07 November 2005

Interview with Peter Hook -> Freebass


Filter magazine has a pretty good interview with Peter Hook (bass player for New Order/Joy Division) and you can read it ALL or keep reading below for the bit that interested me the most:


Q: Tell me about Freebass. You started a band with Mani from the Stone Roses, Andy Rourke of the Smiths and yourself. Three bass players. Is this just going to be a recording project or will it be live as well?
A:It’s going to be a live as well. The interesting thing about Freebass is that Mani and I are very much live-based. It seems obvious really that we’d get together. Whether that bodes trouble or not, I don’t know. Whether or not bass players have a different mindset than the other members of groups. I don’t know. We’ll have to find out. It was just one drunken night and I floated the idea. And basically what gave me the most impetus was that everyone laughed! Three bass players on an album! Everyone absolutely pissed themselves. (laughs)

Q: Where are you with that? When will we hear it?
A: We have about 19 ideas. Twelve of them are ready for vocals. We’ve had a problem finding a vocalist. We have not been lucky yet to find the one. I think the problem is that the three of us have such a pedigree of vocalist, that if we come out with someone that’s not good we’ll obviously be slated! You’ve got Ian Brown, bloody Bobby Gillespie, Ian Curtis, Bernard (Sumner) and Morrissey. Those are big shoes to fill, especially collectively.

Q: It would also be daunting to come in a room and see you three staring at me.
A: Yeah, we want someone young with something to say. Someone new. We don’t to be some kind of rock supergroup for the sake of being a supergroup. You want to change things and say something fresh and new so you appeal to people as a new group. It has been difficult. Every time I see "Pop Idol" or "X-Factor," I chuckle and think maybe we need to do this. "Miserable Factor"! Let’s see who can get the most miserable single! (Laughs.) Maybe we have to go to Seattle where it’s rainy.

Q: Is it rocking? Is it rhythmic or dance?
A: Ironically enough…it sounds like New Order with a bit of the Stone Roses and a bit of Smiths and some Northern Soul. Andy and Mani, they DJ and they play a lot of Northern Soul. Quite Northern English, you’ll see.

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