SPILL FEATURE: KIND OF A CROSS BETWEEN BORIS JOHNSON AND BIDEN – A CONVERSATION WITH CAPTAIN SENSIBLE OF THE DAMNED

KIND OF A CROSS BETWEEN BORIS JOHNSON AND BIDEN

A CONVERSATION WITH CAPTAIN SENSIBLE OF THE DAMNED

“Toronto, isn’t that where I fell off the stage that time?”, questions Captain Sensible. He did on April 30, 2017, and actually broke a rib.

The Damned were the first punk band in the United Kingdom to release a single. “New Rose” was released in 1976, before The Clash or The Sex Pistols could get their music out to the public. And it became one of the most iconic singles in rock history. It was followed by their debut album Damned Damned Damned in 1977. They had not only secured their future but their place in rock history. In 1977, The Damned included David Vanian (vocalist), Captain Sensible (guitar), Brian James (bass) and Rat Scabies (drums). Over the years members have changed, but Vanian and Captain Sensible are still with the band. They now have a new album out, Darkadelic.

Recording Darkadelic was not so different from the days of their earlier albums. The honesty and energy of the band is caught as they are all in the same studio working together. “Darkadelic was recorded quite similar, we took a couple of weeks rather than a couple of days, but then again a lot of the songs had never been played live. We bashed them into shape in exactly the same way as we did in 1976. Five blokes in a room, together, all with headphones on, making a noise until we felt we had the deninitive version of each song, and then we would move on to the next one. You hear about albums being made these days with the bass player in another country, and the sound file is sent over the internet, they record their part in their home studio. Then the singer records his vocals, and he is out in Hawaii or somewhere. How can you have a cohesive album like that? I think it is weird, but a lot of records are made that way. Not ours. Ours was done the traditional way.”

“You have to be able to guide each other, especially the songwriter. He has to guide the band through to play the song in the same way that you hear it in your head. Because when you write a song, you can generally hear the end result in your head before the band even starts.”

DARKADELIC ALBUM REVIEW

The album is supported by three very distinct and very stylish videos. “The Invisible Man”, “Beware Of The Clown”, and “You’re Gonna Realise”. For Captain Sensible, “Beware Of The Clown” expressed his view of politicians. “Each songwriter had the ear of the director of the films to live out our fantasies. Dave really went for it in “The Invisible Man”, which could be a Hammer House Of Horror clip. “Beware Of The Clown” was my baby, and I became kind of a cross between Boris Johnson and Biden, really. Johnson’s gone, which could have meant the song went higher in the charts, but I am glad he is gone, because he was completely useless. And then we ended up with Liz Truss for fuck’s sake. I don’t know what’s going on with politics, it just keeps getting worse and worse with these people. To point this out to everyone, politics and democracy has gone down the toilet. The great thing is, there is no shortage of topics for songwriting, is there? You just have to turn on the TV and it is ‘ahhhhh, what’s going on there?’ Then a tune pops into your head, a great time for songwriters.”

“The energy of punk, and an angsty lyric. It’s just a winning combination,” and in this case, the lyrics were an opportunity for him to express a view of politicians. “Like a lot of people I put my trust in politicians over the years, and I used to vote for them. Tony Blair, I thought, wow, he is going to change this country for the better, but he did something very different when he was elected. The result was that war in the Middle East, I was disillusioned, and there has been some even worse people since then. Whatever they promise, they don’t deliver, in fact quite the opposite in many cases. I just don’t trust anyone aymore. Sad really. So instead of throwing a brick through the television I write a song about it. If you don’t laugh, you cry. You have to do one or the other, so it is better to laugh. It is better for your psyche really. Otherwise you get all maudlin and depressed, because they are a bunch of clowns and they are dragging the country down. And it is not just Britain.”

Which of course brings us to King Charles’ Coronation. It is not unlike the Queen’s Silver Jubilee in 1976, about which some punk bands had a great deal to say. The question at hand, however, is will The Damned be playing at the Coronation? “Bloody Hell! Don’t put any money on that happening. I have loathed and detested the Royal Family all my life, in fact there has been a few songs about them on various albums I have been involved with. I did one about Charles called “Black Spider Memo Man”. I mean the guy has his toothpaste squeezed out for him, he doesn’t run his own bath, he’s got servants. I bet he doesn’t know how to boil an egg. The guy has lived in the lap of luxury his whole life. He doesn’t lead anybody, he is just a parasite. The Queen famously never read a book her whole life, she was a moron. Johnny Rotten was right. That is a bit of a rant, but it is all true, isn’t it.”

The Damned, however, are planning another tour. Though they just finished an extensive tour, Captain Sensible is ready for the next one. “I just jump in the van when I am told to. Somebody cracks a whip, I jump in and make an unholy noise on stage!” Let’s hope they consider coming back to Toronto on any upcoming Damned tours, and that he is very positive about playing the city.

“I will try not to fall off the stage next time.”

Artist Links

Photo Credits: Timo Jäger

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