QUEUE & AYE

Hello to you all and thanks for your questions. Thanks also to the site moderators Stephanie, Dr Sebastian and Rebecca who have done a fine job in whittling down the list. I realise how patient many of you have been waiting for news that never seems to arrive but, if there is no news to speak of, then why speak? There seems to be an obsession with news for news sake nowadays but in an era when we’re drowning beneath tidal waves of culture, media and infotainment then perhaps sometimes simple silence is the preferred option? Anyway, thanks for your continued interest in this site and I’ll now endeavour to answer as clearly as I can.

1. Stephanie - What have you been doing musically since Meltdown? If writing some new material, please drop a hint. If revisiting old, ditto.

I’ve taken a lot of time away from music for personal and business reasons since Meltdown. I’m finally settling down to work and concentrating on several projects which are in various states of completion although none of them are what might be called ‘traditional’ TheThe albums (if I can use that term) in that they are collaborations with various artists from different fields including film, photography, poetry, spoken word, sculpture as well as music. I feel I’ve drained the particular well from where many of my previous albums came from and that my future probably now lies in more esoteric and experimental projects, some of which may not even involve music at all. Although these releases may be less commercially viable than albums I’ve released in the past I just feel they will provide me with greater satisfaction than covering well worn ground. When will these projects be available for release? Well, as you know, I hate to give out exact dates for fear of failing to deliver on time and so perpetuating the perception of wheezing slowness but around summer 2005 should be a fair bet. Just don’t hold your breath. I don’t want to be responsible for any deaths.

2. H.B – Looking at the state of the world today, particularly regarding the effects of 9/11, will the next Thethe album be predominantly concerned with politics and or/religion. Or, will it further explore the ‘heart’s desires’?

Looking at the state of the world today? Yes, it is deeply worrying to say the least. Although I suppose if we had the ability to time travel it would be hard to locate an era in human history that wasn’t deeply troubled through wars, disease, fear and ignorance so we mustn’t let things get on top of us too much and there is still much to be thankful for in modern society. But back to your question. If or when I begin writing songs again it will probably be the latter but who knows? As all this recent terror has been unleashed from both sides of the war in the name of religion, freedom, democracy, national security amongst other things I find myself slack jawed and speechless for the most part. in particular the recent development of pyschopaths sawing heads off innocent victims in front of video cameras. Like many in the West I find it hard to comprehend the sheer barbarity of it but then criminals are routinely beheaded in places like Saudi Arabia so it’s not as shocking from the Islamic perspective. The purpose is obviously to create as much impact as possible in the West’s media in order to strike abject terror into our hearts so it is working to an extent. I do try to see things from both sides and I do realise the sheer seething hatred that is driving these people is not jealousy of our ‘freedom’ and ‘way of life’ as certain people would like us to believe but by the injustices, perceived and real, visited upon them over decades, even centuries. They ask why is it more acceptable for their women and children to be slaughtered by our military than it is for ours to be slaughtered by their militia? So I try to understand the rationale behind this awful growing hatred although I still find it very hard to comprehend the barbarity of what we’ve been recently witnessing.

3.Noodles – when will we see you live again (preferably Colchester Arts centre)?

There are no plans for TheThe (or myself for that matter) to appear live again. The Meltdown show the other year may well have been the very last TheThe live performance. Never say never of course (as I like to reserve the right to change my mind) and I do have many, many wonderful memories of performing live but as I type this the thought of root canal work without anaesthetic is more appetising than dragging a band, crew and my good self around the globe on another lengthy and expensive jaunt. I may do a lengthy tour of ‘days-off’ and after-show-parties (without the shows of course!) but that is sort of what I have been doing anyway.

4.Dr. Seb - Meltdown, whilst contentious was (IMHO) incredible. Apart from the obvious question as to when (if ever) we’ll get the chance to get our hands on it, do you have plans to create any more ambient tracks or return to precious favourites and give them the ambient treatment again?

I do have all the tapes and films from Meltdown and intend to release this collaboration with Jim Thirlwell and Benn Northover as part of the above mentioned series. As I’m sure you will agree, this should have been released quite some time ago (after all this show was over two years ago!) but my time has been dominated by other matters and I would rather release it in context of an ongoing series of work than in isolation and without proper care and attention given to it’s promotion. I’m not too keen on returning to old favourites anymore as I really want to move on with new ideas but certainly some slow/ambient type instrumentals are something that greatly appeals for certain projects. In fact talking of which, Thomas Feiner has just recorded a stunning version of This is The Day which will feature on our upcoming oTHErs project. I actually prefer his version ito mine.

5.Soyomega – I would love to see a Back To Mine by you. Would you do it if offered and what are some of the tracks you would include?

Sorry for my ignorance but what is Back To Mine? Some kind of Unplugged thing?

6.The Whisperer – Have you achieved all that you hoped for when you set out as a musician?

I’m not sure what I did hope to achieve when I set out as a musician. What were my schoolboy daydreams? A vague idea of independence and being able to support myself without doing a proper job? Travelling the world? Meeting lots of great people? (especially members of the opposite sex) and the freedom to fully express myself? I’ve been very lucky to have achieved all that and more yet still this vague, dull ache of dissatisfaction and failure permeates my thought processes. But isn’t that the case with most people’s lives?

7. Only – Have you ever felt betrayed by your own words because of how others interpret them?

Everyone will bring their own experiences to bear upon songs, films, stories, paintings and in fact everything they encounter in life. As soon as it leaves the relative privacy of the studio and enters the public domain a song is open to misinterpretation, or reinterpretation is probably a better way of putting it. I think my songs by and large are fairly self explanatory as compared to some of my contemporaries but that’s not saying it’s best to be explicit rather than vague. Sometimes it is best to leave things totally open for people to interpret with their own imagination and other times it may be better to forcefully hammer a specific point home.

8. Bryn – Do you have any pre-performance rituals/warms ups before live shows?

During a show day I’ll try to ensure access to a swimming pool in the early afternoon (it really opens up the chest for singing) I also like to be left alone in my room at the hotel for a couple of hours before the show in order to meditate and exercise. When we arrive at the venue I like to have about 15 minutes doing some basic voice warm up techniques. Does it make for a better show? Who knows? Some may say not but it does put me fully in my body and help to focus the mind. Besides, I love a good ritual!

9.FNG – What is your favourite TheThe Album track and why?

Probably Love is Stronger Than Death because it contains some of my best lyrics but more importantly because it was written for my younger brother Eugene after he died tragically at such a young age. Also musically I’m pleased with the way the dynamics of the chord structure follow the emotional dynamics of the lyrics. It’s a very simple song but it says exactly what I wanted to say with minimum fuss.

10.H.B Has there ever been a topic that you just wanted to write about but just couldn't?

I don’t think so but let me think about that one.

11.Theo – What is Out of the Blue about? I’ve had a discussion with other fans. Some seem to think it’s about a male virgin paying to lose his virginity while others seem to think it’s about someone who has HIV and infects a prostitute to spread the disease. Who is right?

It’s hard to go back in time and try to remember what exactly fired the creative impulse behind a specific song, and this one is about 20 years old, but I can tell you it was neither of the above. What always amused me about this song was that at the time of it’s release it came in for quite a bit of flack from politically correct male journalists for being sexist, which of course it wasn’t. In fact it turned out to be a favourite song of many female members of my audience who felt parts of it accurately described male sexuality as they had experienced it and were interested to see the subject addressed in quite a self critical and vulnerable way. Of course the use of whorehouses and hookers as both a metaphorical and factual description of events is nothing new, as a cursory listen to old blues records will reveal, but trying to go back in time to remember what it was about specifically? From my perspective now simply loneliness, desire, alienation and of course a yearning for human contact and intimacy.

12.The Cardinal – What do you think about George W Bush? Who would you vote for if you could in the US elections?

As you would probably suspect I’m no great fan of George W Bush. Not of him nor the sinister cabal of neo conservative industrialists and military hawks gathered around him in this darkness. This is the most extreme right wing administration in the history of America. They are peddling fairy tales dressed up as moral certainties. I am very wary of fundamentalists regardless of their political or religious hue and I don’t trust anything about the Bush administration. They quickly managed to squander the vast reservoir of global goodwill felt towards the US after 911 and have now managed to alienate most of the planet towards their country. They have also plunged their country deep into the red financially with irresponsible tax cuts for the ultra rich and another massive expansion of military spending. The phrase “Snouts in the trough” springs to mind. Not to even mention their stance on environmental issues where the term ‘Flat Earth Society’ wouldn’t be out of place. A change of administration is vital not only for the well-being of the planet but also to the US itself. To date Kerry’s campaign has seemed uninspired to say the least but I’d take him over Bush every day of the week. The real trouble of course is that America’s political system is drenched to the core in corruption and whoever wins will have to start repaying favours to the huge corporations that funded their respective campaigns.

13.Steph -Do you reckon Heartland's’ "This is the 51st state of the USA" still sums us Brits up or do you take a different view?

I do think Britain has become even more Americanised over the past 18 years. Just a cursory flick through our television stations will tell you that. Plus we do seem even more subservient to the US in a military sense than ever before. I am not anti-American as I have lived there on and off for many years but I just think Britain should maintain it’s own unique identity and voice. On a more general note there does seem to be something troubling the soul of this country of ours. I’m fortunate enough (and grateful with it) to be able to spend a lot of my time living abroad and certain things do shock me every time I come back. The grubbiness, unreliability and incompetence encountered on a day to day level in London is almost third world in places. Also the level of casual violence, aggression and stupidity that seems prevalent from big cities all the way down to small towns and country villages is very disturbing. I think there’s no denying that the dross pumped out of many TV channels and newspapers must be having some effect on the national psyche and one can’t help wondering what kind of national identity and future we really have. Of course it’s not all bad and the best way of getting on with your life is to just filter the negative stuff out of your mind and concentrate on the positive but there are some worrying trends gathering pace here and as usual commerce and greed seem to take priority over common sense and social responsibility when it comes to making laws. For instance on the one hand you have the government relaxing the alcohol licensing laws yet bemoaning the fact that teenage alcoholism and drink related anti-social behaviour and violence is skyrocketing on the other. They can’t have it both ways although we all know it’s the loot the booze industry pours into the treasury coffers that probably concerns them most. Now that our fabled ‘service industry’ jobs are following manufacturing jobs out of the door and half way round the world you have to wonder what we actually do here anymore except consume. It is consumption that seems to be keeping this island afloat. From booze, fags (and the dubious delights of our night-time economy) mobile phones and, if they have their way, these new mega casinos. And who do we really think will be hurt by this encouragement to gamble? Common sense would suggest it will be those who can least afford it but the goverments argument that those opposed to these new laws are just snobs who don’t want working class people to enjoy themselves is bizarre to say the least. If you took that argument to its logical conclusion you may as well legalise hard drugs too. Indeed, why shouldn’t people enjoy themselves!? As anyone with an ounce of common sense can tell you gambling can cause as much misery as hard drugs to those caught in the middle. It is addictive and once the genie is out of the bottle it will be hard to get it back in again. And who is agitating the government for the deregulation that will allow these mega-casinos to open? It’s not working class British people but mainly vast corporate US concerns that see big fat profits to be made and taken out of this country. It’s just another form of taxation in more ways than one. Yes I would say every year Britain is becoming more Americanised in many ways.

14.Steph- What do you think about Tony Blair’s New Labour project and his term in general?

Quite simply a missed opportunity. New Labour could and should have been bolder with their massive majorities after two landslide victories but they long seem to have lost their way. The old saying “Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely” seems particularly apt with Tony Blair. Nowadays he seems out of touch with his own party, with the electorate, in fact with everyone except his wife, Peter Mandelson and of course George W Bush. Do his decisions reflect strength of mind and an indication of a powerful long term vision? Or just plain ego mania and control freakery. The latter looks the most likely to my eyes. I think perhaps there should be a two rule term for British politicians too. Look what happened to Thatcher? It seems Blair is also becoming drunk on his own power.

15.jmishica – How’s the family?

Fine thanks.

16.Soyomega – If you were to create art in any other medium besides music what would it be?

If I were starting out now I’d go into film as I think music, by and large, is increasingly becoming a spent force. But it saddens me the British film industry is so feeble. If you compare us to the French it is quite startling. By and large they make films for themselves whereas most of our filmmakers try to make films for America. It is a big mistake in my view. I think I can count the current decent young British filmmakers on one hand, the most notable of whom is Shane Meadows, who in my opinion is the natural heir to Ken Loach and Mike Leigh. I hope he stays and continues making British films for a British audience and serves as an example for young British filmmakers to follow.

17.Dr.Seb – Can you still relate to the youth who created Burning Blue Soul, or does he feel a stranger to you now? Do you think he would like what he has become?

I can relate to fragments I suppose but it’s like looking back over old diaries and photo albums in that I barely recognise the person I was. Would he like what I have become? Interesting question. Possibly not. I’m probably too hedonistic for him. Too lazy too. He’d probably want to give me a swift boot up the backside and urge me to get back to writing songs. The sad thing is that when I was in my late teens and early twenties music took up about 80% of my time with 20% dedicated to the rest but now the ratio is, at best, reversed. Other responsibilities come to the fore and their just isn’t the same amount of time. It’s just life really.

18.Murbella - How do you feel when one of your fans tells you, you changed his or her life through your lyrics and music?

It’s very flattering of course and probably the most noble thing you can achieve in the grubby and egotistical little business that is music. Whenever I hear that a song of mine has genuinely touched someone and that they have got out of it what I have attempted to put into it then of course I’m very happy at a job well done.

19. Only - Arvo Part (the composer for lonely flights) once said that in his music he is trying to capture the internal human conflict between our concepts of time and timelessness. Was he just being pretentious or actually onto something, do you think?

I’m a fan of Arvo Part. Was he being pretentious? I don’t think so. It’s his music and only he really knows what he’s trying to achieve so if he says he trying to capture the internal human conflict between our concepts of time and timelessness then I for one wouldn’t disagree with him. Personally I think that time is an illusion any way. I’m sure many of you have had experiences of it slowing down and speeding up (even without the use of hallucinogenics!) but I’m sure the great mystery of time and space (among other things) is revealed to all of us moments after death.

20.Only – What is scarier, to be afraid of anything in particular, or to be afraid of one’s own fear?

To be afraid of something in particular surely. You know that it is real and that it is actually going to get you!

21. Bryn- what did you think of Beckham’s penalty shot against Portugal in the European Cup shootout?

Part of me felt very sorry for him because it was quite obvious, after the awful few months he’d had, that things just were not going to fall right for him, but another part of me felt that much of the pressure is self induced because of his addiction to the limelight. What goes up must come down and with the British media in particular being so cynical and envious of success the knives were drawn from their sheaths and the dogs of war were unleashed upon the poor lad. But on the other hand maybe Sir Alex Ferguson had a point and Beckham’s off field activities were really taking their toll. You live by the sword and you die by it too, as they say.

And on that note.