1.At what age did your love of music first begin, and has the importance
of music in your life changed over the years?
Ah, brilliant! I mean Ive always been into music, but I
was quite late really, like I dont remember much from school and
I dont remember much before I kind of got into music if that makes
sense? I remember being in CDT, Craft Design Technology (laughing),
and one of my friends would listen to a Walkman (pausing), I went to
a really strict Catholic School as well and so we werent supposed
to listen to Walkmans, but this teacher was kind of cool and he had
Bummed by the Happy Mondays. Im not a huge Happy Mondays fan by
any stretch, but I just remember listening to it and I hadnt heard
anything like it at the time, and it was literally like 2 months later
that I went to my first concert, which was Daisy Chainsaw. Its
not the sort of music that Im into now, but I hadnt heard
anything like it at the time and I was just absolutely blown away you
know there was stage-diving and it was the first time that Id
ever seen a strobe-light. This was maybe when I was 14 and then Britpop
happened, so that was that really. But my love of music has changed
so much and like I said, I cant remember too much about what I
was like at school, or even what I was into too much before I got into
music, if you know what I mean?
2.I know that youre really excited about the release of The Firebrand
EP, so can you tell us about this and also, if there are any plans for
a Boy Cried Wolf album and tour?
Yeah, absolutely! Im really excited about the EP and its
like an absolute Godsend the way its happened, with James and
Nickys involvement its really galvanised me and the
band quite a lot. Its coming out on November 1 and were
trying to work on tour dates now I think were going to
announce them in the next fortnight, but its obviously quite hard
because Im about to start really in-depth rehearsals with the
Manics and then we go on tour at the end of September, and Im
going to the Czech Republic with them on Wednesday, so Im trying
to fit everything in around it (laughing). But during the Autumn Tour,
were definitely playing in Cardiff the day after the Newport show
and were supporting British Sea Power (excitedly), which is fantastic
news! They knew we were trying to fit in a few of our own dates, so
they said we can support them, which Im really chuffed about,
because Im quite a big fan of theirs and theyve got a cult
following and theyre very lauded and very well-respected musicians.
I quite like the idea of people being hardcore fans of Boy Cried Wolf
as well (laughing)! I would love it if people felt very strongly and
passionate about our music, no matter how big or small the audience
is. Thats why Im still doing it and still plugging away,
because I totally believe in it and I write music from my heart. Its
such fun and its a chance for me to express myself through songwriting,
that I cant see a point where Im not going to want to be
doing it.
3.A new music service called mflow (www.mflow.com) enables
you to follow friends, artists and DJs, listen to songs they rate and
if anyone buys the music you flow, you earn 20% of the price
to spend on more music. Do you think this is a good idea, and if you
were a member, what are some of the songs that you would flow?
Oh wow, that does sound like a good idea, but I hadnt heard
of mflow until you just mentioned it now. At the moment,
Im listening to Arcade Fires new album Nicky Wire
hates them doesnt he (laughs heartily)? Im not like their
biggest fan, Im more of a fan of the new song theyve released
from The Suburbs (pausing), I think the single might also be called
The Suburbs. Im really into that and I went to see a live band
recently in Brighton called the Young Natives I was pretty blown
away, I thought they were fantastic! What else do I like listening to
that I would do that for (thinking)
I heard a single by Wild Beasts,
who are signed to Domino, I like them. Ill give you one more song
that Id flow
Obviously, something from the Manic
Street Preachers new album and (suddenly) oh, The Horrors
anything by them, Im a massive fan! I own Primary Colours on every
format that it was released on, I absolutely love it! Ive listened
to it a whole bunch and I think theyre really superb!
4.Of all your songs to date, which are you most proud of and why?
Its hard, because Ive been in signed bands quite a
bit before and Ive been lucky enough to release a lot of records,
so if Im thinking of going well back to what Im most proud
of (pausing), some of my songs achieved different types of success,
like Thirteen:13 had one song A-listed on Radio 2. But, I think the
song Im most proud of and Im not just saying this
because obviously Boy Cried Wolf is my band now but I think musically
and because me and my heart fits into it, I would say The Firebrand.
It couldnt be more me sort of thing, so Id say thats
one for sure.
5.Thom Yorke once spoke about the power of ambiguity in words
and phrases. Would you agree with that + how do you go about writing
lyrics?
Yeah, I would agree with that and Im just reading a book
about the David Bowie album, Low, at the moment. Only half of that album
is lyrics and half of it is all music, but they said that he was in
such a kind of mad, wild space when he was writing it, that he was almost
detached from writing it. But, I can still listen to the lyrics and
I still love them, because theyre all about isolation and bedroom
angst I really like Low. Im going off track here, but Ive
also been watching loads of Rolling Stones documentaries as well, and
they did that William Burroughs method of writing lyrics, where theyd
cut-out words from anything like magazines and put them together. Theyd
just have all of these phrases and jumble them together and they would
then form the lyrics for a song. I guess its the way they picked
the order of the words, or how Mick Jagger sang the song, as to what
the meaning became. So, I can see what Thom Yorke is saying, you can
probably find meaning and stumble upon something quite poignant, by
snatching phrases or cuttings or snippets or bits that you remember
from lyrics. I mean the way I do it is, I rely a lot on my stream-of-consciousness,
so the first initial stage of me writing a song, will usually be me
picking up an acoustic guitar and I will then murmur words or just try
and find a melody. Through that, I wrote a song called When You Cry
You Cry Alone, which was just me mumbling for half-an-hour or an hour
(laughing). Then, I listened back to the Dictaphone recording of what
I was singing and I just remembered hearing that, and I think thats
very strong, When You Cry You Cry Alone. I wrote the whole song around
the title really I worked out what it meant to me and conjured
up images. Another way I write, is very filmic almost. You know, I imagine
playing the whole scene out in my mind, or on the sheet of paper when
Im writing it, trying to think of it almost as a film (laughing).
If its a love story, Ill think of Betty Blue or Paris Texas,
so its a more kind of fractured love I guess.
6.As a singer-songwriter, are there any singer-songwriters who you greatly
admire?
Yeah, there are so many and I always find that a difficult question,
because my brain just goes into overdrive and I cant actually
remember any! I mean, Im so into David Bowie at the moment and
Im really into Brian Eno as well and his production Ive
been reading up lots about him and following his work from Roxy Music
through to U2 even really. Im trying to think of other people
at the moment that I love (thinking)
Evan Dando Im
a really big Lemonheads fan and I really like his solo album, thats
a big one for me! Id almost have to say Kurt Cobain for once as
well, because you asked me before how I got into music and like most
people my age, 32, Nirvana just had such a profound impact on my life
at the time, that I guess even now, I still think about that. But, there
are so many! Let me give you one more (thinking)
The Beatles
all of them really because their arrangements played a big part
in how I think about music how they tried to push boundaries,
their vocal approaches, just everything really
John Lennon especially.
7.What instruments can you play, and how would you describe your
style of guitar playing?
In my mind, its like the kid at school who thinks hes
the best footballer in the world (laughing), thats how I think
about myself when I play drums I think Im amazing (laughing)!
If I get behind the kit, I just think, That sounds absolutely
brilliant you know (laughing), its wicked! Although everyone
else in the room thinks its an absolute racket! But, I can keep
the beat on the drums. Do I play anything else (thinking)? Yeah, Im
a good bass guitarist and at the moment, Im trawling through eBay
and thrift stores looking for an upright piano, as I want to learn it.
Me and Sean Reed from the Manics, when were touring, we always
think, God, we spend so much time on the bus, that we could be
learning another language (laughing)! But, my thing is, is that
I want to learn how to play piano. I did get into music quite late,
I couldnt play any instruments until I was about 14 really, 15
almost, I picked up a guitar and it was a means to an end you know?
I wanted to be the singer (laughing), but I also wanted to write the
songs, so I just learnt a few chords and then took it from there. But,
it wasnt until quite late on, in my early 20s, that I actually
got properly into playing electric guitar. I never studied it, but I
just played so much and Ive been lucky enough that my job has
always been in music and has been about playing guitar, that Ive
actually ended up pretty good (laughing). I think I would describe my
style of guitar playing as (pausing), its hard, because I think
Im very much a learned rhythm guitarist and it kind of harks back
to not trying to be good at everything really, like I try to pick a
strength. Much like Keith Richards I imagine, I love the idea of really
listening to the drums and really listening to (pausing), I think my
particular brand of playing, I express myself a lot. So I really will
bring my interpretation of what I think the vocal will do, Ill
pre-empt it or Ill pre-empt a lot of things, almost have like
a bit of a map. So, Id say that my rhythm playing is probably
different, because I havent sat down and learnt from a book or
a teacher, I think its much how a singer would sing, how I play
guitar. Its quite individual to me and I think Im a really
good rhythm guitarist and an ok lead person (laughing).
8.Do you know exactly what type of music you want to put your lyrics
to, or does this come about more through jamming with your bandmates?
Um, more often than not, I bring a song to Boy Cried Wolf pretty
fully-formed, apart from maybe the arrangement, which is something that
we work on as a band much more together. But its pretty much me
who writes the song and who has the lyrics when we come in. But in the
band especially Paul, the other guitarist because we work
a lot out of his studio, its a lot about deconstructing as much
as constructing a song, if you get my meaning? We build it up in rehearsals
and then we take it to the studio. Its not a thought-out process,
but it is kind of like we would work for days and days on an idea or
on a rhythm or something like that, but we wont be afraid to scrap
it. Because none of us feel like, Weve got to do this,
because were all in our early 30s basically, so its not
like were trying to compete with anyone. Were just desperate
to make it as good as it possibly can be, so were not afraid and
we dont have any time constraints (pausing), obviously, we want
to get the EP ready because were going to be selling it on the
Manics Tour, which is a fantastic piece of news! Well have a little
corner of their merch world, which will allude to kind of how Nicky
Wire wrote the words on No Comfort From Your Skin, as well as how James
plays the guitar solo and also sings backing vocals.
9.As your songs are full of memorable melodies and hooks from
all of your favourite music, which melodies and hooks instantly spring
to mind?
Ah, brilliant thats a great question and another
way I write, is that Ive been singing melodies and saying we could
almost do something like this for the middle 8. So let me think of some
great melodies that I love at the moment (thinking)
Its
a great question and I dont want to let you down (still thinking)
Im trying to think of the main riff I play on my guitar that I
love playing, if we go up and check the guitars before everyone gets
onstage. Got it, I always play Always On The Run by Lenny Kravitz (laughs
heartily) thats a great riff! But a song that springs to
mind if Im being really honest, is Today by The Smashing Pumpkins,
yeah. Its a riff I always play on the guitar and Ive never
not loved hearing that song, so that would be a big one. Another song
I always play on guitar is Jumping Jack Flash, thats like a really
balls-to-the-wall riff (singing riff). Its cool and I love simplicity
in itself as well you know? I love the lead line to Motorcycle Emptiness
and I hear it so much, especially when it starts speeding up and the
technical ability that James has to play it, it always kind of gets
me! Theres definitely a song by Led Zeppelin I would choose as
well for the melody (pausing), I saw a documentary on them and it had
more of a folky song that I absolutely loved, When The Levee Breaks
or something I think it was. I would love to give you something current
as well, someone new that I love, who I havent mentioned before
(thinking)
Laura Marling, but its so crap now, because I
listen to everything on an iPod, so its very rare that I can remember
song titles, but I do really love Laura Marlings new album and
all of her melodies I think are fantastic!
10.Which stage of creativity do you most enjoy writing, recording
or mixing?
Theyre all great, but Im one of these people who loves
writing and I love the creative process. You know, like with the four
members of our band, I look around the room and I think, thankfully
somewhat begrudgingly including myself We are great
musicians, which is due to our age and due to a lot of the jobs
that we do. Toby is Graham Coxons touring bass player, Paul the
guitarist is just an immense blues musician and a real learned / studied
musician, who can play anything really, really, really well like
mandolins, slide guitar and electric guitar. So I just enjoy that process
so much, sort of being in the room with them and like I said, building
a song up and watching a song grow. But Im very aware that thats
where I believe my strengths lye. I love singing as well (pausing),
I think Thom Yorke again said that when Radiohead were recording OK
Computer, he wanted a different vocal approach and a different vocal
sound for every track on the album, which I thought was absolutely fantastic!
So, I always approach a song not just opening my mouth and singing a
song as I would, its something I really think about and I want
it all to be not different for differents sake, but I almost want
to get into character for each song really, if that makes sense? I enjoy
those processes and I feel that thats where my strengths are.
The production and the mixing (pausing), its not that I dont
enjoy it, its just that I dont think thats where my
strengths lye really. I think its very hard for anyone to be good
at everything sort of thing. I love working with producers and Ive
been really lucky to work with some fantastic ones, like Stephen Street
for example, Steve Osbourne, Tom Elmhirst who mixed Back To Black by
Amy Winehouse, Mike Hedges on The Honeymoon Ive worked
with some great, great people! I enjoy what they bring to the table
a lot, and what they do for the song just as much you know? So yeah,
its more kind of the band and the writing side of things that
I really enjoy, and of course, playing live! Thats a big thing
for me, and hopefully, well get to the stage where we can go on
tour (pausing), well be playing at least 10 dates this year
it will be a mixture between London and Brighton but were
also doing a Cardiff show at The Globe and were hopefully doing
In The City in Manchester, during the Manics Tour as well. So Im
excited about all those things!
11.Have any song ideas ever come to you in your dreams a la Paul McCartney
and Yesterday?
Just last night, we watched On The Waterfront, it was the last
thing that I watched it was 1 oclock in the morning and
we had some downtime so we watched it and then I went to bed.
It was literally one of those moments where I wrote a load of lyrics
on a sheet of paper, and its a new song that were going
to be starting later on! I dont know if youd say it was
a dream, because I was awake (laughing), but the paper and pen were
just there and I was up, just thinking about things, thinking about
films and other little bits and bobs, and then I just wrote these lyrics.
I woke up this morning and said, Oh, theyre interesting
I just went through them. But yeah, sometimes I guess, but its
like I said before, Im all about the You never know when
inspiration will strike approach or anything like that really.
I love the romantic notion that Paul McCartney wrote Yesterday in a
dream, thats absolutely amazing! If I can write anything nearly
as close (pausing), maybe I should try sleeping more and dreaming more
(laughing)! If I could come up with something like Yesterday, I would
definitely go into one of those space capsules and sleep for a couple
of years it would be worth it (laughing)!
12.If you could have played or sung on any album in your record collection,
which one would it have been?
Oh, wow-wee, fantastic! Im trying to not say something boring,
but immediately, Id say Revolver. That would be quite fun! Let
me think again (thinking)
Im trying to think of a current
album that Im absolutely immersed in. The last album that I think
from start to finish just blew me away and I thought, God, this
is almost where I want to be, to say that in truth, it would have
to be OK Computer. How it changed the world massively and just my whole
take on everything is amazing! And just to give you something more current
I know that Ive given you a few here now (laughing)
but Midlake, The Trials Of Van Occupanther. When I toured with James
Dean Bradfield in 2006, we were listening to it then and thats
how we all got into it. We had an advance promo copy as well, because
Nick Dewey who played drums on that tour, he was managing them or something,
so we got to listen to it before everyone else and the song Roscoe was
just on a loop on the bus, as well as a lot of Rush at that time I remember
(laughing). Its not something that Im that into, but its
one of James and Nickys favourite bands! So we listened to a lot
of Rush! But yeah, the Midlake album I first heard on The Great Western
Tour and its an album that I never fail to put on and listen to
madly! I absolutely love the production, the vocals, the lyrics, the
themes, the colours everything about it is brilliant!
13.What else in life do you enjoy + what would be your Mastermind
specialist subject?
Outside of music, friends and family would be a big one. What
else inspires me (thinking)? I mean, our band is based in Brighton but
I live in London, so everyday Im in Brighton, I walk near the
sea and just kind of look out to it and throw stones into it, but I
dont know? I walk a lot (laughing), Im trying to really
think about what inspires me outside of music because it does take up
such a lot of time in my life
Just friends and food, all the good
stuff really, and reading but when I read, its usually
about music and musicians anyway (laughing)! My Mastermind
specialist subject would be, let me think (long pause + thinking)
I couldnt pick something music-related, because it would be borderline
obsession (laughing)! What do I know a lot about that I wouldnt
completely shame myself on (thinking)? Im pretty good at football,
but would I go on for that? I dont know? Im trying to think,
The Wire knows so much about everything, he really is just like a fountain
of knowledge! So if I think I know a lot about sport or a particular
sport, he knows so much more than me (laughs heartily)! Let me think
(long pause + thinking)
William Burroughs actually. Ive
read all of his books and Ive read biogs about him, I know obscure
spoken-word albums that hes done, and Im sure there would
be a question on Who did he collaborate with? like
Kurt Cobain and all that sort of stuff. So maybe I could just about
pass on that. I would have to re-read a whole lot of stuff and get into
him again, but Ill say that for now, William Burroughs.
14.As a member of a new group, do you think its important that
small venues are saved for the sake of up-and-coming musicians?
Oh, I mean, I couldnt feel more strongly about it really
you know? Again, harking back to when I was a teenager, there was just
nothing like it and I dont think there ever will be again. I have
a 9-year-old son and his favourite band are 30 Seconds To Mars, and
with their concerts, there are people stage-diving and theres
mosh-pits and theres all of this stuff going on and he was saying,
I want to do that, I want to do that! Im just thinking
that even that aspect has changed, and even though for some it may be
for the better, its all just so sanitised at the moment isnt
it? The thing about the smaller venues is, is thats where you
can at least still possibly get a snippet of rock n roll
and real sweat and real grit and history written on the walls. Rather
than these fucking 02 Academys (pausing), not to slag them off (laughing),
because were playing shows at them on this tour. But yeah, I feel
very strongly about it and the best thing about doing The Great Western
Tour with James, was that all of the venues that I played before in
all my bands which I was kind of blown away to be playing
like the Oxford Zodiac, the Barfly in London which I played a whole
bunch of times (pausing), in fact, all of the Barflys. Like in Cardiff
to everywhere we went, to the Bristol Fleece & Firkin it
has pillars in front of the stage so you cant see anything (laughing)
but I played there a few times. We didnt play there on
The Great Western Tour, but we did the others and James would get so
wound up and hed be so nervous and I was like, 'Its amazing
that this small venue can do this to James! But he feels it as
well, it is just as important if not more important that
a small crowd can still make you nervous. Its a bit more unforgiving
in a way as well, isnt it? You only have 100-150 people intently
focused on you. I think theyre so important and just yesterday,
we went into a pub thats been really gentrified and it had really
nice tasting ales, it had a really great menu, wooden floors and tables.
So it was like, This is nice, but isnt this kind of killing
out the old mans pub? What I love and whats great
about Britain in a lot of ways, is that we have a pub on every corner
and theyre all very individual. I guess thats another thing
Im trying to say, is that with all of these venues, theres
no individualism it doesnt really matter where you go to
see a band, like these Academys. Because theyre all mapped out
to a certain spec and are all the same, do you know what I mean? Thats
the idea of touring, to play and hear your sound in different venues,
knowing that they all have a different history and that some legendary
acts have played there. Its like it is was then, rather than being
decked out to an Academy blueprint or whatevers going to help
them sell more beer. I think its so important and I give respect
to bands who even if I cant stand their music theres
lots of bands who, for example (laughing), Keane I cant
stand their music but Ill leave it there (laughing) but
the Bull & Gate was closing down and their first ever gig was there
I think, so they played there again. Radiohead played at the Oxford
Zodiac. I went to see Coldplay play at the Bull & Gate with Terris,
who were on the cover of the NME one time. I saw Oasis at the old Marquee
Club (pausing), the old Marquee Club was the best, no doubt about it
it was just amazing! I saw some great bands there, with Oasis
being just so unreal, it really was jaw-droppingly amazing and it was
packed to the rafters! But now, its like a pub and no-one drinks
in there, its horrible, its like an old Wetherspoons pub
and I just think about the history that venue had and how great it was
and how I would have sorely loved to have played there. The Astorias
gone you know, I saw the Manics play there on The Holy Bible Tour, I
saw Richey play there and The Holy Bible is an album that I loved then
and its still an album that I still love now! We got to play there
on the Send Away The Tigers Tour, we played 3 nights in succession at
the Forum, the Astoria and then at the Shepherds Bush Empire,
but the Astoria gig was one of my favourite moments ever! Id seen
so many bands there I saw the Manics there and then we got to
play it and it really was just amazing with the balcony up the top.
But now its gone. Its tough, and I know a lot of people
who have seen bands at the Astoria and who had grown up in the last
20 years of music, that were really sad to see it go. And The Town &
Country Club which used to be the best venue I saw The
Smashing Pumpkins there, I saw Babes In Toyland there, it was just the
best venue, but now its an Academy and the whole vibe of the place
has changed. Its just different, even though its the same
venue and the stage is in the same place. Thank God its still
there though, but for how long I dont know, but it has changed
slightly you know? The romance has gone.
15.Of new artists / bands, are there any who you think have the potential
to become festival headliners + is there a time when you think a lot
of cool groups emerged as part of a music scene?
God, its amazing when you dont pick up a music magazine,
and I listen to Radio 2 a lot, so I dont think my fingers
on the pulse of new music at all (laughing)! But yeah, I think there
is a lot of good music and theres a lot of stuff that Im
hearing at the moment that I really like. I dont know if they
have the potential to become festival headliners, possibly, but The
xx are a band that really move me and everytime I hear their songs on
the radio, I think, Yeah, thats top-notch! Id
like to think that Laura Marling would one day step up to the plate
I imagine she would be absolutely brilliant on a bigger stage!
Other young exciting bands, God, Im struggling to think (long
pause + thinking)
Wild Beasts again, the last 3 songs that Ive
heard from them have been really something different, like the high
falsetto he sings with and how he sings about really strange stuff as
well. So, I like them. Ill give you one more (thinking)
Think Wayne think, bands that I want to go and see now, possibly bands
on at Reading Festival (thinking)
I dont know, give me a
clue Steve (laughing)!
*I say to Wayne that my favourite new band of recent times are without
a doubt, The Joy Formidable, who I think are absolutely brilliant and
definitely have the potential to become festival headliners! I also
remark how lovely they all are and that Ritzy is a complete sweetheart*
Oh brilliant, yeah, absolutely they supported Paul McCartney
with the Manics in Cardiff. I saw them and couldnt place the name,
but I remember when I saw the girl, I thought, Ive seen
her up the top of a mountain with her band (Whirring promo video).
Good for you Steve! Im such a huge fan of both PJ Harvey and John
Parish I absolutely love PJ Harvey, shes in my MySpace
Top Friends and is a massive inspirational figure to me. But yeah,
I think we need more, more, more female singers! I really like Karen
O from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs as well. You also asked me Is there
a time when I think a lot of cool groups emerged as part of a music
scene? Can I say Britpop (laughing)? As I said, I remember that
Id just got into music and I got into music late, I got into Grunge
initially and all of the bands around at the time like Mudhoney, Pearl
Jam, The Smashing Pumpkins
But then Britpop did come along and
for me, I was just getting into music and in a way, 14 is quite late
to start your love affair with what would completely take over everything
that I used to think about. From The Beatles to Led Zeppelin to The
Stones and whatever would come later, like David Bowie. But when Britpop
came along, I just found it (pausing), when I saw Suede, I just thought
this is beyond sexy, cool and raucous and their first album absolutely
blew me away you know? I just remember being such a fan of theirs, and
then there was Blur and I saw Radiohead really early on supporting The
Frank And Walters, which is the most bizarre thing ever! I remember
hearing Creep and there was like a pocket of fans in The Frank And Walters
crowd that actually loved them! And even though some of the bands were
absolutely dreadful i.e. The Frank And Walters, The Sultans Of Ping
and Jacobs Mouse, there was stuff around it and happening
like you would see Radiohead support them. But even the crap bands,
I was having such a good time, but then the bubble did burst and when
I started listening to more and more new music and getting into it,
bands like Pavement would come along. When Slanted And Enchanted came
out, I think Britpop was still happening, but thats when I was
cottoning onto the fact that theres actually so much good music
out there, its ridiculous and a lot better music than all
of the stuff that I was listening to at the time (laughing)! But at
the time, I was having a really good time listening to Britpop. I cant
even for the life of me remember what year that would have been, but
it was the beginning of Britpop and there was The Good Mixer and Blur
(pausing), I used to live in Camden and I used to be very close to Food
Records at the time. Andy Ross, who signed Blur, was a big figure in
all of our lives really. He would be in the office everyday, and wed
go in and listen to music all day, then wed go and place some
bets, go to The Good Mixer, drink, play pool and talk music. I was only
17 or 18 at the time, so as you can imagine, I was very impressionable
and it meant the world to me, especially being a big Blur fan as well
obviously.
16.Can you remember how you felt when the Manic Street Preachers
asked you to join them as a touring guitarist, and whats it like
being onstage and on-the-road with them?
I remember when it happened really, really well actually. Im
very good friends with Martin Hall, their manager, and I think they
had a meeting (pausing), I think this is how it happened
Nicky
had seen some footage of me playing with James at the V Festival, it
was on television, then he kind of mentioned to James (laughing), Whats
the story with Wayne? Can he actually play the guitar? Is he any good?
and James was like, Yeah, hes really good and hes
really cool. I think Send Away The Tigers was shaping up to sound
quite big and everything else, so they thought the idea of getting a
guitarist who could also sing would be quite a good plus. So, I didnt
get asked, I think Martin told me or kind of sounded me out about it
and I was just like, Yeah, that would be the most amazing thing
in the world! Even though I had played with James and that was
nerve-wracking enough there was so much homework and so much
worrying about it beforehand. But it all turned out to be absolutely
fine, and it was so much fun and so inspiring and I had learnt so much
already, that by the time I got to play with the Manics, youd
have thought that I would have been quite cool, I can handle this
kind of thing (laughing), but I was an absolute nervous wreck! I think
the first song we laid into was (pausing), Ive got a feeling it
could have been Everything Must Go. Its quite a challenging song
and Im quite exposed in the parts Im playing, that I completely
panicked, I was just so nervous (laughing)! The first gig we ever did
was the Winter Wonderland and I was 20 minutes late meeting the band
in London, which didnt go down well at all. I just remember standing
behind the curtain before showtime and they were nervous and I just
had a real moment, I looked at my guitar tech when I was walking onstage
and I could feel myself mouthing the words, Help me (laughing).
But it was too late you know, 1,2,3 and we were into You Love Us and
then thankfully, everything kind of kicked in and it went fine. But,
I still get moments where I cant believe it, in anything that
we do. It could be really small, it could be lounging around at Faster
Studio or James will buy me lunch and Ill be like, Oh, cool
(laughing). I still get pinch-me moments all the time, and
I think its something that everyone whos involved with the
Manics from the crew, to me and Sean, to the management, to everyone
that I see who they met when Everything Must Go and This Is My Truth
was out. Theres a real air of huge respect and a genuine love
for the band, and I think that carries on to everyone whos involved
in it. So yeah, it means a hell of a lot to me really, and it still
does it means as much to me now, as it did when I first started!
17.Do you have a favourite Manics era / any favourite songs, albums,
artwork and videos + how did you find learning tracks from their back
catalogue any particularly tricky ones?
The videos for Everything Must Go and If You Tolerate This, I
always remember being really kind of visually blown away by I
think especially Everything Must Go, because of the strings and how
grand it sounds. Personally, for me, I couldnt remember hearing
anything like it at the time, how epic it sounded and then theres
obviously A Design For Life. But my favourite era I would have to say,
is The Holy Bible. Theyre the songs I look for on a set list,
like Faster, and Ive learnt so many of those songs. I know were
going to hopefully be doing another couple on this new tour, ones we
havent done before, or at least one that we havent done
before. But I think The Holy Bible again, for James guitar playing
and how angular it sounds everything about the album really!
I do love singing the harmonies in the band, so a song like Autumnsong
is something that I always look for on the set list and I think, God,
I cant wait for it to get to this song! We just started
playing Tsunami again after a long time, it was 8 years since theyd
played it, and even though Im quite exposed again I play
the arpeggio line in it and I do a lot of singing on that song as well
even though its challenging, I kind of get a bit of nervous
energy. Like, I wouldnt be nervous about playing You Love Us or
Motown Junk, because punk rock is very natural and its maybe a
chance to kind of lose myself and jump around a bit. But if you watch
me in Tsunami (laughing), Ill be standing as still as if a shark
was on fucking stage really (laughing), because of the concentration
it requires. Lots of tracks from their back catalogue were tricky to
learn though, and the big joke on tour is Indian Summer was a
big one because its got a capo on the 4th fret and I start the
whole song off but all of us have to start something off in this
band really. Whether its James on Jackie Collins, Sean Reed on
Send Away The Tigers, or if its me on Indian Summer. Theyll
always be something that (pausing), I dont know why, youre
there on your own and youre not playing to a click-track or anything
and Sean Moores not there to count you in, youre just there
on your own (laughing)! Suffice to say, the first show of the Send Away
The Tigers Tour, I played the first bit perfectly and then just started
to kind of lose it, and James told me afterwards that he wasnt
even angry, he just thought, Go on Wayne, you can do it
(laughing)! Im trying to think of some of the more difficult songs
to play (pausing), the maddest thing about the Manics, is that its
all so different really, so a song like Sleepflower is a completely
different technical way of playing guitar. James can do it all really,
but for me, its kind of like, Right, I need to get my metal
head on here a little bit, because its all palm muting and
very different. Then I will literally put the guitar down, pick up an
acoustic and well be playing Ocean Spray, which is a completely
different style. Also, swapping from such big songs like Faster, which
is so dug in and really about the rhythm and keeping the (singing rapid
beat), which is really hard to do. Sometimes, the simplest things are
the hardest things to do, and then you put the guitar down and youll
be playing Little Baby Nothing, which is quite a soft acoustic song,
for me anyway, because I get to strum the guitar. Its just all
of the different styles of playing, because they have so many different
albums and theyve moved forward with their music and wanted to
do different things, which is now more grandiose I think. I mean this
new album is going to surprise a lot of people I think, and it sounds
absolutely fantastic theres shades of the Manics that Ive
never heard before that are really interesting and again, its
kind of picking your brain. As I said, there are some real technical
things that are quite hard, Tsunami being one of them (laughing)!
18.What do you think of the bands devoted fanbase and have you
had the opportunity to meet many fans over the years?
Yeah, I have, Ive got to know quite a few of them and theyve
been so kind, theyve come to Boy Cried Wolf shows and Ive
become quite good friends with some of them actually they even
help out with Boy Cried Wolf on the Internet side of things. Beforehand,
even if I was into another band like The Cure and I went to a festival,
Id always see the Manics fans and it would always intrigue
me enough, to find out about the band. Thats almost like how I
started to find out about The Holy Bible in the first place really,
just looking at their fans and thinking even subconsciously thinking
thats a Manic Street Preachers fan and thats a Manic
Street Preachers fan. Even though I didnt know much about the
band, it occurred to me then, just how loyal their fanbase was. Like
at a festival with 70,000 people, you could spot their fans from miles
away you know? It would all be about effort! Not only do the fans follow
them around the world and go to every gig on the tour and stuff like
that, but they make such a huge effort to kind of dress up and I cant
tell you how fantastic I think it is really. I know it means a lot to
the Manics as well its something that they talk about and
its not to be taken lightly.
*I say to Wayne, that James recently mentioned in a radio interview
with BBC Wales, that when fans first started dressing up like the Manics
and he felt like the band had their own audience, it was a moment that
made him very proud*
Ahh, thats amazing!
19.What have been some of your personal highlights / defining moments,
during your career so far?
I think Ill go with in no particular order
just what springs to mind. Having Nicky Wire hand me a lyric sheet for
a song that Id given him a really rough Dictaphone demo of
it didnt have a title then, but its now called No Comfort
From Your Skin he heard it and he really liked the song, and
he gave me this really beautiful hand-written lyric sheet with pictures
on and you know, Nickys kind of scrawling. I was like, It
doesnt get much better than this! Then Boy Cried Wolf got
offered a week at their studio and James came down and said, If
you want me to play on anything just let me know. So he plays
the guitar solo and I asked him to do a few harmonies, but I cant
tell you just how much that meant to me. It really was like, go back
and have a little quiet weep sort of moment you know, This is
as good as it gets. I remember in my band Thirteen:13, we played
a gig at Dingwalls in London and its quite a big small venue if
that makes sense? We sold it out and we just had the most fantastic
gig it was the first gig we did an encore at and I just remember
leaving the stage and thinking that if the band split up or we get dropped,
it would be ok, because of this show sort of thing. And it was, it did
mean everything to me! Then I have a real knack of what the Manics perceive
as the worst gigs or really troublesome gigs, of walking into the dressing
room afterwards (laughing) and saying That was the best gig ever!
I remember Glastonbury, Nicky just absolutely hated it and was swearing
and really was on the verge of walking offstage we were on the
Pyramid Stage and it was all muddy, it was horrible. But, Id wanted
to play on the Pyramid Stage for so long and it just so happened that
my sound onstage was absolutely perfect! James kind of almost overcompensated,
by really going absolutely mad, mock poses and hardcore soloing (laughing),
and everything was turned up so loud that I just absolutely loved it!
Then there was the V Festival, we were second from headline and it was
pitch black, there were lights all over, a huge, huge audience and it
was on my Birthday, so James got the audience to sing Happy Birthday
to me. So that was a real moment, and of course, theres all of
the travelling that the Manics allows me to do. The American Tour was
another absolute highlight of my career for sure! Touring America on
a bus and driving all over the country, no planes and playing at these
venues and seeing how happy it made the Manics as well, because every
night was sold out and again in America, theres a real hardcore
fanbase. It was just fantastic to see and everything about it
for all of us made it the most enjoyable trip!
20.Lastly, chips or cream buns?
Ooh (thinking), its going to have to be chips!
*I mention that all of the Manics went for chips as well*
I can well imagine (laughing)! On tour, well drive miles
out of our way to find a good chippy (laughs heartily)!
A very special thanks to Wayne for all of his time
and help. Stay Beautiful.
www.boycriedwolf.co.uk
www.myspace.com/boycriedwolf
Thats just what we get for falling in love
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