‘THAT SENSE OF OTHERNESS WAS SOMETHING WE FOUND
REALLY APPEALING'
Third rock from the sun
Formed in the pre-punk art rock scene of the 70s, PERE UBU are busier and more restless than ever. Frontman David Thomas tells Neil Cooper about their latest project — a soundtrack to It Came From Outer Space.
l~ the truth is out there. or e\ en ()ut 'l‘liere l'or that
matter. then l’crc l'hu haxe heen pushing too hard
lor the hest part of 30 years. li\ er since the tcrril'}ing squall ol their I075 dehut single. I‘ll Seconds ()\cr 'l'ok)o'/‘lleart ol Darkness' compressed all the frustrations ol‘ lil’e in the middle—American heartland into a St Vitus—soled mam-garage machine gun ‘iittcrhug. l’erc l'hu ha\'e remained oddhall outsiders. l.ed h_\ the larger than life hag ol nerxex that is l‘rontman l)a\ id 'l‘liomas. their earl} \x'ork. collected in all its strangeness on the lhilri/itiiiik in l/lt’ Year Zero ho\ set. is regarded as seminal.
'l‘llc‘ll' ll\L'. \L‘llll—lmpl'tnised soundtrack 10 Slls c‘llll sci-ll Nick. I! ('iiim' I'i'iiiii ()lllt'l' .S'pui‘c. thei'el‘ore. can he regarded as a coming home ol' \Ul'ls. ()i'iginall) scripted h} .Uiii'ii'uii (‘liroiii'i'li'x author Ra} Bradhur}. the lilm ma} lia\e hecn released at the height of ('old \Var paranoia. hut concentrated instead on the racial isolationism that “as encroaching upon ['8 socicl}. It’s also designed to he \ ie\\‘ed through 3|) \[k‘c‘.\.
‘\\'e used to lap up that stul'l‘.‘ chuckles Thomas. \\ ho. along \\ith all the other l‘reaks grouing up in (‘le\eland. ()hio. formed the core ol a nascent pre— punk art/rock scene the earl} l'hu gre\\ out oli. Thomas is loath to identil‘} his earl} day as a disaffected )outh \\ ith the imading aliens ol' the moxie. although he doe\ acknouledge that ‘that sense ol‘ otherness. I suppose. “as something we l‘ound reall_\ appealing. Ra) Bradhur} “as the starting point. Book's like Sinner/tine ll'i'c/u’t/ Hm lliri‘ (times. the} were so tar ahead of
c\er'\tliing else. in that there “as a real humane. poetic sensihilit} there. \xhicli got changed in the mo\ic. so I'm reading out some ol Bradhur} \ original script'
.v\\ the lllLllllslil} ol l’erc l'hu\ e\er-l'luctuating line-- tip. 'l'homas last appeared in these parts perl'orming his .lli'i'i'oi' .l/(HI opera project alongside such luminaries as Linda 'l'liompson and .lackie l.e\cn. He also pcrl‘ormx \\llll l.c\cn as l'hul)oll. has ~iuxt released a third alhum as l)a\id 'l‘liomas & the lm» l’alc Boy and took oxcr l‘rom the Tiger l.illic\ tor a stint in iunkshop stage hit. .S/lrit'k/lt'tlrlt‘tl l’t’lt'l'.
"l'he-Vre all doing the same thingxf he \il}\ ol' \tlc'll apparent di\ei\ilication. ‘hut using other means to do them. I suppose it. tlieiex an) restlessness there. that comes out in the \xork itscll. But I don‘t \\am to he one ol' lllc‘u‘ people ;t\ll;tl11ctl til lllcll' rock l'tHllM. he maintains. ‘l'm not. liuxt do \tul'lI~
l’ere l'hu ha\e recentl} \\ot‘ked up a similar score for Roger (’orman'x 'lilii' .lliiii llll/l .\'-/\’ii_\' litiw. 'l‘homax \L'C\ llll\ ax the lNlllLl-\ .-\ltlc‘l'lC;lll [ll'lllCCL \\ ill] /I (‘HHH' IVi'iiiii ()Hlt’l' S/nii'i' designed for liurope. .~\gain. scenes cut h_\ lil} -li\ered \ltldio th\\L‘\ are \crhall_\ reinstated.
With such a \xelter ol l'hu-related acti\it_\. 'l‘homax. no“ a resident of Brighton llll\ ne\t door neighhour is Nick (Incl. keeps on mo\ ing.
‘I guess I’m accelerating touards the end ol m} lil'e.‘ he say. ‘I get hetter at \\ hat I do so I “am to do moref
The Arches, Glasgow, Mon 8 Nov.
Musafir lhe Indian roots of gypsg culture some to Scotland With an (B‘yfF-tllflhllllt) concert of music. song and dai‘ice from the ultimate itél‘.(3lllll(] l)l£l\'t?lf§. Queen's Hall. {jg/iiihurgh. Thu .1 Nov; l/l/Wld llieatre. Melrose. l‘ii 53 Nov. {Folk 8 ll/orldi.
Ana Sofia Varela Passion, pain. sadness and beauty: the art of the lado singer has passed to a new generation of Portuguese singers. Varela is a true rising star. Queen's l~la//. {Sr/inhurgh, Fri 5 NOV. ll‘O/K 8. l't/or/dl.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds He has given us his finest studio work in ten years and Cave's never been a slouch when it comes to onstage intensity. He's still one of the most captivating live performers around. See feature. Carling Academic Glasgow, Fri :3 8 Sat 6 Nov. (Rock 8 Popi.
Pere Ubu See preiiiew. left. Arches. Glasgow. Mon 8 Nov. iRock (2 Po; ).
The Hub they don't quite live up to The Guardian's description -- "free Jazz meets death metal inside the blades of a combine harvester -~ but that gives a flavour of what to expect from this raucous New York trio. Henrv's Jazz Cellar Edinburgh, Wed 70 Nov. i’Jazzi.
Sister Maj’s Blouse An intriguing name for an exciting group. 8MB brings together four heavyweigl'it iazzers from the Swedish scene -« saxophonist Joachim Milder, pianist Bobo Stenson. drummer Fredrik Noren and bassist Palle Danielsson. Henry '3 Jazz Cellar. Edinburgh, Fri lQ-Sat 73 NOV. (Jazzi.
.' Modest Mouse Beautifully weird. skewed pop twinges from a band who take Pavements charm and inject it With a million different musical ideas. See preview. Garage, Glasgow, Tue 76 Nov. (Rock (8 Pop).
-1 THE LIST 73
1".