[Mael-list] 21x21 Recorded? Teletext Link & interview.

[Ondine]

Hi Jan,

It does happen, you only have to check out the classifieds on the forum, I do admit people now seem more likely to swap but if you're not in the market of recording gigs and swapping them, it's rather hard to get in the loop, you have to rely on peoples good nature. Ah well. Not long now eh?


Not sure if everyone has picked up on this interview, there's also a review of both the single and album.

http://www.teletext.co.uk/planetsound/interviews-features/49bd96f2f6178e26ec56daa93ba25cd6/Those+exotic+Sparks.aspx

Those exotic Sparks
By John Earls - "I'm singing falsetto again. That got a bit abandoned on the last two records."

For a band who released their debut album in 1970, Sparks' 21st album Exotic Creatures Of The Deep is as odd and inventive as any young pup's.

About to embark on their 20 one album-a-night residency, Russell Mael says: "Your voice gets limited with age, but mine has managed to stay fresh."

Russell admits it's hard for him and brother Ron to stay fresh.

"It becomes harder and harder to do what feels fresh and modern-sounding," says Russell, 59. "The last two records experimented with repetitive phrases, which took on a new meaning once I sang them a billion times.

"This record is more melodic, but it's harder and harder - if you care about what you do - to stay fresh, modern."

Russell writes their music, while Ron is Sparks' lyricist.

"Ron's lyrics are humorous, but they have a deeper side," says Russell.

"Though they make you smile, there's a darker undercurrent. They're vignettes that can only happen in Sparks' world. It's like on I Can't Believe You Would Fall For All The C**p In This Song; I sing traditional pop cliches like 'I want you'. Ron isn't hackneyed."

The album has She Got Me Pregnant. Does it foretell the recent pregnant man?

"I know, ahead of our time again," laughs Russell. "It's really about a woman impregnating a man with memories of their time together, and his struggles to get rid of them.

"Let The Monkey Drive is great, a tale of a couple so keen to get amorous they let their pet monkey take the wheel to hop in the back of the car."

How does Morrissey - known for his love of Sparks - feel about the duo's new song Lighten Up, Morrissey?

"We're really happy that he loves it," beams Russell. "He loves all the album.

"When you hear the isolated title, you'd think it's a dig. But it's from the perspective of a guy who can't get a girl because in her eyes he'll never match up to Moz. The least he can do is write Lighten Up, Sparks in return."

With their 20-night residency at Islington Academy starting on Saturday, Russell is too frazzled to consider Sparks' future.

"It's been non-stop for 18 months," he says. "We spent all of 2007 on this LP, had a day off and began rehearsing our Islington extravganza.

"But once you've presented your whole career like this, it should shed some light on how to do our next phase."




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