The Seeds of expectation
FOR a town of its stature Whitehaven does well, musically. Big names of in the music world regularly visit and what’s more they all love it; particularly the great reception they get. But next February sees what is, as yet, a quite rare public performance. It’s by The Lightning Seeds – of Three Lions fame – a band that doesn’t get out a lot! Here, CHRIS BREEN, talks to founding member, Liverpudlian Ian Broudie - as he munches a tuna sandwich in his Liverpool studio - about whether we’re in for a lot more than a Life of Riley
IAN BROUDIE readily admits that he’s a melody man when it comes to his music.
“It’s important to me to have to have a strong melody and that the lyrics are good,” which comes through in several of the big hits penned by the Lightning Seeds frontman, such as Life of Riley, Lucky You, and Pure.
Ian was a punk, a producer, a pop star and had one of the 90s' biggest hits with Three Lions – and then seemed to go into hiding from music for a decade.
So Whitehaven is quite privileged to be kicking off a nine-date tour by the band, on Thursday February 9, 2012, at the Civic Hall, a tour that also takes in Leeds and Liverpool and London before ending in Buxton. Like Whitehaven they are all smaller, intimate venues and the band plans an amazing show.
“We’ll be playing 90 per cent of the old stuff,” said Ian but there will be some new songs and we want to play some of our older songs that we haven’t played for a while.”
Ian lives in London and has his studio in Liverpool so he spends a lot of time toggling. between the two, this gives him some thinking time, enough to have about 100 songs and ideas kicking around in his brain. “But none of them are finished,” he confessed, “though I am working towards a new album,” he said, “but it won’t be out by February, when I’m in Whitehaven.” He hopes to have the album finished next summer.
But he IS looking forward to the Seeds’ Whitehaven gig.
“It’ll be fun, and I’m really looking forward to the whole tour. I do enjoy playing and performing and it’s something that I haven’t had the chance to do in recent times.” Once highly nervous before performing Ian has greater confidence nowadays.
“After all this time I’m starting to feel comfortable playing live, but I never did and would get very nervous about it. I never started playing live until the third album, Jollification.
Nor is he a man for wasting time, which is why he’s spent so much time in the studio. “I realised that there was a lot of hanging about when you are a performer, but in the studio you can work with music all the time.”
Q Who have been your greatest musical influences ?
He replied: “Earlier on it was Bob Dylan, Motown Music, and David Bowie. In fact I chose the name “Lightning Seeds” after mis-hearing a Bowie lyric (‘The thunder hides what the lightning sees’) and because, one day, I dreamed of forming a group. Later influences include De La Soul, the New York hip hop trio best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop.
Q What the best gig you have ever been to?
“The Ramones and Talking Heads at Liverpool Eric's. I couldn't believe a band could be so fast - it was like being hit by a sledgehammer. I had a leather jacket; really badly bleached hair -- so it was ginger and a big jumper. I totally wanted to be in the Ramones.
Ian’s time out of music, in the late 90s, early 2000s saw him go through a very dark period. He returned to writing about 2008 after a lot of turmoil in the past decade, including the break-up of his marriage, the death of his sister Sharon, suddenly, from a brain tumour; his elder brother Robert's suicide and the death of both of his parents, so his next album was always likely to be more melancholy. He listened to more music than ever, finding that, through writing songs he was able to confront feelings he was unable to talk through. Music is "where I go", he says.
Many anticipated a second solo album but Four Winds emerged in 2009 under the Lightning Seeds’ name, though originally conceived as a solo album.
Though the songs are heart-breaking Ian he has often said that Four Winds is not, a "document to sadness,” but rather an album of emotional extremes. The Lightning Seeds’ records have often blurred melancholy and euphoria. Three Lions really reflected disappointment, whereas Pure - the apparently joyous breakthrough song from 1989 - was saying: "These moments can't last. It's the opposite of Live Forever. “I can't be described as a happy person, but I'm certainly not morose."
“I don't want to come across as a tortured artist, What I went through is no worse than what many people suffer”.
During his studio years Ian had helped The Zutons, The Coral and others on the way to fame and even now he’s working with couple of young Liverpool bands, although he says: “I think I have done my stint as a producer”.
By 2009 various festival dates were arranged and in early 2010 a full tour was announced, eight dates, full band, as the Lightning Seeds Easter Tour. The Lightning Seeds ended 2010 with a 22 date tour with Squeeze and in Summer 2011 made a number of festival appearances.
And what about that famous Three Lions football anthem?
Ian said: “I never sat down to write an anthem and there was really no pressure on me to do so, but at the time I’d been watching Fantasy Football and felt David Baddiel and Frank Skinner connected with the game at that time. Without them I probably wouldn’t have bothered. I had a melody kicking about and thought it would just fit, and with David and Frank we came up with Three Lions, around that time. It was really exciting with the Euro Finals, and the song just seemed to hit the spot.
But don’t necessarily expect to hear it at the Whitehaven gig.
“Though it’s our biggest song, I don’t play it as part our set, except if it’s an occasion that fits the song. I see it as like singing Christmas carols when it’s not Christmas, hopefully if they hear our other stuff like Pure, Lucky You and You Showed Me, they’ll think “I remember that,” and “I know that one,” and usually it’s all OK.
The Lightning Seeds were formed by Ian Broudie in 1989. After being involved with numerous bands in post-punk Liverpool, including Big in Japan which included Bill Drummond (later to manage Echo and the Bunnymen before forming the KLF), Budgie (later of Siouxsie and the Banshees), Jayne Casey (co-founder of Liverpool superclub Cream) and Holly Johnson (who became the singer of Frankie Goes to Hollywood). See them at Whitehaven Civic Hall on Thursday February 9th 2012.
