space waltz Spiritualized

Rip It Up, Issue 241, 1 September 1997, Page 14

space waltz Spiritualized

They may hail from England, but Spiritualized have always seemed closer to America, musically and, yes, spiritually. Leader Jason Pierce (aka Spaceman) was previously in Spacemen 3, a so-called ‘space rock’ band he helped found AT AGE 16 IN THE LATE 80S, THAT WAS CLEARLY INSPIRED BY THE LIKES OF THE VELVET Underground, Suicide, Stooges and MCS — Americans all. After forming Spiritualized, Jason expanded upon that atmospheric, drone-driven sound over the course of two albums, 1992’s Lazer Guided Melodies and 1995’s Pure Phase. Their new release, Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space, IS BY FAR THEIR MOST ADVENTUROUS AND ACCOMPLISHED EFFORT. A SPRAWLING 72 MINUTE EPIC, IT INCORPORATES GOSPEL, COUNTRY, R&B, AVANT-GARDE JAZZ, AND PSYCHEDELIC ROCK INFLUENCES, INTO A UNIQUE, FASCINATING HYBRID.

reached Pierce in London just prior to V V C Spiritualized’s month-long North American tour. He’s clearly proud of the record, but claims he’s unaffected by the rave reviews it has been getting. “I’m not actually bothered about the reaction to it. I don’t do it for those reasons. Lazer Guided Melodies got that kind of response, the second one didn’t. It is all so transitory, it doesn’t really matter. In 20 years time, no-one will care how many out of 10 it got. The music will stand way beyond that. I don’t read my own press.” Clearly not burdened with excess modesty, Pierce views Spiritualized music as being timeless. “We’ve never done stuff connected to fashion in anyway. We’re into making soul music that’ll affect people in 50 years. You don’t listen to Stravinsky and say ‘this sounds like 20s music,’ or Hendrix and say ‘this sounds like 60s music.’ It sounds as fresh today as it did then.” With Ladies And Gentlemen..., Pierce stresses the band’s goal was “to make something away above and beyond what we knew we were capable of doing. I don’t like the idea of treading water musically, using the same formula to make the same old records. I could make another 10 records just like this one, but that’s not a particularly fulfilling thing to want to do.” The album was recorded and mixed in studios in London, Bath, Los Angeles, Memphis, and New York, with the Memphis sessions being key. Spiritualized hooked up with Memphis producer Jim Dickinson, a colourful character known for working with the likes of the Rolling Stones, Alex Chilton and the Replacements.

Pierce admits that their work together didn’t survive the final cut, but insists that Dickinson and fellow collaborator, famed New Orleans pianist Dr. John, “definitely had a big influence, conversationally and spiritually. We wanted to make a record I could take back to them and show what we’d done with it. Jim was very excited about our early sessions, and he knew there was a special record in there somewhere. Knowing that gave us confidence to see it through and not compromise at all.” Dr. John’s stellar work did make it onto disc, and Pierce excitedly reports that both he and the London Community Gospel Choir joined Spiritualized onstage at the Phoenix Festival in England recently. Coincidentally, Dr John was set to play Toronto two days before the band, and Jason was disappointed they’d just miss each other. In turn, the Doctor was full of praise for Pierce. He was recently quoted as calling him “a kick. I got along with him real well, whereas there’s a lot of people I’ve played with that I’ve personally hated! When I listened to the tape Spiritualized sent me, I could hear chunks of stuff that let me know they were into some things other than what their own stuff sounded like — like something that came out of Miles [Davis] in that Bitches Brew time zone. I got the feeling I could take some shots with ’em.” As well as Dr. John’s rollicking piano, horn and string sections, pedal steel guitar, dulcimer, autoharp and harmonica are also used to create the swirling potpourri of sounds Spiritualized have come up with on Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space. Other musical peers impressed with Pierce’s adventurousness include Neil Young and Crazy Horse, with whom the band share management.

Last summer, Spiritualized played a string of shows with Young in North America. “A lot of people into Neil Young got into what we were doing, and Neil himself became a big fan of what we were doing. He saw us five times out of the eight shows we did with him, and the guys in Crazy Horse watched us nearly every night.” Jason has mixed feelings about festivals. “We just came back from a big festival in Sweden, and it was great. No sound or time restrictions, so we could see Grooverider at 4am at 110 decibels. Amazing! But sometimes festival bills don’t work with what you’re doing. Their idea is to bring in six different bands with different audiences and make a lot of money, but that’s not necessarily the best way to do a show.” He does find audiences in Britain and Europe are getting more open-minded musically, something not really the case here yet. “Three years ago in England they’d say ‘we’re into dance music and that’s it.’ But now they’re into drum ‘n’ bass and Hendrix, or both Spiritualized and the Chemical Brothers.” As his reputation spreads, Pierce is now getting production offers. “I’ve been asked to do a few things. I may work with Mazzy Star and Dr. John later in the year if I find the time. I want to do it in a way that confounds expectations. I wouldn’t want to work with Mazzy Star and have it sound like Spiritualized meets Mazzy Star. Anyone can picture how that may sound. It would have to go further, or there’s no point.” Plans are also afoot

for work with the surviving members of the Sun Ra Arkestra. Peer respect and critical raves may be gratifying, but Pierce can attest to the fact they don’t pay the rent. “We’ve been broke for six years, and can’t really afford the rent anywhere. The one weird perception people have of us is that we make a lot of money out of this. I can’t explain to people just how little money we have! If I was running the record label I’m sure I could be selling a lot more of our records than are being sold. It’d just be nice if people weren’t living on the breadline!” His real ambitions are less material, however. “I think good music is physical—- — you hear in your spine or the hairs on the back of your neck. That’s what music is about and that’s what we’re trying to achieve with our music.” Pierce now wants to take Spiritualized music to newer territories. “I’m trying to go to places where I think there is a big audience for what we do, but where people rarely go. Places like Portugal, Greece and Estonia that get completely overlooked. And I love travel. That’s the reason I set the band up, not just to work in the studio.” And how about New Zealand? “We are planning to go, hopefully in January.” Judging from the sold-out Toronto show we just saw, you’re in for a treat. Spectacular light show and intensely tight playing take the listener on a visual and sonic trip. Prepare to get Spiritualized!

KERRY DOOLE