published: 27 /
10 /
2011
Davey Woodward from the Experimental Pop Band speaks to Dixie Ernill about his group's appearance and his own solo set at the Pennyblackmusic Bands' Night in Manchester on November 19th and their forthcoming new album which is due out next year
Article
With the Experimental Pop Band headlining Penny Black's inaugural Manchester gig night at Gullivers 19th November, a show in which lead singer Davey Woodward will also be performimg a solo set to kick-start the evening, Dixie Ernill checks in with Davey for an update from the EPB camp.
PB: You are playing your first Manchester gig in nearly 8 years, do you have anything special lined up for your solo slot? I know you have included the odd Brilliant Corners’ track in your set for previous gigs.
DW: Is it really that long? Hope people still remember us! I’m always writing new stuff so am likely to play songs that are not even on the debut solo album. I also like to improvise songs on the spot when the moods right. Brilliant Corners’ songs? I’ve only played two live in a solo context. 'Growing up Absurd' and 'Teenage'. Might do 'Teenage'?
PB: Your band, the Experimental Pop Band, who are headlining the gig at Gullivers, have a new album recorded. When is this likely to be released and has the muted 'Boxing Gloves Versus the Crayon Set' title been agreed on?
DW: No that title was for the concept album that I shelved, although anyone who is listening to the lyrics on some of the songs on the new album will find reference to it. I was thinking of calling the album ‘Squatters’ but I am also thinking of calling it ‘Vertigo’. I am nearer to a running order than a title.
PB: One of your new songs, 'Bowling", touches upon social unrest and, despite being written before the troubles in your home city of Bristol earlier in the year or the more recent disturbances in Manchester, Birmingham and London, seems particularly poignant. You have always written socially aware songs. Where do you sympathies lie on the issue of rioting to try and make a point?
DW: I think if you are going to riot it is probably best not to do it on your own patch as you are left with even less than you had in the first place. This view of course means that you have an organised political agenda which I don’t think the recent riots had.
The fact that there is, howver, a whole section of society that feels it is marginalised and frustrated can lead to a situation where a group of mainly young people, grow up with no moral qualms. Not having that moral compass or sense of what is just or fair is a very dangerous thing. I think it led to a lot of what we saw around the country. I have a lot of sympathies with the people whose homes or business got wrecked, but I think politicians are as responsible for this as much as the rioters are in that they should take responsibility for creating the conditions for such disturbances in the first place. Now that’s the kind of speech Ed Milliband should be making!
PB: Another of your new songs is 'Transit Van Super-Stardom'. The Experimental Pop Band were 15 years old this year and it's nearly 30 years since the Brilliant Corners first appeared, so you have done your fair share of trekking to gigs in an old transit. Do you think the power of gigging to promote a band's music has been diluted somewhat by the rise of the internet and social networking sites that give access to the music at the click of a mouse?
DW: Watching a band is still the most exciting way to see and hear music and if you can play live consistently it makes a big difference to how many CDs you can sell. Live music will always have the quality to surprise and can be a defining moment in someone’s life somewhere. I don’t think you will ever get that from Facebook. The internet does not have the human connection of a live gig or the warm glow of an old 33rpm album. It’s something else.
PB: Finally, you’ve played Manchester a few times over the years. Any gigs stand out particularly?
DW: Oh yes. I remember the Brilliant Corners playing the Broadwalk the night Arsenal beat Liverpool to win the league. I went on a little drunk. It was packed. Lots of stage diving, which I thought was impossible to do to our music, great night. Hacienda after the gig complete indulgence. I also remember playing the Broadwalk and all our gear getting nicked, not so great! I think someone in Whalley Range must still have my Paisley Telecaster. What they did with the hundred or so Brilliant Corners T shirts is anyone’s guess!
PB: Thank you.
Band Links:-
https://www.facebook.com/The-Experimen
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Expe
Picture Gallery:-
