Keep us amused
Saturday 4th August 2001
Weekender V2001 WestonFront
From the sleepy Devon town of Teignmouth, to appearances at over 50 worldwide festivals, Muse - voted NME's best new band of 2000 - are now a force to be reckoned with.
As they put the finishing touches to their V2001 set, we catch up Howard to ask all those important questions.
1. Have you always been deadly serious about music?
Not initially, no. I think when we started it was more of something to do, we were quite bored and wanted to wear lots of make up and smash up lots of gear.
2. You were very young when you first got together, weren't you?
Erm, yeah 15-16 with this band the three of us but we were playing in bands before that. We were about 13. I was playing in a band with Matt when I was 14-15, and so did Chris.
3. When you were growing up in a relatively rural area, did you crave the bright lights?
I think when you're brought up in a small town like that there's obviously no opportunity there and you know there's no jobs you really want to have. Unless you want to sell ice cream for the rest of your life or something.
4. What do you remember about your first gig together?
I remember that there was this group of girls that were hanging round at the time writing weird improvised stuff with us. And they decided to dress and cover us up with make-up. They were pretty hot so we let them do it. And then our friends sort of invaded the stage and trashed the gig.
5. Do you remember any of the songs you played?
Yeah, I remember 'Small Minded' was one. 'Yellow Regret' (laughing). 'A Turn To Stone', 'Weakening Walls' - my God! 'Pointless Loss' (laughing). When we were 14-15 the bands were cover bands.
6. Who came up with the name Muse?
We came across the word somewhere, we didn't know what the word meant at the time but when the band formed, I used to hang around with this group of girls that were doing sort of strange improvised witchcraft music or something along those lines. And someone commented on this old man Richard. Some old sort of posh geezer, who was really into classical music and he said it was like a Muse had come across the town and had caused everyone to try and get into something more creative. And I think that we just took the name cause I thought it sounded like a good name.
7. You had some really dodgy names before then, didn't you?
Yeh, Gothic Plague, Carnage Mayhem, "that was the best one, Carnage Mayhem", Rocket Baby Dolls, Fixed Penalty, Young Blood, these were different names with us with different members as well, it wasn't just us three.
8. Is this the perfect line with three members? Was there ever a temptation for four people in the band?
Not really, we've always been quite comfortable with three I think and it's always been a three piece. We've just noticed in the last years playing live, everyone's got to work hard, and there's no-one to hide behind.
9. Do you think you have a particularly English sound?
Yeah, I think we sound English. There are so many bands saying they're from other countries, a lot of like UK rock bands, or metal bands obviously are sounding really like they're American or something. I don't think we sound like any English band in the last decade, but I think you could draw comparisons to bands like the Police or something!
(Note - article is reproduced exactly as it appeared in the newspaper)
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