Since its inception, rock & roll music has been a primary means of expression for millions of young people. Rock & roll has always had a close, almost symbiotic relationship with the anger and frustration of those who listen to the music and buy the records. Richard Butler, lead singer and lyricist for the Psychedelic Furs, knows about that anger and disillusion. He formed the band in 1977, the time when rock music and polítics had one of their most significant mergings: the punk rock movement.
But the Furs chose a different
route than the loud, political music of Johnny Rotten and his
imitators. Butler, with an art school background, chose a more
textured, moody sound for his music.
As their name implies, the Psychedelic Furs have roots in music that first came into prominence about 13 years ago, the time of mind expansion and experimentation:
In the last two years, the Furs have built up a reputation as one of the most distinctive and creative of the new English bands. And their second album, "Talk Talk Talk," which was released recently, looks like it will earn them an even larger and more enthusiastic audience.
The subject of rock's power as a social force came up when the Psychedelic Furs brought their current U.S. tour through Detroit recently. As they play around this country, the violent riots by white and black youths graphically illustrated the conditions that inspired bands like the Furs and others to form. I spoke with Butler about the band, its past and future, and in the course of our discussion the situation in Britain came up.
“The situation has been building up for years," Butler commented. "There really isn't much for the kids to do.”
Butler and a few others in England fought the boredom by forming bands, like the Furs, who are in the middle of their second U.S. tour.
The Psychedelic Furs formed in late 1977, at the time the Sex Pistols were sweeping the country and the trend was for music to be loud, hard and fast. Before the band started, both Richard and his brother Tim were on the dole, but it's a subject they chose not to dwell on, dismissing it as "Boring shit."
What made you decide you wanted to form a band?
At
the time there wasn't anything better to do. I would've liked to do
silkscreen prints but there was very little chance of getting
involved in that,
Did you do any song writing before forming the band?
Yes, sort of. I made prints; I'd take someone's conversation and write it across the page and then draw two lines down it and then just take what was in the lines and sort of get new sentences, Sort of an abstract way to write, I guess.
How did you conceive of the band before forming it?
Me and Tim were getting into rock music and we decided it would probably be good to try it. So we bought ourselves guitars and sat around the house. But eventually it got too loud – especially after we got amps – so we had to get to a rehearsal studio. We were getting into it rather seriously and decided we should get some gigs. And then one day CBS showed up and said, "Hey, we want to sign you."
How did you go about writing the songs?
We used to do half-hour songs, and I would just make up the words as we went along. Steve Lillywhite (producer of the Furs' first two albums) once said we sound the way we do because nobody likes to not be playing.
Tim Added: We had only done like ten or twenty gigs when we got signed. But CBS made us do a lot more – or at least they wanted us to.
How did the public respond to the Furs at first?
Initially it was very bad.
Why?
I'm
not really sure. It changed rather quickly, though. John Peel got us
on the radio, and then we started playing places like the Music
Machine which holds a couple of thousand and it was packed.
I read in an earlier interview that you said Sounds, Melody Maker and NME can make or break a band in England. Did they help with the Furs?
Yeah, at the start. But they change their minds and you become jaded very quickly. England's such a trendy country.
How do you feel about crowds in the United States, and the receptions you've been getting since you've been here?
What I like about them is that they don't have preconceived ideas. Tonight they were slow taking off, but they were a good audience.
Slow indeed. The Furs played to an older crowd than usual, owing to an $8.50 cover charge, a strict dress code and a club restriction that only admitted people older than 21.
Do you think the Furs have a purpose other than just musical entertainment?
I hope we do. If there's any basic message, it's telling people to make up their own minds, rather than be told what this or that means.
How do you feel about bands like the Clash who get heavily involved in politics?
Tim responded first: I think it's a waste of time, because you can't do anything about it. I'II bet they're writing a song about the riots, l'II bet $50.
Richard continues: It's arguable whether music can really make a difference politically, because politics and change are a very slow process.
Are you pleased with the success the Furs have enjoyed so far?
Yeah,
very pleased. It's nothing we had ever planned for. I think in
America you get bands planning themselves before they ever start -
like Styx or Foreigner. If we wanted to do that we could easily adapt
to AOR radio. We didn't do it that way, we just sort of came in from
left field, We just together, started hitting our instruments and
that's the way it sounded.
What do you write songs about?
I'm
not into specifics on lyrics. The second album is about love. It's
not love songs though, it's a real look at love.
Coming
from what I consider one of the most interesting lyricists around,
this bit of information shocked me. Richard said he likes to leave
what he means to each person's Imagination and interpretation.
What would be the peak of satisfaction for you?
To
listen to an album that we make, and just say, "That's it, it
can't be beat." Then I'd be satisfied and I wouldn't make
another one. Tim adds: After that we could have our sex changed and
become the first female psychedelic band.
The Psychedelic Furs have accomplished something a lot of the modern music bands haven't been able to do; they turned out a second album that is more impressive than their debut. And they've established themselves as one of the bands of the future. Their lack of formal training and the ease of their success could make a lot of music students jealous or angry, but after seeing them and listening to them, I got the feeling they deserve whatever success comes their way.
