http://www.dotmusic.com/interviews//February2003/interviews28312.asp Fri 14 Feb 2003 15:20 BLUR INTERVIEW by Chris Heath Blur's Dave Rowntree broke the band's silence on their new album by answering dotmusic's question via a secure online chatroom earlier today. The drummer elaborated on rumours, quashed hearsay, made concrete statements on the band's direction and gave us the most revealing picture to date of the long-awaited new material. So without further a do, read Dave's thoughts on... On the guitarist drama: "There isn't a new guitarist, Graham always was and always will be the Blur guitarist and one of my best friends. We filled up the hole left by the guitar with backing vocals and percussion. The backing vocals became the lead instrument in that way. Simon (Tong) and five other musicians have been hired for gigs and to make the live experience a bit more like the record. Simon will bring his own style or have the most miserable year of his life I can imagine." On a Coxon comeback: "Who knows what the future holds. We're all still friends." On playing old tracks on tour: "We've got plenty of plans but it depends on what the odd material sounds like played without Graham. We will know better next week because we start rehearsing on Monday." On Norman Cook's apparent falling out with Graham: "Norman is an old friend of the band and likes Graham a lot. Don't believe anything you don't see on our website." On their influences: "Everything goes into the brain and it must all come out again somehow but if I list some "influences" people will assume that the record will sound like them - it doesn't. I suppose what I'm trying to say is, we don't sit around in the studio waiting to be inspired, we just get on with it. There's no better substitute for brains than fuel." On the anti-war stance: "That's just Damon, it's not a band position." On the spirit in the band right now: "Very up. It's easy to be optimistic when you've made a good record. It is an album like no other as far as we are concerned. It is the best record we have ever made by a long way." On expectation for the album: "We don't really make plans for how things will turn out but we were aware that we had to make the record of our lives or people would write us off. We did much more work than we needed to. We started nearly 40 songs and finished nearly 30. There are several huge hit singles that haven't made it on to the album. I say it sounds the most like 'Parklife' though it doesn't really sound like any of them." On the production duties: "Norman Cook produced two tracks and the rest were produced by us and Ben Hillier. A lot of songs went out to the leftfield before being reigned back in afterwards. Two tracks stayed out there, the rest got produced back into album tracks. (William Orbit) tried to do some additional production on some tracks but it didn't work out. "We asked (The Neptunes) and they said 'yes' but in the music business that's a long way from it actually happening. In the end we didn't need them so we saved ourselves a few quid." On Dave's drumming: "I tried to do more things than play a drum kit. I used a lot of electronic and acoustic percussion but played drums as well." On the African influence: "I think we changed as people in Morocco but we were conscious of the pitfalls of making a token 'Morocco' album. Damon learned to play the guitar in Mali so the guitar on the album is recorded in that style. I think Gorillaz had less of an influence. No one can play the guitar will such naispazzyness as Damon. He should be hospitalised." On the Britpop movie, Live Forever: "I haven't seen it. I don't think Damon was very happy with his contribution." On other Blur projects: "I played on the Gorillaz album and I'm a fan of Mali Music. I also played on Fat Les and toured with The Graham Experience. I rock as I said." On rumours Phil Daniels is on the LP: "Phil is always around. He pops up, says something lovely and disappears again." On dance influences: "It's Damon's apology for staying out late one night." On where Blur be in 5 years: "Don't scare me with the 5 years thing." -- Life is a compromise anyway. --

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