The following interview is taken from an Irish television show entitled No Disco. In the words of founder Colm O'Callaghan, "the show was devised in 1994 to highlight some of the better off-kilter or left-field music that was around but that wasn't commercial enough for either regular radio or television in Ireland. It was billed as a weekly conversation between music fans and enthusiasts, and initially featured bands like TCS, Radiohead, Freedy Johnson, David Gray and Saint Etienne. Later interviews included REM, Paul Weller, Radiohead and the Beastie Boys."
Host (Donal Dineen): Throughout the last season of No Disco, Trash Can Sinatras emerged as firm favorites to inherit the delicate pop throne vacated by the much lamented Go Betweens. They're Scottish, they've released two classic albums, both of which sold not a lot, they're currently putting the finishing touches to a third, and this week, breaking a two year interview silence, they spoke exclusively to No Disco.
John Douglas: We come from a town called Irvine and it's like there's not a lot to do, there's not a lot going on work-wise or pleasure-wise, and there was always people who were into music; it was a small place so we all got to know people who were into music stuff, and there was bands going around, local bands. A band got together under the name Trash Can Sinatras and it was just like whoever was there in the pub on the night when the band was playing, we'd just go in and support and do covers for beer money kind of thing. Three chord stuff that was, you know, easy (laughs). And Frank was involved in that band and a few nights we played he'd just show me songs before the gig and we'd just go out and play and it just evolved into the kind of lineup where people started to think 'wait a minute, let's kind of write stuff'. So it wasn't like an advertised 'let's form a band thing' or 'let's do a project'. It was just for the sheer enjoyment of playing kind of thing. (pauses) Hopefully there's a bit of that still in there. (laughs)
Well the reasons for doing it, for writing, were just to make good music, really, that was first and foremost. But the way kind of naturally things have evolved for us as songwriters, we never really wanted to write the blueprint of a great song, like people try to write another classic Motown type or a classic ballad, it's not like writing a blueprint. We always wanted to write in our own way and see how it would go on, and that always seems to kind of reflect in the way we try...we don't try; where we come from, people around us, but we do cuz we're at home and when you're at home, you're relaxed...and did a lot of extra writing and that seems to suit the place.
I love melody, I think we try and do that kind of thing. Bands that I like in the past that do that or have done that have always at some stage been recognized, whether it's when they're dead and gone or whether it's while they're still going. But if you try to write, it shouldn't, and try to make it not reminiscent of anything else and try to make it say something, do something...I think that's our main interest.
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Frank Reader: We have our own studio in Kilmarnock, Shabby Road, and usually when people come up they're not used to the surroundings cuz they're quite basic, we produce our own, so there wasn't any kind of attention for that, we were just at home ourselves, taking our time, maybe two or three years were going...but we got an engineer up towards the end, English guy, and just did some of the engineering we needed done. But it was nice, it was unproduced, that's the way it was sounding. A guy who played dulcimer, a guy named David McCluskey from the McCluskey Brothers, and he's been playing dulcimer on a lot of songs so that's given the whole thing a better sound to us which has kind of triggered us off on writing more songs, we've got 22.
It's the best it's ever been, playing live now, cuz I'm getting to pick up a guitar (laughs). I'm not just out on a limb singing anymore. And I think I've noticed that John...Paul and Davey are a bit static I suppose, and he always seems to be on his end with his guitar. We're having a great laugh and I think it's sounding really good now...steady...practice our singing a bit now...I'm really looking forward to it for the first time, for me anyway, I'm looking forward to playing everywhere and anywhere. We're confident...which I just don't know if it's a good thing (laughs).
I probably don't listen to as much music as I did just cuz I can't really, especially cuz we're making the record, and also I'm liable to...you might find yourself kind of copying some of the things, subconsciously. But like John says, there's still a lot our records can do that we can't [can't make this part out]...that's brilliant, imagine that being in the charts. We might even be part of that, want there to be somebody else somewhere going 'that was a bomb, listen to this, this is great, this kind of music'.
We like to make each other laugh with all that stuff, and so it just builds up after a while...got a big book of phrases or whatever and sitting with them. Sometimes it's changed from the last album cuz it was a bit more separate, but that was due to speed, we were on a roll, everybody was writing all the time, concentrating all day. I think there's a bit of resolve, three or four years together, kind of putting it together bit by bit, just overnight, two or three nights.
John Douglas: Years ago people used to do things and they'd work and have pride in it, things made to last. Years ago there used to be a thing for that, people made things to last andthat's kind of away by the wayside these days. Anybody's attitude toward life and work, you should have something in your life if you're working at it, it kind of gives you a satisfaction and it kind of goes, something to do with your life, you know. (pauses) And there's this music, making music. Whether we're bringing in money is another matter, but people seem to think it will, some days I think it will, I don't know, we'll see what happens.
I think the music's great and it's got it's place in the world and it's not really valued place yet...I think it's to be treasured, what we do. But only some days. Other days I think it's just a whole big pile of crap and we're just getting everybody on and the guy's gonna come to the door and say 'right, it's over lads, right back to the dole!' |
