idea at the time? What was going through your head?

Unknown: 38:17

Oh, God knows. I don't know. Think it's just American TV. You kind of just get a bit carried away. Let's do mental. Yeah,

Keith Jopling: 38:27

I think that was sort of your kind of classic off kilter Englishness might have just been coming through a little bit there. Maybe it was a sort of a bit of a reaction to the situation you were in.

Unknown: 38:39

Yeah, but actually, I say it's not regret. I've always enjoyed.

Keith Jopling: 38:48

Alright, well, I don't want to necessarily leave on that note, but

Unknown: 38:52

it's a perfect way to end the whole. Yeah, no. No regrets, baby. Yeah,

Keith Jopling: 38:57

absolutely. We talked about you going on the road. Next thing? I'm going to see you in January in prison, which is, I don't know if that's going to be a sort of solo thing. Whatever. It's part of the album launch.

Unknown: 39:08

I think that's a full I think it's full band. Actually. That's for that's is that the date of release?

Keith Jopling: 39:14

Yeah, yeah. Yeah. Which I think is great. What's what's happening there in terms of how you can kind of release a record like that and make it a big event. And I wish you well look forward to seeing it. And I look forward to hearing my needle just sort of stuck in the groove at the end of sidewall on my cream, copy of turn the car around. So I mean, thanks very much for for making it. And thanks for coming on.

Unknown: 39:40

Thanks for having me. I really appreciate it. Yeah, yeah. And

Keith Jopling: 39:43

good luck with everything you do, guys.

Unknown: 39:45

You take it easy.

Keith Jopling: 39:46

Yeah, take care. Good luck with the next one. Cheers. Cheerio.