Page 30 - Black Velvet Rock Music Magazine Issue 92

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e’re chatting to drummer Tom Ogden any money, everyone starts going… mad, really. make the perfect drum? Is there such a thing as
Wand he tells us how impressed he is of And it kind of had this negative effect on us as a perfect drum?
James’s lyrics on ‘All These Countless Nights’. people. I don’t know, we didn’t fall out as such, “Well, everything’s different,” replies Tom.
“I think James has got an amazing ability to but it just felt like we were a little bit isolated.” “There’s different wood, different thicknesses of
write stories with the lyrics and make them fit the shell, different sizes, different finishes,
perfectly with songs, and I think that’s quite a hen James chose to announce a solo wraps, varnishes. It’s really interesting, ‘cause
rare thing to come across nowadays. Most lyrics Wtour, after the band had completed you make one. You think, “I’ve always wanted a
are a little bit metaphoric and a little bit, kind of, their ‘Old Souls’ cycle, Tom says he wasn’t very black, sparkly snare,” so I made one and then,
you have to work out what the hell someone’s happy about it. “I wasn’t massively happy about “I’ve made one now.” “I’ve always wanted a
talking about. But with it, ‘cause we blue…” I’ve got four. I use them live still. They
James’s, he talks about never actually sound really good. I just haven’t got the ability
his problems with rela- t’s selfish of me to not want him to said the words to really set up an actual business. I just enjoy
tionships, with alcohol, ‘Ido anything on his own because that Deaf Ha- making them and if anyone wants to buy one,
with the internal prob- he’s a very, very talented guy and there’s vana were then yeah, I’ll sell it to them. To make a website
lems we’ve had with no reason why he shouldn’t. But it just breaking up. and come up with adverts and a plan, again,
the band, feeling de- He just kind of that’s not really what I enjoy doing.”
pressed and isolated, made me feel a little bit more alone if any- went off and
and I think everyone thing,” - Tom Ogden, Deaf Havana did this solo lso during the band’s time off, Tom ac-
can relate to that, espe- thing, which in Atually had his first child – a daughter.
cially the rest of the hindsight is a “It’s made me grow up quite a lot, I think,” he
band because we were there with him when he good thing, and I don’t think I’ll ever get annoyed says. “It’s also made me want to not waste my
was experiencing it. It represents what James is with anyone doing anything solo ever again be- time. If we’re going to do the band again and
thinking but it also represents exactly what we cause I think it helps people to deal with prob- tour another album cycle, I want it to be done
were going through – apart from the relationship lems. I think it helped him to deal with what was properly. I don’t want to go and do stuff I don’t
problem. But a lot of the stuff we can all relate going on with Havana. I also think it’s selfish of think is going to benefit us at all. It makes you
to.” me to not want him to do anything on his own realize how important it is to… not be at home,
The album has been quoted as being Deaf because he’s a very, very talented guy and but when you’re away from home, it has to be
Havana’s ‘most brutally honest and bruisingly there’s no reason why he shouldn’t. But it just worthwhile, because I could be getting so much
emotional album yet’. There are songs such as made me feel a little bit more alone if anything. more at home with my daughter. It’s a really
‘Happiness’, which focuses on how James’s That was kind of the only thing musically I had good thing for me because I really miss her
anxiety affects his relationships, ‘Seattle’, written in my life and now I kind of realize that that’s when I’m away, but I know that I’m doing some-
while on a depressing tour of the USA, ‘Trigger’, never going to happen again. He was doing his thing that will benefit us all in the future, whereas
about a volatile past relationship, and ‘Fever’, solo thing and I was like, “Well, no-one’s actually before we went on a dead-end tour in America;
which shines a light on James’s heavy drinking. said the words ‘Deaf Havana’s going to break it was a crap tour, we played to about three peo-
When asked if he was surprised with anything up’, but now he’s done this it means that Deaf ple a night. Everyone wanted to go home. So I
James wrote when he first heard the lyrics, Tom Havana are going to break up.” I don’t really think if I’d have had a daughter back then, I’d
says, “Sometimes it does shock me some of the know why it didn’t.” have just got the next flight back home.”
things he writes because I know the people that It was a scary time for Tom. During the break, the band spoke to each
the songs were written about are going to hear “It was for me because I’d put 10 years of other now and again and kept things “ticking
them and if that was me maybe I’d hold back. my life into it. Alright, we were going through a over”. Tom tells us about the first time they all
Maybe I wouldn’t want the people I wrote the bit of a rough time. At the same time, we’ve got back together again for band stuff.
song about to hear exactly what I thought. But overcome problems before. I didn’t really see “The day that we kind of played together
maybe I’m a bit more scared than he is. I think any problem with trying to talk it out, but no-one again it was just amazing. We played and then
he’d rather get his point across than hold back really wanted to talk it out, I suppose. And I think we went for a drink and were like, “Why did we
on writing it. I think that’s what makes the album that was his way of saying he didn’t want to do ever stop doing that? That was amazing. What
interesting. I’d be scared, if I wrote a song about it anymore.” a great feeling.” And to kind of write a song, it
an ex, that they’d ring me up and say “What are Tom adds, “He might pick it up again in the felt incredible. I don’t know really why we
you on about?” whereas I don’t think he is, future, I don’t know. But if he does now it’s fine, stopped doing it.”
which is a good thing, because I think he’s bru- it’s completely fine. Loads of people go off and
tally honest with everything he writes.” do solo stuff, but that point where he first an- he band found new management –
nounced he was going to do it, was right at a TRiverman, who also manage Placebo,
n ‘Trigger’, one of the singles from the time where I really didn’t need to hear that.” and a new record label – So Recordings.
Ialbum, James sings ‘So tired of being tired “We wanted to get a load of managers lined
and drunk and lonely’. Tom talks us through the uring this period of uncertainty, Tom set up, a load of labels lined up and go in for meet-
period where the band were going through a Dup Ogdens’ Drum Co. with his brother ings with 20 people and pick the best one,” says
particularly rough patch. and sold some drums. Tom. “And we started doing that. Riverman was
“It was hard. But we got to this stage where “I’ve always enjoyed making things and the first meeting we had that day and as soon
we were playing a few shows, but yet you’d still drawing. I made clocks and stuff in the past, and as we came out of that meeting we were like,
feel really lonely. It was horrible, really horrible. I thought, “I’m going to have a go at making a “They’re the ones.” We did listen to what all the
It felt like I couldn’t talk to my friends even drum,” and I did; me and my brother did. And it other managers said but we were like, “You guys
though they were sitting next to me or in the sounded amazing. So we made a couple more, really get us.” They’re really professional.
same room as me. Just didn’t really want to. It we made three or four and started selling them. They’ve got a really good set-up. They’ve got
wasn’t I didn’t like them, I felt like I didn’t have That was another thing that helped me deal with Placebo, for one, which are one of my favourite
anything to say to them. I dunno… a really not playing music anymore. I’ve stopped doing bands in the world. We just got a really good
strange feeling to be away from home, be thou- it now because it’s incredibly expensive. To vibe from them. They wanted to work hard. They
sands and thousands of miles away from home, make a few drum kits you have to have a fair really wanted to help us. And the label are the
be playing shows to thousands of people a night whack of money in the account. It’s a big risk to same. They were the first label we met. We met
with the friends that you’ve grown up with and take if you don’t sell many, so I don’t do it any- with some real big labels but we didn’t really feel
yet feel so lonely. It’s such a strange feeling. I more. I do it for my own personal pleasure, but it. I think if we’d have signed to a big label we’d
think a lot of other aspects of the band put us all I don’t know if I’d make any to sell anymore.” have just been swept under the carpet. Whereas
in bad moods and kind of resent it a little bit – He says he’d like to do it again in the future this label, we were the only band they signed in
with the accounts, money side of things, and it but is not sure if he will. 2016. And again, they’re really passionate about
was all getting out of control, and all getting a bit “I just don’t know how easy it’d be to set up it. They really care. They want to make this
too much for us. None of us really got in a band properly. It’s alright making two or three, but to album a success. And so do we. So everyone’s
to deal with accounts. That’s not what being a make them on a bigger scale I don’t know. working in the same direction, it’s brilliant.”
musician is all about for us. When that started Maybe in the future I will pick it up again. I The band worked on the album in 2016. The
to go sour, we kind of said, “Well, I don’t want haven’t made any in a while. I did enjoy it, to be album was produced by Adam Noble at Air Stu-
anything to do with it because it’s nothing to do honest. I really enjoyed it. And I learned a lot dios in London, but it was not all easy going. On
with me. I’m not interested in it,” and then one about drums by doing it.” 28th May, Tom tweeted, ‘The most stressful day
day when there’s no account and we can’t get Black Velvet asks what it’s like trying to of pre-production so far. But this album is going
DEAF HAVANA