Interviews & Media Articles

Source: Delirious - Promise CD
Date: Jun 1997

Craig: Here we are in Brighton with Delirious?, taking a break from doing a bit of recording today and they're just going to answer a few questions about themselves and what they're up to.

Martin: Afternoon Craig!

C: Good afternoon guys. Well first of all, tell us what you're up to today.

Stu G: We've been recording some acoustic tracks today, doing something a bit different, stripping things a bit barer and putting it down for the next single project.
M: We've got these two CD singles that have come out, as you've probably discovered by now. We wanted to make the second one really special for the fans, like a little collector's piece. We've got this chatty little bit and hello everyone!

C: You mentioned the fans, you've got quite a few fans. That shows you've been around for quite a while. Tell us, when did Delirious? start?

Tim: Well the band started about 4 years ago and it's just a year ago that we gave our jobs up. Since that time we've been doing a lot of gigs, 2 or 3 a week normally and probably playing to about 10,000 people every month at things all over the country.

C: So you were doing jobs, you weren't full-time musicians before then? What were you doing?

T: I was running a studio.
Stew: I was designing.
Jon: I was at art school.
M: I was engineering in studios.
SG: And I was an electrician.

C: Jon, what can you tell me about Furious Records, is it some big London based record label or is it something different?

J: Furious is our own little label so we can keep both hands on what we're doing, keep it in control just so we can make the music we want to make really.
S: I think the thing with Furious Records as well is that what we've done is thrown our lot in so a lot of the experiences from our jobs now is part of Delirious? and part of Furious which has been really helpful to keep things going for a year. Its been hard work but its moved things on and we're in control of things, the whole creative side of things. Its just been a fantastic way to go for us.

C: So in a way, you've all got two jobs now?

S: Yeah. [laughter]

C: Tell us about the sort of things you got involved with in promoting Deeper. You did a video and stuff like that?

SG: That's right, because White Ribbon Day reached number 41 and for a lot of people in the industry that was a big surprise. It felt like we should capitalise on the success of that so we released Deeper, we recorded it for the album and that was a lot of fun. We were able to do a few TV shows and interviews on radio and the fans got that to number 20. Again we didn't have a huge amount of radio play, we had a lot of regional play.
S: I think the other thing that has been great for us to see is, with Deeper we did an HMV tour, just three or four dates up and down the country and every single one had hundreds of people turn out and that has been just incredible for us. Firstly just to know that we're not doing this on our own, that is not the whole idea of it, we want everyone to feel part of it and included. When we're at number 20 in the charts, people come to us and say 'We feel we're at number 20 as well'. And that has been an incredible thing to all be in it together.

C: So by the time people are listening to this your first studio album, King of Fools will have been out for a month or so. What can you tell me about the album?

S: I think its the best thing we've ever done. Its got 12 fantastic tracks on it, ranging from stuff which is really tender and reflective, to stuff which is right in your face and up there with the best of the guitar bands. Its just a fantastic album and we're really excited about it.
M: One big pat on the back from us isn't it?! We're into self appreciation. [laughter]

C: Today we're down in Brighton and you've been recording in a little studio doing a couple of tracks. But the album, you recorded it in different circumstances didn't you?

T: We did it in this house in London called Beltwood, which is kind of one step down from a stately home [laughs] well we like to think so anyway! It's got these great big rooms and it was great fun because we had the chance to try drums out in different sorts of sizes of rooms and just experiment. Also just be very laid back about the whole thing and we had a lot of fun. We've spent a lot of time in studios in the past and this was just a very fresh and new and exciting way of doing things for us.
M: We recorded a string section, choir, drums and everything in that big hallway. I think some of the songs sound like there's a big size to them. We're really really pleased with what's come out. What feels good about the album is that it really reflects where we're at, at the moment. In our lives, what we're going through. We've just released it on our own label, we produced it ourselves with a guy called Andy Piercy. It may not reflect totally all the things that pop music needs to get on the radio, every track has not been recorded that way to be a major hit but the album really reflects a good mood. In some ways, because of the freedom that we've had, the album sounds a little bit more rock and roll because of that. We've gone and done what we wanted to do and that's what very few bands are allowed to do these days.

C: So you're down here today recording Promise, what's it all about?

SG: We seem to write our songs in two ways. Firstly there's the experiencal thing that comes out in the songs, stuff that's happened to us and about our own lives. But Promise is more of an observation.
M: Yeah I think there are a lot of promises made today, especially between man and wife and various different relationships, and it seems to me that basically promises aren't kept anymore. So the end of the song finishes with 'I'm falling into you' and it turns it on its head and it could be anything. It could be my commitment to God, commitment to my wife, just reaffirming all the promises I've ever made in my life.

C: You mentioned being rock and roll, what is being rock and roll today?

J: I left a towel on the floor in a hotel the other day. I didn't pick it up and put it on the rail I just left it.
S: I can't believe you did that! I think for me, being rock and roll is being yourself and not conforming to certain things that people tell you to do, or the industry tells you to do, but to really follow your heart and follow something through with everything you've got. For me, and I think for us, that's really what we try to do, even if it doesn't fit in with the music business and the music world or even in society. We've got stuff that we believe in and we're 100% going for that. That is sometimes hard but we've earnt a lot of respect from people because we've done that and that is more rock and roll than just fitting in with what people are saying.

C: Tell us about the future Jon. What are your plans and your hopes?

J: The future's looking good, it's exciting. We've got the d:Tour coming up in the Autumn where we'll be playing some of the rock and roll venues of this country, which we're really excited about. Just getting out there and invading the culture a bit. Just being ourselves really.

C: What sort of places are you playing?

S: Leicester De Montfort Hall, Wolverhampton Civic Hall, Shepherds Bush Empire, Southampton Guildhall, Manchester Academy, places like that. Its going to be fantastic. We've got some fantastic ideas for the visual thing and the lighting and the sound and everything. The whole thing is, for us personally, gonna kick up a gear.
T: Just another step along the way in telling everybody that we're serious about this thing and that we're going to go all the way.

C: What else do you do? How do you spend your time, to relax?

SG: You've touched on how we run our own label and...
C: No I didn't at all actually Stu.
SG: No? [laughs] Earlier on you mentioned about running our own label and apart from our day off a week that we have at home we spend all our time down the office and Stew's doing the designing. We're managing the whole thing ourselves and so that actually keeps us very busy. So from day to day you'll find us down there or we might be over here recording in Brighton or doing the run of the mill things to keep the whole company going, not just the band. So that actually keeps us very busy.
M: You know Stu, your beard looks fantastic when you're talking.
S: It's a great radio beard.

C: Fantastic, thank you guys. Just before we go, have you got anything else to add?

SG: Well thanks everyone for buying the singles.
M: Enjoy the Deeper remixes, they were mixed locally by a guy in Brighton called Mark Edwards, hope you enjoy those. Put them on in your parties this summer.
T: Keep flying the flag.
S: Watch out, we're here to stay.
J: Boy power.[Laughter]