En Attendant, Belgium, May 1980 - (translated from French)

- On the records, the whole band gets credits for the songs but the basic ideas and the lyrics come from you, don't they ?

Robert: Yes, I usually come up with the basic ideas. For this record (17 Seconds), I had most of the songs on tape. Just guitar chords I recorded along with a bass pedal and drum machine. Some kind of demos. I played them to Lol and Michael. Lol liked them, Michael didn't. It's one of the reasons he's not with us anymore. I played them to Simon, who wasn't in the band at the time, and he liked them a lot. So the songs existed before we got into the studio, but just in rough form. Once the backing tracks were recorded, everyone added what they thought was good.


- How come all the songs have that enigmatic and gloomy atmosphere. Was it because of the circumstances surrounding the writing process ?

Robert : Yes, they were all written within two weeks and recorded a month later in about five days. It was very intense and very fast, which explains the recurring theme on all the songs. They all talk about the same feeling, but viewed from slightly different angles.


- Your songs aren't very exactly happy. Are you an introvert and depressed kind of person ?

Robert : Yes, I suppose. I'm usually very quiet, but I can do excessive things. Not because I want to show myself like this, but because I can't stand rules and I want to prove that you can break them sometimes. But most of the times, I write when I'm really depressed. Just, it's not what people are depressed about usually, like jobs or money... it's less obvious situations. I wrote all the songs from Seventeen Seconds just after breaking up with the girl who was my girlfriend for the last five years. Anybody would be depressed in that case. I recovered.


- Let's talk about the musicians. What interests you outside of the band ?

Lol : Fishing.

Matthew : Lotte Lenya, watching TV...

Simon : Watching TV, beating up girls...


- Quite thoughtful that...

Matthew : Don't pay attention, it's not true.

Simon : Yes, it's true !


- Why beating up girls, because it's easier than boys ?

Simon : No, it's because they like it more !

Matthew : My favorite hobby is to beat up Lawrence.


- Seriously, what do you like to do outside of music ? Do you read ?

Robert : I read a lot. I'm reading "Words" by Sartre at the moment.

Matthew : I read Beano.

Simon : I haven't learn how to read yet.

Robert : Lol reads Enid Blyton books under Jean Genet's sleeves.

Simon : When I said beating up girls, it was a joke, eh !


- I know...

Simon : When I'm home, I spend all my time kissing my girlfriend, actually.

Matthew : That's why he didn't have the time to learn how to read !


- What kind of music do you listen to at home ?

Matthew : David Bowie, Kurt Weil, Berthold Brecht, Lotte Lenya, I quite like Sparks as well...

Robert : ...and Dan Fogelberg, The Eagles, John Denver... Anybody who's above 30 !

Matthew : I don't listen to Dan Fogelberg or The Eagles ! Robert only listens to people who died unnoticed anyway.


- Is it bad to be over 30 ?

Robert : Let's say it's rather unfortunate.


- But it will happen to you too one day !

Robert : No, it won't.

Matthew : You want to die before that then ? That's quite old. It's very 1973 !


- More 1964 : "My generation" - "Hope I die before I get old"...

Robert : 1959, actually...

Lol : 1945 and 1933 too !

- Anyway. So what kind of music do you listen to, Robert ?

Robert : Anything. I'm not interested in a particular style. If you could see the tapes I have in my bag, you would be very surprised. There's lots of things : Janis Ian, Elvis Costello, classical music, Jimi Hendrix, Nick Drake, music from the 20's... Anything actually. I don't like to listen to contemporary music because I fear I may steal something unconsciously. But I like to hear what's happening at least once because I'm curious. Simon, otherwise, listens to the Cockney Rejects.

Matthew : No, the Doolies !

Simon : Er, yes, the Dollies. But my Mum has to put the records on because I don't know how to use the record player yet.


- Do you live with your parents ?

Matthew : We all live with our parents. We feel good there and it wouldn't make sense to rent a place which would be empty most of the time, because we're constantly on tour.

Simon : And I like my Mum. It's good to see her after being on the road !

Robert : I like my Mum because she does my laundry. Besides, we rehearse where I live...


- Don't the neighbours complain ?

Robert : Oh yes ! They sent people from the town hall with things to measure the sound level. But my mother gets out of the house and shouts at them and they leave. Everybody's afraid of her in the neighbourhood. No, more seriously, it's tense. In England, if three persons complain about the same noise, the police comes to investigate. My neighbours play cricket at 7am. So, the last time they came, I told them that noise of the ball and the bat drove me crazy and I would easily find other people to complain about that. Since then, they leave us alone. But they hate us !


- You're not considered as the local stars ?

Robert : Nobody in my block knows who I am !

Lol : People spit at us when we walk on the main street together !

Robert : That's typical Crawley, one of the most horrible place in the world. But it's good to come back there from time to time. The frustration we get from living in a suburb gives us the strength to escape from it.

Interview : Nadine Milo - Photo : Philippe Carly