AS TIME GOES ON, THAT COMMUNITY AROUND EMF HAS GROWN UP WITH US
A CONVERSATION WITH IAN DENCH OF EMF
It is not very often that one of the first songs you ever release goes #1 on the Billboard Hot 100TM chart. Usually, it takes a while for that to finally happen. However, EMF struck gold right away in when their infectiously anthemic dance rock song “Unbelievable” from their 1991 debut album Schubert Dip reached the top of the charts. Later this year EMF is embarking on a co-headline tour with fellow ‘90s band Spacehog. This tour will undoubtedly be ‘unbelievable.’
“The co-headline thing is lovely,” EMF guitarist and songwriter Ian Dench says about the upcoming co-headline tour. “People get real value for their money. There’s a great atmosphere — a lot of love between the bands. Hopefully, we can do that with Spacehog everywhere.”
Dench is excited to play in the USA again, as he has wonderful memories over there. “That tour in the summer of 1991 was one of the greatest moments in all our lives because “Unbelievable” went #1, and we were driving in from Montreal over the border when we discovered it was gonna go #1,” smiles Dench. “We had this six-week tour of the States. Completely sold out… It’s what every band dreams of: going on tour and playing the music to a bunch of adoring fans.”
Dench is looking forward to seeing some familiar faces in the crowd. “As time goes on, that community around EMF has grown up with us,” he states. “There’s, you know, people I’ve known my whole life that have been coming to the gigs, and it’s always great to see them and say Hi.”
EMF was quite ahead of their time. Other bands were creating somewhat similar music, but it was not really until the 2000s that dance rock really started to explode. “To some extent, we were doing what other people were doing at our time,” says Dench. “Jesus Jones were sampling and using breakbeats with guitars, and Happy Mondays did a similar thing. I think everybody in the UK at the time was absorbing those guitar bands like The Smiths, Echo & The Bunnymen, and The Cure. They were playing them at the same clubs they were playing Public Enemy and De La Soul. They were both cool. You wanted to take those breakbeats and put guitars on them. I remember an old band of mine were like, ‘You got to be one or the other. You can’t do both.’ I’m thinking, ‘Really. You don’t need to do one or the other. You can do both.’”
Speaking on the timelessness of “Unbelievable”, Dench smiles, “That song changed my life. It’s such a wonderful thing. People say to me, ‘Aren’t you fed up with playing it?’ But it elicits such joy from everyone anytime it gets mentioned or played. How can I be upset about that? We just love playing it, we have big smiles on our faces, and we laugh. The joy of it is still there. What a wonderful thing in life to have made something that brought so much joy to so many people.”
One of the best parts about “Unbelievable” is the iconic guitar riff. Dench explains that the riff is made up of three distinct parts: blues, flamenco, and punk. “The first part of it – it’s blues on the way up,” he says. Dench loves blues and notes Robby Krieger of The Doors and Big Bill Broonzy being the main influences. He continues, “On the way down, it’s flamenco… My dad played the classical guitar – the classical guitar has a Spanish root… What’s most important of all really is to play it with some attitude, which is the punk. That’s what got me into playing in bands. When I heard The Sex Pistols, it was all about the attitude, guitars, and overdrive.”
Following up on “Unbelievable” was a difficult thing to do because of the massive expectations set out by people. “Listen, it’s a terrible thing when you’re first record goes stratospheric; it’s sort of downhill from there,” laughs Dench. “I spent another maybe 30 years trying to write another “Unbelievable”. Dench co-wrote multiple hit songs for other artists, including the duet “Beautiful Liar” for Beyoncé and Shakira. However, to him, it did not have that same feeling as writing “Unbelievable” with frontman James Atkin. “What a great record that is, and I had a brilliant time – It’s not quite like “Unbelievable” and the magic that James and I had together.”
The love EMF received from fans during the 30th-anniversary tour of Schubert Dip and this magic quality Dench talks about helped EMF write The Beauty and the Chaos. “We did the anniversary tour, and there was so much love,” he comments. “People sang every word of every song. When we felt that love it was like maybe it’s time to give some love back and write a few more songs. Strangely, I feel like we exercised the ghost of “Unbelievable”. Being back in the studio felt like 30 years before, with James and I writing some songs, taking them to the band, playing them with the band, and having fun. I think the ghost of “Unbelievable” had finally been laid to rest. We wrote a bunch of songs and enjoyed it, and I think they’re all the better for that. We just write songs because we love it and it’s me and James’ favourite thing to do in the world with each other. I feel like we moved on from that expectation, and The Beauty And The Chaos was a really great EMF album… It felt like we still had something to say. There’s a song called “The Day The Music Died”, which is about how young people are still making visceral music and about young people taking the mantle. It’s almost like a homage to our younger selves. You stood up, did something, shouted when people told you to be quiet, and coming alive the day the music died…. James and I think that’s possibly the greatest song we’ve ever written.”
2025 marks the 30th anniversary of Cha Cha Cha. “Shining” from that album stands out for Dench as it reminds him of Zac Foley, a member of EMF who passed away in 2002. “I think that string arrangement is incredible. That was a beautiful moment and strangely prophetic,” he reflects. “It was about someone who shone so brightly, and it all sort of went wrong. After what happened to Zac, it, as I said, was strangely prophetic. I always think of Zac when I hear that song. That song means a lot to me.”
This year EMF received a blue plaque in honour of their achievements from their hometown of Cinderford. “One of the reasons we got the plaque is that James, when he goes out on stage for the last 30 years, he goes out and says, ‘We are from Cinderford, in the Forest Of Dean, the original brave ravers keeping the faith since the 1990s.’” comments Dench. “Town Council is like, ‘You’ve been representing Cinderford all over the world for 30 years. We want to say thank you to that.’” After the presentation of the blue plaque, EMF and their fans went to a local pub where Atkin started DJing. “By 5:30 in the afternoon, the place was rocking,” grins Dench. “There is just something about that little town in Cinderford where the people are just up for it. EMF owes a debt of gratitude for that up-for-it-ness. It’s part of who we are and our energy.”
Aside from his time in EMF, Dench has helped write songs for multiple artists, including The Prodigy, Florence And The Machine, Shakira, Beyoncé, and Jordin Sparks. “Collaboration is a wonderful thing, and I had a lot of fun doing it,” he exclaims. “I loved writing with all those people, but my favourite person to write with in the whole world is James from EMF.”
Fans will be pleased to know EMF is working on more music. “Another album is on the way – James and I have been working on it,” says Dench. “We just got to work on the production a bit, and sadly, Ralph Jezzard, who produced Schubert Dip, Stigma, and The Beauty And The Chaos, recently passed away. I mean, how can you ever replace Ralph Jezzard? He was part of the band in a way. We’re going to have to find someone to fill his shoes, and it’s big shoes to fill… I’m sure Ralph would be happy for us to go find another person who loved punk rock and techno and help us put that together again.”
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