Hiya folks thanks for joining us in the virtual RGM lounge today, grab a brew and take a seat.
What made you decide that music is a thing for you?
Derek – seeing The Beatles performing All You Need Is Love live to an audience of millions around the world.
Alasdair – a couple of friends at school were in a band and it looked like fun….
Introduce us to all of the members and your musical history.
Derek Luckhurst, vocals and co-songwriter, has released several solo albums since the Tales From Europe days
Alasdair Mackenzie, guitarist and co-songwriter, did not pursue a musical career after Tales From Europe split in 1986.
Terry Hiscock, bass.
Neil Seccombe, drums.
Name me your 3 favourite Albums.
Revolver by The Beatles
Grace by Jeff Buckley
Murmur by REM
What was the first song you heard that steered you into a music path?
Derek – Taxman by The Beatles.
Alasdair – Marquee Moon by Television.
The music industry is the hardest industry in the world to progress in, how do you feel you are doing?
It was very difficult the first time around. We’ve just started again and it’s very different now, so we’ll tell you in a few months.
I’m seeing a lot of debate about women not feeling safe at music gigs, any thoughts on what we need to do to help?
Derek states that his stepdaughter and her wife made him aware of an article about this recently. It made for frightening reading to see that 30% of women had faced assault or harassment at festivals. Mandatory training for venue staff which happens at The Dome in Brighton, for example, is essential. Safe spaces would also be a good idea, but I also think bands can help to set a better standard of behaviour by making it clear that this would not be tolerated in interviews and publicity before the event.
As you develop as an artist and develop using socials what ways do you get new ears on your music? Any tips?
We’re looking for tips ourselves, but there’s so much info out there, just Google it. We are using Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and the usual suspects, but the world is very different to when we originally recorded this album in 1983. We’re still trying to navigate the opportunities that social media presents, but we’re learning!
Tell us two truths and a lie about you.
Derek – my maternal grandfather was born in a cave in Italy (true).
Alasdair – I was arrested in Hyde Park for starting a riot (no I didn’t).
Our principles mean we cannot lie (lie).
What’s your thought on Spotify’s monopoly on the music industry?
Mixed views but Spotify gives people a huge range of diverse music to listen to from all eras so that is a good thing. There are also other streaming services if people want to use them.
Do you sign up for any conspiracy theories?
No – most of them are daft.
Did you buy anything you don’t need during the pandemic?
Derek says some expensive equipment to record new songs which I postponed when Alasdair discovered the Tales from Europe master tapes. Hopefully, I’ll use it now Forty has been released.
What was the worst experience on stage?
Probably several but once two quite burly gentlemen came up on stage and I thought they wanted to attack us. They simply started to headbutt the stage in perfect time to the song we were performing but it was scary for a few minutes.
Tell us something about each member that you think people would be surprised about.
Derek is a fanatical follower of Brighton & Hove Albion football club.
Alasdair owns a flock of sheep.
What makes you stand out as a band?
We hope the music makes us standout but it’s also the fact that these recordings are 40 years old, and we had genuinely forgotten most of them. They are certainly different to what we hear in the mainstream now but, arguably, they were equally different to the New Romantic and Dance music that charted at the time the songs were written and recorded. We have another album’s worth of material and are looking to record some new material in the near future.
I hear you have new music, what can you tell us about it.
The songs were all recorded in 1983/4 and the master tapes laid dormant until Alasdair discovered them in his workshop during lockdown. We were really encouraged by the quality of the songs, so we set about restoring, remixing and remastering them. Coming from the analogue world and learning about digital production was a really interesting process. Alasdair’s background in IT helped immensely.
We worked during 2022 to get the ten songs into their current state and we just hope people will enjoy listening to them. We have another batch of 13 songs that will get the same treatment but, for now, we just hope that people still like the strong tunes and choruses. You can dance to them if you have a good imagination.
Talk me through the thought process of the new tunes.
The process was really about whether the sound of the source tapes could be improved and brought up to date without them losing their original feel. We feel this was achieved so decided to release them. The songs were mostly written with us face to face in Alasdair’s old house at the time – literally sitting with two acoustic guitars and coming up with riffs and melodies. Looking back, I’m amazed at how many songs we wrote in a comparatively short period of about two years. Some, which have come back into our memories, have never been recorded so there’s a rich potential source of material available from that period.
What was the recording process like?
We honestly don’t really remember. Derek remembers recording the vocals on some of them, but everyone involved with the band seems to have different memories.
Would you change anything now it’s finished?
No, we’re absolutely delighted with the album as it captures what, looking back, was a fantastic time. It’s made me look forward to working on more material.
Is there anything else you would like to share with the world?
Our new songs!
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