Posted August 30, 2002
DOUSED:
BASS PLAYER ROBBIE WARREN
ON DIED PRETTY'S EXTINGUISHMENT
More than a decade ago, a fresh-faced fan from Brisbane stepped into the Died Pretty bassplayer's role. It was a dream come true for Robbie Warren and the chance to ride a wave of success that started with the band's first major label release, "Doughboy Hollow", and petered out on the back of music industry indifference.
Died Pretty have always been a band to do it their own way. Largely eschewing the Detroit and garage sounds for something altogether more dark, the band began life uncertainly as a surprise signing to the happening Citadel label in Sydney in the early '80s. Revolving around the twin axis of singer Ron Peno and guitarist Brett Myers, Died Pretty carved out local and then international standing as exponents of majestic, grand psychedelic songs, with more than a nod to the likes of the Velvet Underground and Suicide. Theirs was a unique sound and one that garnered extensive fandom in Australia and Europe.
Time has moved on. A decade after Robbie Warren joined them, Died Pretty are calling it a day. There's a farewell CD single (the wonderful "My Generation Landslide", available from Citadel) and a final tour, just to say goodbye. I-94 Bar staff decided to ask Robbie to join them for a drink and talk about the band from the perespective of both a member and a fan. JOHN McPHARLIN did most of the grilling, with assistance from THE BARMAN.
Well, it seems like you've done almost as many farewell shows as Nellie Melba,
but how's it feel to be finally facing the real, honest-to-God, last-ever shows?
Yes, I've had a few now! Having the opportunity to be part of the farewell tour
is something I feel very excited coming out of retirement for. I did not think
I would get the chance to close off the career so nicely - Died Pretty has been
a large part of my life in so many ways, and to be with the guys for the last
time is going to be unforgettable... and incredibly sad... at the same time.
Died Pretty had reached the point where they were only playing one or two
shows a year, but when they happened everybody on stage seemed to be enjoying
those rare outings as much as the audience, so why finally knock it on the head?
Having left the band before the final decision was made, I cannot really say.
However, Brett did come round one night and explain that the band had decided
to wind down. We'd been in the gradual process of winding things down over the
past few years anyway, so it felt fairly natural.
Knowing how much we've all sacrificed to keep things together for so long, I
know there just comes a time when you wake up feeling that the time is right
to move on to different things... and so we have. It's
been a long ride, full of great highs and some soul-destroying lows...but I
wouldn't trade any of it in for the world...
How is your hearing now, by the way?
The tinnitus I have in my ear is pretty much the same as when I left the band.
It's permanent, that's for sure, but I'm coping pretty well considering how
much I hear it when I sleep. I try to pretend it's a
Sonic Youth song, that helps a little... I've come up with some great songs
that way...
When you joined the band it would have been riding the wave created by "Doughboy
Hollow".
I joined just weeks after "Doughboy" was recorded, so the wave was
yet to begin. But I knew the moment I heard the first few bars of "Doused"
that this was going to be something special. To be honest, I didn't think Died
Pretty would be able to top the recordings they had already made. I loved each
and every one so much I didn't think it was humanly possible. And then I heard
"Doughboy"...
Looking back, what have been the highlights of your decade-plus with the
band?
There have been so many - and most of them I couldn't tell you if I wanted to!
Some that spring to mind that I can tell you, include:
There are so many others, but I better stop there... the guys will kill me...
Are you surprised that it's ending the way it is?
Not really. Ending in the sense that we'll do a farewell tour seems pretty standard.
I just wish we could get round to every capital at the very least - I think
venues are way too focussed on the pokies these days... they just don't want
to take the risk...
What was the feedback from fans for the gradual shift in direction that was
obvious over the last couple of albums?
I personally felt that for as many people that didn't enjoy what we did later
on as much as before, there were just as many that liked what we did later and
liked us even better. Yesterday's
Letters, the DP mailing
list on our web site, is testament to
this...
Is
it a direction everybody in the band was comfortable with or even overtly conscious
of?
Absolutely. One thing's for certain about the personalities in Died Pretty,
and that is that if everyone wasn't basically happy with the way things went,
things were changed. A few gems have probably passed us by
as a result, but in the end we knew we couldn't force what we did - it had to
be the sum of it's parts for our own sanity...
There seemed to be pretty constant upheavals behind the drum kit for the first
half of the '90s, with Chris Welsh in and out a couple of times, before and
after which there was a seemingly endless procession of other drummers (Murray
Shepherd, Warwick Fraser, Stuart Eadie, Nick Kennedy and Shane Melder) before
Simon Cox finally settled things down. As the other half of the rhythm section,
how did you find working in such an environment?
I've played in many bands where changing drummers does not really effecta band's
sound, but when Chris left, things were a little strange for a while. The energy
within a song that a drummer like Chris adds so naturally becomes a real feature
of the song.
So many drummers want to play like a drum machine, and for a lot of things,
being that tight is probably OK. But for me, knowing when to drive a song and
when to sit behind or in front of it, without making the tempo change sound
obvious, is something that is instinctive. For me, it separates a real drummer
from someone who bangs things in time. So, the revolving drummer phase really
made it hard for me. I had to concentrate on what was happening in the engine
room instead of enjoying the view from the deck. Thank God Simon came along
- between them both they have that innate sense of how to slot into a song...
and therefore freed me to enjoy the show once more...
While we're on the subject of engine rooms, Died Pretty has always had a
few essential elements to their sound, one of which is a certain style of bass
playing. As someone who's been both an observer of the band and subsequently
in that driving seat, can you give us your take on this?
That's a tough one, as I think everyone in the band has added their own something
special... In 1984, I wanted to be a drummer because I was heavily into Adam
& the Ants. The next year I was listening to 4ZZZ in Brisbane, and heard
a song where the bass player was actually carrying a lot of the melody. It was
"Desperate Hours". I'd never heard anything like it, I always liked
hard, crunchy bass sounds like Hunters had earlier on, but so many bass players
did little for the instrument. And here was this smooth and silky bass line
that wasn't just playing root notes.
I fell in love immediately, and bought a dilapidated old bass off a friend for
$20. It had no pickups and the neck was bent, but it had four strings and if
I leant on it, I could hear it through my body. And I
never looked back. I just wanted to create something like the thrill that Mark
Lock gave me when I first heard his playing style... I can only hope that someone,
somewhere, knows exactly that feeling from this inheritance...
Depending
on who you believe, there were anywhere between 30 and 50 demos done for "Trace".
What happened to the songs that didn't make the cut? Are we one day going to
see them in a Died Pretty box set?
To end the mystery, there were 32 all up. We had the liberty of time on our
hands, and we took full advantage of it. A lot of the songs are still around,
though I think most are just on cassette tapes now. Sony destroyed or
lost a lot of the original tapes. That said, I wouldn't be surprised at all
if they turned up somewhere at some point - it's funny how sometimes things
that don't exist suddenly appear from out of
nowhere...out of someone's closet, but time will tell on this one...
Here's one to put you on the spot: What's your favourite Died Pretty album?
The ones that Ron and Brett played on.
Did Died Pretty ever record their live shows and if so, are we ever likely
to see a live album?
Sometimes we'd have the sound engineer do a tape from the desk, but it was never
for an official release, just for us personally. I do know there are quite a
few unauthorised Died Pretty live recordings around,
so if you can find them...
The band now has a happening web presence,
so what are the plans there? Wouldn't this be a good avenue for selling limited
edition "fan only" releases, for example?
Quite probably, though whether we'd want that is another story...
The Barman notes, with sometimes wry amusement, an obsession (especially
from online fans) with the band's lyrics. Did the sometimes inscrutable nature
of them cause much comment within the band? (I was laughing for weeks when I
found out "Sweetheart" was about Ed Gein.)
No, not really. Only in that we couldn't understand the fascination. Ron and
I both really like singers such as Michael Stipe and Liz Fraser, singers that
don't always express things in words, but more emotive noises and alliteration.
Words aren't necessary to get the passion across generally speaking, but I also
understand that people like to sing along, so many people do like to know what
the words actually are. When I listen to music, I just make up my own and sing
along anyway.
Some of the interpretations of Ron's lyrics I've heard are hilarious. For example,
the first line to Winterland being 'Tonight the bowling ball, swings down once
again!' Classic!
Ron has many songs that are mostly composed of *real* words, but in the interests
of allowing things to flow, they don't always make grammatical sense. Nor should
they. But people do like things to make some sort of sense, that's for sure.
But you're right, in that the lyrics that do have some recognisable form, like
those on "Doughboy Hollow" for example, often aren't about what you'd
think...
You've
got a co-writing credit for "Always"; how did that come about? Would
you have liked to have been more involved in the song writing?
I basically took the song into rehearsal. Ron and Brett were always willing
to hear what any of us wanted to contribute, but when someone can write a song
and get it down within five minutes, like Brett did with
"State of Graceful Mourning", than you really need to have a fuller
idea of what you want the song to sound like or you're outta there!
As far as song writing goes, in Brisbane I'd always had a large hand in putting
the songs to the band or reworking them a little. But once I joined Died Pretty,
every time I wanted to show something to the guys I
just couldn't do it. I have such respect for Brett's song writing skills it
simply scared me to death... he really is one of the country's best songwriters...
and it was also hard taking a song for the guys to work on based on a bass line.
Some bands like The Cure can write songs from a bass line and work on things
until they get it, but when we demoed songs, they were put on tape within three
or four plays. We just never had time to sit down and work on a song each week
at a regular rehearsal, for a long time we were either out on the road, in the
studio, or taking a break.
I believe you'd just started a new job when you joined the band. How hard
was it get time off to tour? What did your co-workers think of you occasionally
ducking out of the office to go on tour?
Not sure what my co-workers thought, but I was working in the public service
at a time when downsizing was the buzz word. It worked well for me because for
the entire period of the 90's, I was given Leave-Without-Pay to tour with the
band... it was a good deal... I got the time off, they kept a trained staff
member on the books.(McPharlin turns green with envy - ED.)
I was very lucky to be in this position, and owe a debt of gratitude to many
people as a result.
We
know you were a fan, but exactly how familiar were you with the band's material
before you joined? Do you remember the circumstances of how you came to fill
the gap when Steve Clarke left in the first place?
Steve basically was tired of touring. I've asked myself a million times why
someone would leave after making an album like "Doughboy Hollow",
but after going overseas with the band myself, I fully understand how touring
can pluck the stars right out of your eyes and drain you dry.
For years before I joined, I practiced every Died Pretty song ever released.
I wanted to put myself in the position of being able to let the band know that
if ever there was an emergency in the band, I could
walk in and play on the spot. I kept telling myself that that had to be worth
something to any band, and proceeded to tell them every time they came to Brisbane!
I was sure they'd be sick of me by the time an
opportunity arose, but I persevered.
So, when I actually did the audition, the guys told me that they would pick
a few songs and then ask me to pick some. I went for the ones I knew they didn't
play often - I wanted to prove what I knew. I'll always
remember Brett asking me what the chords were to "Yesterday's Letters".
I felt that all the years of practising were worth it for that very moment.
Thank God it worked out in the end.
What bands had you played with in Brisbane before moving to Sydney?
I played in quite a few bands, the main ones being, The Sanity Assassins, The
Egyptians, Reptile House, and Dementia 13. I was playing Mona Lisa Overdrive
when I left for Sydney.
What other bands were you into?
Probably the bands I liked most at the time, apart from Died Pretty, include
Cocteau Twins, Dead Can Dance, Sonic Youth, REM, and The Church. However, I
can pretty much find something I like in most types of music, it's just harder
in some styles than in others I find.
There was a time when you seemed to have a different band for every day of
the week.
I always felt like one band was never enough to satisfy me. I wanted to fast
track my playing, as I did not start getting into music until rather late at
age 20.
Lodestar was the most outstanding and longest running. How did you get involved
with that?
I saw an ad in the Drum Media asking for someone influenced by The Posies,
and I really loved 'Frosting on the Beater' at the time, so I auditioned for
them after getting their self-titled EP to listen to... I was blown away by
how good it was...
Lodestar had a great repertoire of original material. Is there any chance
that any of that will ever see the light of day?
Unfortunately, no. One of the biggest disappointments I've had is knowing that
Lodestar's music never got the audience it deserved. They had some of the best
material outside of DP I'd heard, and I just couldn't understand why everyone
wasn't raving about them. We put a final EP together of older recordings prior
to breaking up which never saw the light of day. I really wished we'd made it
into the studio, as we later wrote a lot of songs that were great, and of the
same or better quality as the EP.
What are the other former members up to now?
The singer Jason is doing some sound tracks for an upcoming film by Festival's
Gary Seeger, while Geoff currently plays drums in Knievel.
Mike, Karen (Hissy Fit) and I have recently been toying with the idea of putting
some tracks down in ProTools to see what we come up with, so that about covers
it.
Mr Blonde was a band that seemed to have a future; wasn't there going to
be a record deal and even a tour of Japan at one stage?
Yes, and from what I hear another tour just fell through for them. Their latest
album was just released there so maybe the stars will line up with them for
once.
Did you ever record with them?
I recorded half of the songs on their latest album "BiPolar", though
you wouldn't know it from the credits: "New Mexico", "Imogen
(Bottle Store)", "It's The Only Thing", "All Of The Time"
(a brilliant Tim Whitten mix), "Slightly Rod", "Running for the
Bus" and "Turn The Other Cheek".
Hissy Fit was another band that you were involved with. How did that come
about?
After Lodestar, Geoff and I basically wanted to stay together as a rhythm section.
We worked really well together, and I knew how hard great drummers are to find.
One day Geoff saw an ad in the Drum Media
and we went for an audition together. By the time things fell apart, we had
a sound that worked really well. I think time was our only barrier by that stage.
Another sad conclusion, I'm afraid.
I realise I'm sounding a tad repetitive about the potential of these bands,
but I have a fussy ear and I've only ever taken on things that excited me...
just like about every musician I've ever met!
There was also a band with Jason Shepherd, wasn't there (Hawce)? All these
bands were pretty different, from each other and from Died Pretty. What sort
of music do you choose to listen to when you're not playing in a band?
Yes, Hawce is right. However, I reached a point where I had so many things running
I just couldn't keep up anymore. So I had to stop completely, which was a shame
because they had some great songs as well.
Right now, there seems to be little that interests me musically, just a few
things here and there. I can't work out whether this is due to moving on age-wise
or whether things really are less creative nowadays. There seemed to be so many
ground-breaking bands with their own distinctive sound in the late 80's early
90's, like My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth, Nirvana, Fugazi, Cocteau Twins,
the list goes on. What I hear isn't really that ground-breaking, and while I
accept that music should not always be, I'm left feeling unsatiated of late.
Being involved so heavily in music, it takes something a little more challenging
to grab my ear these days. I suspect that the state of Australian radio should
shoulder a large part of the blame for this. And sure, downloading free music
is great too, but it's the people on the fringe who come up with the interesting
stuff, and somewhere along the line they'll need the money to keep things going.
Thankfully, there is so much great back catalogue out there in the world, I'm
not entirely bored...
We're in a Bar, so what are you drinking?
Johnny Walker scotch and dry, thanks.
Died Pretty's final shows are about to happen. Catch them at the Waterloo Hotel, Brisbane, on September 7, the Prince of Wales, Melbourne, on September 13, The Corner Hotel, Melbourne, on September 14 and The Metro, Sydney, on September 21. Tickets are on sale from the venues.
READ OUR INTERVIEW WITH RON PENO
