Welcome to the dotmusic chat with James
dotmusic: We’re going to be kicking off in about 10 minutes. Tim is just round the corner but stuck in traffic!
dotmusic: Tim in the house so we’ll get started!
Dave from Stevenage, Herts asks: what was the last record u bought?
Tim: The last record I bought … Grandaddy – the Software Slump or Nick Cave’s last one
oneofthethree from brentwood, uk asks: what song are you most proud and most embarrassed about?
Tim: Today I’m most proud of a song called “Fine” because it’s so effortless and playful which is hard for such a serious man such as myself to achieve
Tim: Least proud of … ooh … thats hard … we even love our b sides and put a lot of work in them, but there was an awful b side a few years ago called Far Away that was pompous and overblown
ste from london asks: whats the latest with the B-sides album Tim? and will the track ‘Your Story’ be on it?????
Tim: Yeah there is a plan for a b-side album in September
Tim: I’ve done the running order we have the sleeve ready
jofrog16 from Connecticut, USA asks: How much time to you spend with other bandmembers when you aren’t touring or recording?
Tim: As little as possible! (joke)
Tim: It depends because we’re all scattered geographically across the globe
Tim: We get on now better than we ever have done which is to say we’re like some dysfunctional family
Jeff from Arlington, Virginia asks: Any plans to come to the States?
Tim: yeah I wanna go for my holidays in August. I love California
Tim: Possibly in September there is a plan to do a festival in New York but I know better than to trust things written in pencil
Sean from Ireland asks: How do you put up with the constant negative press?
Tim: I don’t read it
Tim: I don’t read any press
Dave from Stevenage, Herts asks: hey Tim, what kind of set can we expect on the next tour? more old material or new material? i love Stutter and wanna hear it live again!
Tim: I don’t know, we write the set list every night and it really varies .. on who wins the punch up
Tim: Theres usually a healthy balance of our more musical explorative side with the good old sing along of James favourites
justhipper from manchester asks: What is the thing which has had the most influence on James’ recent work?
Tim: No I think your strongest influences hit you when you’re younger. We’ve really been following our own thread for the last seven or eight years
Tim: I’m sure we have unconscious influences, but by definition we are unconscious of them
donald louise from isle of man asks: tim, you always go into the crowd, whats your worst experience of doing this?
Tim: The time I really stopped jumping into the crowd was at brixton Academy when I ended up halfway down the hall, and the people under me collapsed and the crowds on the sides pushed in
Tim: I was worried about the death rate
Tim: On the Loloopaloosa (sp?!) tour where we were playing to abusive Korn fans, I for some reason would find myself 100 yards into the audience singing into their faces and that went on nearly every night for nine weeks
Tim: I never got punched once!
Jim from Nottingham asks: What will you do if james call it a day ?
Tim: Which day
Tim: Act right , teach ecstatic dance workshops and model crotchless swimwear
tom from hull asks: Tim I think Falling Down is a great song. How did you achieve the sound?
Tim: Fluke. A wonderful engineer called KK who I dragged into the sessions took the jam that became Falling Down and messed around with it for a few days
Tim: so fluke on our part not on his
Tim: The vocal is smashed through a tuning program set at extreme levels – I believe the drum is heavily phased (if you wanna go technical on me)
BoSoxMick from Boston Massachusetts asks: Hey Tim, any word on a possible Booth & The Bad Angel Part II?
Tim: No … my record company buried part 1 and I couldn’t find the grave
Tim: … But “Pleased to meet you” is our last record under contract, so maybe …
Sasha from London asks: If your entire record collection was stolen, which 3 albums would you go out and buy immediately?
Tim: Patty Smith’s Horses
Tim: Phew … hard question ….
Tim: Velvet Underground Live ….
Tim: .. (the one with the woman’s knickers on the front cover – I dunno what its called)
Tim: What’s that Nick Cave’s love songs album called? I’ve forgotten it’s name
Tim: But I’d give you a different answer each day you asked
justhipper from manchester asks: what role do you feel james fill in the current music scene?
Tim: We are the stool pigeons… um … I think you’ll find a lot of bands who cite us as a major influence and we feel a lot of respect from our peers like Coldplay, Travis, Wheatus
Tim: But I don’t think we fit into the media at all at present
Sarahjayne from Oxon, UK asks: which current artists do you admire, and why?
Tim: Nick Cave, Eminem for their lyrics, Mercury Rev for their emotional drive, Grandaddy for their “can’t be arsed yet are brilliant” attitude
Al Brown from Bristol asks: Thinking of the Eno connection: Do you like U2?
Tim: U2 have managed to balance massive success with experiment and genuine creativity so even when they fuck up you’ve got to give them a break because hardly anyone is attempting to do what they succeed at
Tim: They’re a shining light
Dave from Stevenage, Herts asks: Do u think your live sound sounds better in an arena or club? i thought wembley had an amazing sound to it on the last arena tour.
Tim: We’re better in Arenas. We need a big stage cos there’s seven of us. We play our best gigs when we can hear clarity
Tim: And when we play the big gigs, we can afford to hire the best sound and lighting men in the business
Stuart from Oldham asks: What question do you get tired of answering and why?
Tim: That one
Phil from W. Yorks asks: Do you notice the crowd when you’re on stage and do you recognise the regulars?
Tim: It will be hard to miss them … I think we’re one of the few bands who love to interreact with their audience … I go into the audience cos I like breaking down the barrier between stage and auditorium
Tim: Our lighting man has light on the audience that he can turn up often at our request during the gig, otherwise as a musician you can feel quite cut off
Tim: I know quite a lot of the regulars
Tim: … Including Dave Brown who is always centre front. When he is not there I often ask his friends during the gig where he is
Gail from Tyne & Wear asks: Which song from the new album are you most looking forward to performing live in the upcoming shows, and which is your all time live favorite.
Tim: out of every CD of say 13 songs there will only be probably 7 or 8 that will be really great live, and the last few concerts have shown us which they are – “Space” is killer, “pleased to Meet You”, “English Beefcake” surprisingly and there’s a few more
Tim: The last gig we did in Liverpool was amazing so we reckon we are played in now
donald louise from isle of man asks: tim if you wrote your autobiography, what would the first line be?
Tim: er …
oneofthethree from brentwood asks: How would like James to be remembered in twenty years time?
Tim: As an unwelcome boil on the face of corporate pop
Deano from Wolverhampton asks: Do you think Pleased to Meet You is your best work yet?
Tim: I say that every time, this time it’s more true than it’s been for a long time. When you just finish a record you’re full of enthusiasm and self belief, I can truly say that apart from Laid this was the most enjoyable record to create
Tim: … and I believe that like OK Computer it takes a while to get into
justhipper from manchester asks: Have the band considered releasing music via the internet when their contract with Mercury finishes?
Tim: Yes but it seems that the technology isn’t quite ready. Another two years should see it through
Dale from Birmingham asks: Which band member do you like best
Tim: Sarah Michelle Gella
Tim: … (in my dreams)
dotmusic: just time for a few more questions..
Dave from Stevenage, Herts asks: how much longer will u continue to dance like a madman onstage?!
Tim: When I’ve trashed a few more zimmer frames. I teach ecstatic movement workshops and therefore I have to set a good example
Emma Pickering from Cheshire uk asks: A couple of years ago you did some acting in Bolton, is this an angle you are going to persue?
Tim: Yes … that was to test me out. And I won a medal for it. I’ve been waiting for the right TV part to come up and a decent script … stay tuned …
lyndsay from fuerteventura asks: whats the most rewarding thing you get from your job
Tim: When quite aggressive macho men sing along to lyrics concerning insecurity and self doubt. When people come and tell you there private stories of how certain songs have affected their lives. When you look off stage and see thousands of people unified in
Tim: … pleasure. When you stumble upon a verse and chorus that make you cry or laugh. When you get to work with Brian Eno.
Dallas Casey from Ogen, Utah asks: Is the power of love worth the pain of loss?
Tim: mmm … mmmm … stumped …
Tim: Always … I believe in Hollywood
Tim: Loss seems to be an intricate part of love in that to love deeper you have to let go of so many things especially the expectation of a return for your investment
Tim: Loss is also a natural part of being a human being in that it all gets stripped away as we approach death
Tom from Barton asks: Where do James go next?
Tim: To the bathroom …… to the bookies ….. to court …… no idea ….
Tim: Fuck you very much for your kind questions. I’m going off to see Wheatus play. May your eyes be opened by the wonderful …. Tim xxx Thanks
dotmusic: Tim wanted everyone who asked about the dance workshop to know he’ll will be teaching in the Canary Islands in Feb for a week for more information log on to the dolphin connection experience in about two weeks time. Also they’ll be a workshop in October at Manchester Drama Poly to be announced in a few weeks time (don’t ring yet.)
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