I met Texas Terri in Berlin last February and we recorded the interview we missed in Marseille last year in November when she played at la machine à coudre during her European tour 2008 with her band Texas Terri Bomb : Texas Terri (vocals), Beano Skint (bass), Olivier « the Inspector » (guitar), Marina Maniac (drums).
Texas with her band in Marseille; Texas and Coco at Tiki Heart Berlin
This time we had the great pleasure to talk quietly at Tiki Heart a nice bar beside Wild at Heart (my favorite berliner punk rock club) about her long musical carrier who started in Austin (Texas) then in Los Angeles during many years before she decided to live in Berlin. Her talk is like she is : honest, direct, sincere, funny, touching, volcanic without compromise !!
Texas and Marina; Texas « the female Mick Jagger » in action !
I played some songs’ excerpts from her album « Your lips…my ass » : Never Shut Up, Strike, Dirty Action, The Rocker, One Hit Wonder, Oh Yeah! where a lot of famous American musicians participated to the recording : Wayne Kramer (MC5) Sonny Vincent, Marc Diamond (Motochrist), Ryan Roxie (Alice Cooper) Cherrie Currie (Runaways) just to mention some of them + an Iggy Popp’s cover I recorded Live in Marseille : I wanna be your dog !
Texas and Beano; Texas and Marina : chicks who rock !!
Meltingpod Connection :
Not better news from Mick Cocks than to see him Live on stage with Angry Anderson and Rose Tattoo in Sydney July 24th 2009 !!!
review about the show HERE. My best thoughts to you Mick !
Rodolphe Burger was invited by Marsatac in the Festival de Marseille to work with 6 young musicians from Beyrouth in Libanon and one musician from Marseille in the context of a project called « Mix Up Beyrouth » : what a great idea which at last gave me the opportunity to do a Live interview with one of my favorite French musicians !
Rodolphe Burger (guitar and vocals) during the show Mix Up Beyrouth; Rodolphe with Julien Perraudeau (bass).
Mix Up Beyrouth Live in Marseille !! a short clip but a great moment !
Rodolphe with Ziad Saad (keyboards, vocals, guitar); Rodolphe with Rayess Bek (vocals and computer) in the background Julien and Ziad.
Rodolphe met these 7 musicians from Beyrouth and Marseille for the first time just 10 days before the show and it really was a challenge to be creative and in harmony in a so short period of time : but they got it !! Second step in September for the Marsatac festival’s overture : don’t miss them if you’re in the area !
Youmma Saba (vocals guitar) Rodolphe, Julien and Ziad.
the whole band (from right to left) : Frederic Nevchehirlian (vocals guitar), Fady Tabbal (multi-instumentist), Youmma, Abed Kobeissy (busuk), Rodolphe, Julien, Ziad and Rayess.
Ziad taking the vocals, Youmma and Rayess during the encore !
The Laughing Clowns part 2 and a 50 mn long show with Jeffrey Wegener the drummer at last on Meltingpod !! We started when Jeffrey met Chris Bailey and Ed Kuepper at school in the 70’s, his first show with Kid Galahad and the Eternals aka The Saints, the first meeting with Ed back from London to found the Laughing Clowns in 78/79 and then we entered more in the details of the music and his work with Ed.
Ed in Dresden June 2009, Jeffrey at Mt Buller January 2009 (thanks to Justin for this nice pic !)
I played a lot of songs’ excerpts from their 3 albums compilation Cruel But Fair (Lucky Days, Ghost of an Ideal Wife, Holy Joe, Song Of Joy, Time No Hit But Missed) and The Laughing Clowns’ last album recorded Live at GoMa in Brisbane last January and produced by Ed’s own label Prince Melon Records (Bully in the Town, Come One Come All and Eternally yours) !!
The current line-up is : Ed Kuepper (guitar vocals) Jeffrey Wegener (drums) Louise Elliott (sax flute)) Leslie Millar (upright bass) and Alister Spencer (keyboards).
Ed and Jeffrey in Australia 2008 (pic from the greensea); Ed in Dresden with the Bad Seeds 2009
We closed the show with some of Jeffrey’s memories when he played with Nick Cave and his band the Birthday Party in 84 and the last performance at ATP in January 2009 in Australia which reunited the Laughing Clowns, The Saints and Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds the same days in Sydney !
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds with Ed Kuepper at the guitar : I couldn’t miss that event for nothing even if I had to travel to Dresden in Germany (close to the Czech Republic !) June 21th (the Music Day in France !) to see them for the unique show which was not played in a festival during their current European tour 2009.
A nice intimate atmosphere in Junge Garde, an amphitheater with 3500 people (ref.the press) among the beautiful trees in the town’s central park, which allowed me to be in front of the stage without any big troubles : I can’t appreciate a show at another place, so close to the energy !
Nick Cave the charismatic poet and Ed Kuepper the guitar’s devil !!
Nick Cave taking the guitar to add still more electricity in the air…the threatened dark clouds disappeared subitely from the sky for our luck (it was raining almost all the time I was in Dresden !!).
Nick happy to have put the rose he got from a fan in Warren Ellis ‘ shirt : the poor had the both hands busy on his violin and couldn’t protest; Nick outside the stage, fascinating the audience with his voice and hands…
« Midnight Man »‘s excerpt just to give you an idea of the ambiance Live on stage and surely one of my favorite songs !
Ed Kuepper very focused in the music, Thomas Wyller who did a fantastic job using every tools which make sounds to beat his drums; Nick always involved 100% in his lyrics. The words I can remember which chronologically came through my head during the show : Magnifique, Excellent, Intensity, a dramatic intensity which gives you thrills on the skin.
« Papa Won’t Leave You Henry »‘s excerpt : a magic moment with Ed Kuepper at the acoustic guitar accompagning Nick Cave who told us a new story always as close as possible to the audience…
All the 7 Bad Seeds on the same pic (from right to left) : Ed Kuepper (guitar), Thomas Wyller (drums), Conway Savage (keyboards), Martyn Casey (bass), Jim Sclavunos (drums), Nick Cave (vocals, guitar and keyboards), Warren Ellis (very small guitar and violin).
Ed Kuepper and Nick Cave constantly moving from a place to another one; another word coming to my head later was : Elegance in their attitudes, subtleties in the light shows (which unfortunately were not really captured by my slow camera) and sometime the feeling to penetrate in their musical laboratory where they are re-creating Live a new performance every night. By the way, even if front of the stage the sound quality was simply perfect ! Congratulations to Matt Crosby the sound engineer !
Ed, Nick and Thomas; Nick often pointing the sky; everybody singing the backing vocals. The show started precisely at 8:30 pm with the twilight and fortunately finished at 10:30 in the night allowing us to appreciate at least the colorfull light show with the music climbing in crescendo until the last song « Get Ready For Love » and the red and white lights effects at their maximum : Nice sentence for a goodbye !
PS : I was allowed by the security to enter in the audience with my small compact camera (no extra lens; the clips are just filmed with the basic video option) thanks to the management teams who are admitting right now that everybody who has a mobile phone in his pocket has in the same time a camera and a video recorder too. Nice they accepted now my little camera without phone. In fact at the AC/DC’s show in Marseille it was allowed too but I didn’t know it ! I dedicated all these pics and clips to Nick Cave’s and Ed Kuepper’s fans in Australia hoping you could see them Live too one day ! Thanks to Martyn and Gudrun who were my fantastic hosts in Dresden ! Thanks to Ed for everything : terrific to see him again in person and on the stage ! Long Life to the Bad Seeds !! For the European fans, check their tour’s next dates on their myspace pages and don’t miss them !
Meltingpod Connections : Update June 29th
I found Dresden gig’s set list in Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds Forum : Tupelo, Dig Lazarus Dig !!!, Red Right Hand, Deanna, Midnight Man, The Ship Song, Henry Lee, Moonland, The Mercy Seat, Love Letter, There She Goes My Beautiful World, The Weeping Song, Papa Won’t Leave You Henry, Stagger Lee, (encore) Breathless, Straight To You, We Call Upon The Author, Jesus Of The Moon, Get Ready For Love and Lucy !! btw : I’m sure « Get Ready For Love » was the last song though…:)
PS : Thanks to the Queensland Music Festival, Ed’s next act after this tour, who chose my very first video at l’Olympia 2008 to present Ed’s work !!
I had no photo pass, got no interview with Angus Young, sorry but with an invitation in the pocket, dressed in black with my Tatts shirt I was ready to front the big stadium Velodrome in Marseille and welcome these Australian rockers in our town with 50 000 fans !! Who said rock and roll is dead in France !! The biggest moment for me was surely AC/DC‘s entrance on stage; watch this video thanks to a fan : Sex and Rock and Roll…train !!
Obviously there was a locomotive on stage, later a giant plastic Whole Lotta Rosie who rided on it, some excited girls in bra in the audience appeared shortly in the giant screens to cheers of the crowd, then Angus made his own striptease showing us at the end just his tagged underpants,
I danced like a crazy when I heard one of my favorite songs « Shot down in flames » but around me the people looked at me like a Martian…most of them only knew the last album…yeah the true fans were in front of the stage but the security guards didn’t allow me to join them. What can I say : I missed Bon Scott all the time but the Young brothers didn’t disappoint me, Angus was the devil incarnated all the time, even after a 15 mn solo in the middle of the stadium he kept giving and spreading his incredible energy in the show and in the music until the extreme limit.
Brian Johnson made his best though : « It’s rock and roll Marseille » and the public wearing thousands brighting red hornes on the head shouted : « Yeah » !! The band answered with an explosive cocktail : TNT, Highway to Hell, For those about to rock…we salute you !! and Firework !
A great rock and roll show in the tradition : it was the first time I saw AC/DC, I was happy to be there that night. Thanks to my sponsor and to my friend Pirlouiiiit from LiveInMarseille for the nice pics !!
Still a little video for the end ? Angus’ strip tease ?…:) Ok, here you go :
By the way if you want to hear a very special and seducing version from Highway to Hell, listen to the one from Ed Kuepper !! For info, Ed is playing guitar with Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and touring Europe in a couple of days from June 12th to July 19th ! Try to cross their road if you can !
A Live Interview with Rob Younger (ex Radio Birman) playing in Marseille with The New Christs : what a pleasure for me and I hope for you ! Rob allowed me to record the show and I illustrated the interview with some Live songs’ excerpts among the excited dancing crowd !
We spoke with Rob Younger about their current European tour, their ex-label Citadel where Rob was the producer, Radio Birman, the New Christs’ current line-up, the song writing process, the Saints’s last show at ATP, the girls in Marseille…:)
Rob Younger and Jim Dickson (both in Radio Birman before); Rob Younger; Jim and Brent; Dave and Rob
The New Christs’ line up 2006-2009 is Rob Younger (vocals), Jim Dickson (bass), Brent Williams (guitar), Dave Kettley (lead guitar) and Stuart Wilson (drums).
The French band Holy Curse opened the show for the New Christs that night in Marseille : a big thanks to Paulo the guitarist who organized the whole thing (the first time in Marseille for the New Christs) and to Vinz the bass guitarist (with Dimi Dero Inc too) who made the meeting and interview with Rob possible in a very relaxed and friendly ambiance !
Rob and Jim; Rob fronting a very attentive audience during the quiet parts of the show (last pic from my friend Pirlouiiiit photographer at LiveInMarseille review in French here; I’m somewhere in front of the stage !)
The New Christs are touring Europe right now with a new album « Gloria » : check their site and don’t miss them !!!
BTW : A little back in the history to 77 : Live at Paddington Town Hall where The Saints gave such a good show too, in the same year Rob Younger with…Radio Birman !!!
The Laughing Clowns, Ed Kuepper‘s second band after The Saints, reformed last January at All Tomorrow’s parties festival, after a 25 years long break !! In that interview Ed speaks about this exciting experience to play again with Louise Elliott (saxophone) Jeffrey Wegener (drums) Leslie Millar (upright bass); Alister Spencer joined them at the keyboards.
Ed Kuepper and Jeffrey Wegener at GoMA 2009 (Thanks Justin for the pics)
Ed formed that band in Sydney in 1979 and after producing many albums and performing with different line-ups the band spit up in 1984. We spoke about the writing song process and their projects for the future.
I illustrate Ed’s talk with many songs from the compilation « Cruel but Fair » : Diabolic creature, Ghost beat, That’s the way it goes, Stinking to High Heaven, Winter’s way + some surprises like Jeffrey’s and the King of disco’s short appearances !
Ed Kuepper, Louise Elliott and Leslie « Biff » Millar (Justin‘s great pics)
I close the show with Eternally yours recorded Live at GoMa (Gallery of Modern Art) in Brisbane after the ATP tour last January in Australia : Ed sent me that special file to play it on Meltingpod, Enjoy !! A Live album and a DVD recorded during that whole performance should be released by Prince Melon Records very soon.
If you’re Australian, don’t miss their next shows : in Melbourne May 1st, in Sydney May 2sd and 3rd !!!
Four years ago I published my first podcast on Meltingpod !! A incredible adventure which started in 2004 from the USA with Adam Curry (the podfather) and Dave Winner and for me with my friend Michael Butler from San Francisco who hosts the Rock and Roll Geek Show…So I chose to play a lot of songs from American bands for that fourth anniversary !
Frank Meyer (the Street Walkin’s Cheetahs – L.A.)
I started with a song called « Annie » by Copperpot (New Jersey) Michael found and dedicated me on his own show, then : The Hangmen (L.A.) : Here she comes Kick Kick (Kansas) : Heart over the bar Frank Meyer and Thor (L.A.) : Standing On The Edge Of Hell Small Doses (Washington DC) : B-Train Michael Butler & American Heartbreak (S. Francisco) : Things are looking up Texas Terri Bomb (L.A.) : Dream Wrecker
I hope you will enjoy that rock and roll from Obama’s country !!…
and a kind of my first birthday’s song coming from Australia…:)
The Angels from Australia created a new website when Doc Neeson joined the band again at the vocals and I’m happy to see they gave me a nice place in their news page remembering to their fans all the infos I published on Meltingpod about the band between 2005 and 2008 : 13 podcasts-phone interviews with Buzz Bidstrup, John and Rick Brewster, Doc Neeson and around 30 reviews about some of their special events and shows.
It’s time now to the Angels to come and sing their famous song « Marseille » (written in 78) IN Marseille !! Hoping some help from the sky will accompagn our efforts to meet each other in person soon !!
A little video I filmed during a funny party in Marseille and I chose to publish today to wish my blog Meltingpod a nice 4th anniversary : All their secret rituals will be revealed to you by the Irishmen themselves…at least !!
There even is a special mention to Chris Bailey from the Saints (the first Irishman I met in my life !!), if you’re attentive…:)
This « intercultural » party closed in fact an European one week long exchange between young people coming from Ireland, Spain, Italy and France organized by Eurocircle Marseille in September 2008.
In this podcast and interview ED KUEPPER explains how he is joining NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS for their next European tour this Summer !! He is playing guitar in the band for a lot of festivals after Mick Harvey one of the founding member and guitarist left at the end of the ATP 2009 in Australia.
The Saints and the Bad Seeds at ATP in Sydney January 2009 (thanks Judi !)
Invited by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds (ATP’s curators) Ed Kuepper and Chris Bailey reformed with their drummer Ivor Hay The Saints‘ original line-up for 6 shows during that festival last January and they added Archie Larizza at the bass and a three pieces horn section. We spoke with Ed about the rehearsals and specially about two songs I heard through the internet and recorded Live by fans : One Way Street in Melbourne (a new/old version!!) and Nights in Venice in Mt Buller.
Chris Bailey and Ed Kuepper together on stage with the Saints at ATP (Mt Buller) January 9th 2009 (pics Black Shadow Photography)
But Nick Cave invited Ed to reform the Laughing Clowns for three shows at ATP too, two shows being scheduled in the same night than the Saints !! I played for the first time on Meltingpod some Laughing Clowns’ songs : « New Bully in the Town », »As your bridges burn behind you » (studio versions) and a excerpt from « Come One Come All » (recorded Live at Mt Buller by a fan). In the second part of the podcast we will speak with Ed about the Laughing Clowns’ reunion after 25 years and their projects in the next future with more songs’ excerpts from that incredible band !!! (post punk ???..:)
Louise Elliott, Biff Millar and Ed Kuepper with the Laughing Clowns at ATP (Mt Buller) January 10th 2009 (pics James Edge)
In this second part of the interview with Ed Kuepper we started when The Saints arrived in London in 77 in the punk mouvement’s explosion. Ed explains how their musical evolution was bad accepted in that context, by their fans, the medias and at the end by their record company EMI : the song « Know your product » signed the debut of the hostilities because they dared to add a horn section to the band. They released their second album Eternally yours in a progressive misunderstanding until they split the band in 78 after finishing the mix of their third album Prehistoric Sounds.
Ed Kuepper in 77 in London (pic from Ed’s myspace); The Saints in 77 : Chris, Ivor, Kym and Ed (pic from the vine.com.au) Who sang : nice boys don’t play rock and roll ?…:)
I play a lot of songs from these both albums to illustrate Ed’s talk, hoping you will appreciate at least the Saints for what they were at that time : a great and innovative band paying the high price for their freedom and independance in the music industry.
short memento about that period to fix some dates (thanks to Ed !!) :
1970 : Chris and Ed’s first meeting at school in Brisbane
1973 : Chris, Ed and Ivor’s first show at the school party; a few months later they formed the band « Kid Galahad and the Eternals »
1974 : Chris, Ed, Ivor and Kym formed The Saints
1976 : I’m Stranded (the single) recorded in june Brisbane released in sept 76 on Fatal records; (the LP) recorded in october 76 Brisbane and released in feb 77 by EMI/Harvest/Sire
1977 : The Saints’ arrival in London; This perfect day [single] recorded London may 77 [the 2 songs on the b-side were recorded in feb 77 Sydney) One, two, three, four (EP) recorded London june 77; Algy Ward replaced Kym Bradshaw at the bass in June; Eternally yours (LP) : recorded in oct 77 released feb 78 Harvest
1978 : Prehistoric Sounds (LP) : recorded in april 78; the Saints split after the mix !! the album was released in aug/sept 78 in the UK but only in 79 in Australia.
No wonder when Ed formed the Laughing Clowns in 79 he created in 1980 his own label Prince Melon Records. In 2008 he re-launched his label to produce his solo albums and this month he reformed the Clowns for the ATP festival with new shows announced next May in Sydney !!
Ed Kuepper and Chris Bailey having fun on stage together again with the Saints’ original line-up 30 years later in Melbourne 10 days ago (pics Carbie Warbie!!) : when I told you 2009 will be an erotic year…:)
Carbie sent me both pics more in exclusive (because he loves Meltingpod I guess) telling me it was a moment of the show where Chris said to the crowd a lot of kind words about Ed until helping him to play guitar noticing Ed was exhausted after the first encore…sweet !
First French Woman in Podcasting – Meltingpod : the Queen of Rock and Roll Podcasters will rock your world Live from Marseille
