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GUESSMEN
The Newcastle-based band return with their outstanding new album, Back From The Bins, this month. Robert Meddes recently caught up with the band (John Ayres, Tommy Anderson and Alan Edge) to find out what cooks their goose.
Describe your sound to someone who's never heard your stuff before. J: All the music you have ever loved spliced together in one malfunctioning genetic bass monster. T: We’re always trying to implement mad ideas within a rich tapestry of sound whilst still nailing the groove; that’s what we strive for, we’re certainly not one of those rip-off, sound-a-like dirge band that think they’re the Clash or Talking Heads, foolishly chanting their way through some lame jangly Karaoke drone that seems to be dominating the hit parade these days.
Would you describe your music as being accessible? J: Yes. It is pure pop music. Compared to some of the stuff I've been working on (Fan Eater, My Little Pop Group) it’s easy listening, but if you have been living on a diet of saccharine stuffed Cowell-pop, the roughage might be a but much to start with. But it's definitely good for you. T: If you’ve got ears you’ll love it… in fact it’s kind of like having a coin magically produced from behind your ear by a cheeky uncle for the first time… bafflement, then excitement, then laughter, and wanting more. It’s interesting without being too chin-strokey, and mad without being wacky.
You seem to baffle and beguile in equal measure. Do you agree with that? J: There was a great instance at a festival when Alan's brother overheard someone in the crowd say that he didn't understand what was going on – his head said it sounded all wrong, but he couldn't stop his body from moving. This seems to happen quite a lot.
Your debut album, Animals in Suits, was voted album of the year by Coldcut. What did that feel like? J: Coldcut are musicians that we all really respect, we met them at the Diesel U Music awards and got on with them having a really techy natter about software. Their other favourite records were by the Notwist, Cinematic Orchestra and best of all Pitman. It’s great to be mentioned in the same breath as these well-established artists with our debut. T: It’s always good to receive positive feedback about what we do, and to hear it from those boys, the fact that they ‘got it’, was a real boost for us back then.
Your lyrical concerns take in all manner of topics. How do they come about? A: The lyrics are born out of observations, daydreams, memories and wishful thinking, I'm a sucker for environments and atmospheres. I love how one word can say many things due to the expression behind it. I always keep a semiambiguous nature to songs so listeners can interpret meanings for themselves. I see them as little pockets escapism.
Would you describe BFTB as being a darker album than AIS? J: Back From The Bins was developed and recorded over a longer timescale than AIS. We went through all manner of personal ups and downs and some of that might come out in the music - we certainly use music as a form of primal scream therapy. But the Guessmen sense of humour offsets any darkness. We're certainly no whiny Emo band. Although the album goes through a huge range of emotions, there is definitely optimism all the way through. T: There’s a lot of mood and raw emotion in there, and perhaps if isolated some of the tracks could present quite a brooding image, but in context of the album everything takes on a completeness reflecting the good and bad, the ecstasy and despair, the mundane and surreal of human nature and the world around us.
You've collaborated with everyone from visual artists to comedy acts in the past - how did they go down? J: We've had some really successful collaborations with comedy group Bellyrub, with performances at Northern Stage and the release of a CD. I'm really proud of the sound design work we did for The Brain (a short film based on Frankenstein by animator John Chadwick). It was ridiculously detailed and hard work, but our sound works really well with that style of animation. What other job lets you gaffer tape a cushion round your friend's head and then clobber him to make noises?
What are your aims? Is there a Guessmen manifesto? J: Ummm. We've not got a manifesto as such - not like Matthew Herbert's Personal Contract for the Creation of Music, or the Futurists – but we try to keep doing new things. We try to challenge ourselves to make music with whatever is to hand. Allow creative accidents to happen and don’t put off recording just because we aren’t in the best studio environment - the background noises are just as important as the foreground. T: I’d say taking our music to the next stage, to a wider audience is the aim now. We’re planning a UK tour for Summer 2008, and have plenty of tracks on the back burner that are currently filtering through the bedrock to produce pure essence of Guessmen.
Back From The Bins is released on January 28. More info: www.guessmen.net
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