I met Mick Harvey (ex-Birthday Party, ex-Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, PJ Harvey’s band) a few kilometers from Nimes France October 5th 2012 at the Hacienda during a kind of private party proposed by the Tontons Flingueurs a bunch of friends who are passionated people and music lovers. Thank to everyone for this warmhearted and very beautiful night !!

Mick Harvey at the Hacienda in Nimes France Oct 5th 2012

Just after the dinner we went both outside with Mick, sat down at a table under a tree and I recorded our very relaxed conversation about his new solo album (recorded in 2010, released in 2011 and effectively promoted in 2012 after he finished his world tour with PJ Harvey) ”Sketches from The Book of The Dead“ and the probable songwriting of his future solo album…A dog invited himself to the talk and added a special note to this very strange night in an old farm lost in the country, far away from everything …it’s a kind of atmospheric podcast I propose to you this time illustrated by ones of Mick’s beautiful songs : I started with “Bethelridge” (Robbie Fulks) from his covers’ album “One Man’s treasure” (2005), then 3 excerpts of the songs from his new solo album : “The Ballad of Jay Givens, To Each his Own and A Place called Passion” then an excerpt of “The Colour of the Earth” a song he sang in duet with PJ Harvey in her last album “Let Egland Shake” and I finished with one of the new songs “Two Paintings”.

A short videoclip to share with you a bit of that unique experience with a very talentuous and so famous artist playing directly on the floor without his band, just a microphone, a guitar and some recording tapes…How not to feel each other very privileged and and completly charmed…

In this podcast N°110 I propose to you the second part of the Live interview I recorded with Chris Bailey from The Saints when he came to Marseille last year in October with his drummer Peter Wilkinson to perform the new album “Stranger” they co-wrote with two members of the French band H-Burns : Renaud Brustlein and Antoine Pinnet.

Chris Bailey and Peter Wilkinson during the soundcheck in Marseille at Cabaret Aleatoire Oct 2011

Chris Bailey and Antoine Pinnet, Peter and Chris in Marseille Oct 2011

A video I filmed during the show in Marseille Oct 2011 where Chris played in solo “Photograph” then “In the Mirror” with the Bailey Burns Gang !

In that part I talked with Chris about more personal things as his new solo album’s recording in Australia (release expected very soon, maybe this year, can’t wait!!), his projects with The Saints and his last duo tour with Ed Kuepper in May/June 2010.
As I can’t play songs from Chris’ new album yet, I illustrate the interview with some excerpts of that Australian tour with Ed, thank to a hard fan who sent me his audio recording in the audience at Troubadour in Brisbane.

Chris Bailey and Ed Kuepper in the recording studio to test some songs after the tour in 2010 : never says never !! (pic : Jude Dransfield Kuepper)

I chose three songs from Chris where Ed is playing guitar and doing the backing vocals : “In the mirror, Photograph and Gone with the wind”.
I finished with one of my favorite songs from Ed “The way I made you feel” where Chris is playing bass and doing the backing vocals ! Enjoy !!! Hoping they will record something together one day again or at the minimum wishing they will tour Europe with that duo !!

Chris Bailey and Ed Kuepper during their duo tour in Melbourne Australia (pics from Carbie Warbie)

By the way Happy New Year 2012 Everybody !!

In this podcast N°109 I have the great pleasure to propose to you a Live interview with Chris Bailey from The Saints. Chris came to Marseille October 13th with Peter Wilkinson his drummer in The Saints to promote during a French tour the new album “Stranger” they recorded with Renaud Brustlein and Antoine Pinnet two members of the French band H-Burns.

Renaud Brustlein at the vocals and guitar, Peter Wilkinson on the drums, Chris Bailey at the vocals and the bass, Antoine Pinet at the guitar.

Chris and Renaud put in common a few of their new songs and then asked Peter and Antoine to join the new band who can be called, depending the mood : Bailey Burns, The Burns Brothers Band or The Harry Burns Project…:)

Chris Bailey, Peter and Renaud

In that interview recorded before the show at Cabaret Aleatoire in Marseille, Chris talked about the album’s making in France and the pleasure to play with new musicians at the opposite of his habits with The Saints, being in that new context “only the bass player of a French band”!!

A short videoclip to give you an idea of the show in Marseille

 
Peter and Renaud, Renaud and Antoine

To illustrate Chris Bailey’s talk I play some songs’ excerpts from the new album “Stranger” : “Hey You and Cruel Sea” from Chris and “New Sidewalks and Postcards” from Renaud. You can order the album if you like it to their label Vicious Circle.

Renaud, Peter and Chris

Chris and the Burns Brothers Band gave us the pleasure to add to the show some songs of The Saints repertoire, here “Messin’ with the Kid”!!

I will publish soon the second part of the podcast where Chris talked about his personal projects : the next solo album he recorded in Sydney, his ideas about new albums with The Saints, his duo last year in Australia with Ed Kuepper : stay connected !!

After a long silence with the podcasts (exactly one year today, strange coincidence !!) I’m back with you again and to honor this return I propose to you a great live interview or more exactly a very friendly conversation with Rob Younger (ex Radio Birman) I recorded this Summer before his show at La Machine à Coudre in Marseille when he was touring Europe with his famous Australian punk rock band The New Christs !!!

 
Rob Younger and Brent Williams on the left, Dave Ketley and Paul Larson (from the Celibate Rifles, specially here for the tour 2011 replacing Stuart Wilson) on the right…the New Christs at La Machine à Coudre !!

The New Christs delivered us a fantastic performance, sincere, warm-hearted, professional and wild like the great talentuous musicians and generous rockers they are…they can play on big festivals’ stages like they can play for a small venue with the same powerful energy…I can even say they are more impressing in a small venue…Wow that superbe wall of guitars in front of the stage with Brent, Jim and Dave !! Rob adapted his show to the place he had and still was more fascinating, the air was saturated of music, the drummer was a hero (and all of us by the way) with that highly hot temperature of Summer : in fact we all shared a bath of sounds in a complete pleasure close to the trance…:)
Here below a short videoclip I filmed with my small compact camera to try to give you a little idea…Enjoy!

 
The Irritones opening the show on the left; Rob Younger, Jim Dickson (both ex-Radio Birman) and Dave Ketley on the right

The French punk band from Marseille Irritones opened the show for their famous Australian guests : only happiness !! (videoclip of their show below, a short live recording in the podcast)

 
The New Christs and Irritones at the dinner : a good way for the Australians to test the French cooking, cheese and wines thank to the great Relax and Co’s organization !! On the right, Rob Younger backstage with me in the interview’s room ! It was small but we had a lot of fun talking very relaxed before the show about music, projects, life, politics, flavors you can capture in Marseille by night…:) I hope you will like it ! I illustrated that interview with some excerpts of their new live album recorded in Sydney in May 2011 : “On top of me, Coming apart, Daddy’s calling” and of their last studio album Gloria : “Animalisation”…

If you haven’t enough here, you can listen or re-listen to THAT OTHER PODCAST with a live interview with Rob and the band and many live recordings of the show at Le Poste à Galène in Marseille I have published in May 2009 !

I met BugGIRL an Australian rock band first time in Berlin last July thank to Texas Terri who turned me to them in front of one of my favorite punk rock clubs “Wild at Heart”, the place to join the rockers of the planet !!! The connection immediatly was friendly and one month later BugGIRL came and play to Marseille at Enthropy and we spontaneously decided to record an interview after their show.

 
Clinno the volcanic drummer and Amber the electric woman

I started the podcast with their song Rock and Roll Hell, then Hungry as Hell, Rock Your City, Blood Sweat and Beers and Dirty in the Skirt, a pure Australian rock and roll in the tradition AC/DC, Rose Tattoo…

 
Amber and Clinno in strong connection during the whole show.

we talked a lot about the bands they love in Australia during and after the interview : it was a very cool meeting, unforgettable thank to Well Done and Alex (Vaginal Liquid Devilish Piranhas Johnny Division) who booked the show and found us a place in a garage to talk very quietly (with Ze Cardiacs who joined us) the whole night in fact until the day light surprised us…:)

a short video clip to give you an idea of the ambience!

Amber and Clinno in fusion !

Generik Vapeur the famous French street theater company from Marseille left the ex-Abatttoirs based in the old industrial area St Louis the 10/10/10 a symbolic date for a symbolic move with all the family, friends and fans who accompagned them to their new place : The Street Arts City erected in another old industrial area in Marseille, Les Aygualades.
It was hard to leave the old Abattoirs which was the theater’s stage of such fabulous events and stories, artistic or humans, full of poetry and passion during 20 years !!
 
Karine De Barbarin on the left picture, Bruno Montlahuc on the right picture : two Generiks who were there in 89 when the company started the adventure in the Abattoirs…between smiles and strong emotion just before the departure…

 
Everybody took a bag or an object and moved out towards the new place, under the rain…abandoning a few colorful feathers on the road…

The spontaneous theater show with the friends happy to become a street actor for a few minutes, one hour, during the time of the move.

 
Arrival in front of the new black metal building specially made for them and adapted to their professional needs. The old bar from the Abattoirs took a place in their new spacious hall.

 
Caty Avram and Pierre Berthelot, both founder members of the company opened a giant Champagne bottle for the guests-workers !! On the right a last thought to the old Generik’s head quarters in the ex Abattoirs before taking my car again back home…all these memories which still float around…you could find some of them saved by Sara Vidal (aka Andree Vidal : Generik Vapeur president) in her book : “the ex Abattoirs, an original story” (Publishing Cris Ecrits).

Meltingpod Connections :
A thought to Pierrot Bidon who founded the circus Bidon and then Archaos in the same spirit than Generik and who passed away last March…his shows were pure rock and roll !! Watch it !!

In this third and last part of the interview Mick Harvey talked with me very relaxed about the kind of music he likes and played with The Birthday Party and Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds…

 
The Birthday Party Live with Mick Harvey, Nick Cave, Rowland S Howard; Mick Harvey in Paris 2010 posing for me and joking

…mentioning a lot of musicians who impressed him a lot at 14 like Lou Reed, The Velvet Underground, David Bowie, Alice Cooper, Iggy Pop and The Stooges…the friends/bands in Australia who had and still have like him with The Birthday Party and The Bad Seeds the same quest to create their own sound : Go-Betweens, Laughing Clowns, Ed Kuepper…with a large and wild walk around the New Wave and the freedom of expression…Hoping you will like it !
I illustrated the interview with many music excerpts from The Birthday Party : Release the Bats, Sonny’s burning, Fears of Gun, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds : From Her to Eternity, All Tomorrow Parties, The Mercy Seat, Deanna, Midnight Man (live recorded from a video on youtube with Ed Kuepper in 2009), in the background David Bowie and Iggy Pop and The Stooges, at the end Pop Crimes (from Rowland S Howard’s last album with Mick Harvey on the drums).

The Birthday Party : Mick Harvey, Nick Cave, Tracey Pew and Rowland S Howard in the 80’s…the fine team !

By the way 5 years ago March 8th 2005 I published my first podcast !!!
5 YEARS !!! Happy Birthday Meltingpod !!

Meltingpod Connections :
Thank to all of you who appreciated these 3 podcasts with Mick Harvey and wrote it on Nick Cave Fixes and on Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds Forum.

In this second part of the interview Mick Harvey explained us some of the strongest reasons he had to leave the band Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds after having formed it with Nick in 1983. It’s always hard to hear the break of such a long time collaboration (35 years with Nick) and I was not prepared to hear it but Mick’s talk is sincere, entire and without compromise : I hope you will appreciate it.

Mick Harvey with The Bad Seeds during their European tour 2008 (Thomas, Conway and Marty in the background; pic Zruda); Mick in Paris before the interview.

I chose just one song from Mick’s band “The Wallbangers” to start and finish the podcast : “The World keeps spinning around” because I didn’t want to interrupt his intense 15 minutes talk.
But Mick will give us a nice present with playing Live at the end of the interview an unreleased version of PJ Harvey’s song : “Glorius”!!! Thanks again Mick !!

Meltingpod connections :
For info there are some comments posted about that interview by fans of the band on Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds forum.
Oh ! I just found someone who translated part of Mick’s talk in a text and spread my podcasts too, here on a website called Nick Cave fixes”!! with other reactions to the interview.

Mick Harvey was in Paris the first week of February 2010 and proposed to me a Live meeting there to record the long interview I was planning with him just through a long distance phone call between Melbourne-Australia (where Mick lives) and Marseille : I obviously found it was a better idea !!

 
Mick Harvey in Paris 2010; Mick at the Primavera Sound 06 (pic Niccaela)

Mick Harvey was Nick Cave’s long time friend and partner in music, they met at school in the early 70’s and founded their first band The Boys Next Door then called The Birthday Party; after breaking that band Nick Cave asked Mick Harvey in 83 to form a new band called : Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds. As you maybe know, Mick Harvey left that band last year for some reasons he will explain later. I will publish that interview in 3 parts.
In this first part we talked about Mick Harvey’s projects for 2010, his next solo albums, his work doing music for films (alone of with different bands), producing the music of other artists he plays with (like PJ Harvey), covering songs from French musicians like Mano Negra and Serge Gainsbourg.

 
Mick playing drums with Rowland S Howard at ATP 2009 (pic Notaphoto); Mick Harvey with Nick cave and the Bad Seeds in 2008 (pic Zruda).

I illustrated that interview with some short excerpts of his music :
I started with “Come on Spring” a cover song from Dave Faulkner, Frew, McCarthy and Kim Salmon (in Mick’s solo album “One Man’s Treasure), then “The Carny” and “From Her to Eternity” (with Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds for Wim Wenders‘ film : Wings of Desire) “The Adversary” (with Crime and City Solution for Wim Wenders’ film : Until the end of the world) and End Titles (Mick’s solo project for the film Vaterland), a Live version of “Dress” from PJ Harvey where he accompagned her at the bass with Rob Ellis on the drums, “Out of Time Man” from Mano Negra (in Mick’s solo album : Two of Diamonds), “The Ballad of Melody Nelson” and “Requiem” from Serge Gainsbourg (in one of Mick’s both tribute albums to Gainsbourg : Pink Elephants; for info the other one is called “Intoxicated Man”). I added a personal tribute to Rowland S Howard” (Mick’s great friend and partner in music who died last December) with playing a short excerpt of my favorite song “Marry Me (Lie! Lie!)” from one of his bands These Immortal Souls.
I hope you will appreciate that new podcast !!
The second part is coming soon !

Each November 9th since 1989 I remember the fall of the Berlin wall because this town is a kind of second hometown for me and I watch  at the TV with some tears in the eyes the old movies which show all these people and families who at last reunited each other.

The poster of a painting from the Wall hung on my wall for years…

This year a lot of politicians from Europe celebrated the 20th anniversary with a huge party in front of the Brandeburger Tor. I was not very convinced with their performance thinking to the financial crisis, to all other walls which still exist around the world and to all the people who still live oppressed by dictators in the complete indifference.

Meeting with an angel in Berlin…

my friends from East Berlin who found their ex-national flag thrown in the rubbish after the fall of the wall…

So I chose through that podcast to do a kind of punk personal celebration in two parts : first with mixing some old live ambience recordings I did in “my” Berlin these last years (during the Walpurgis Night in Friedrichshain streets with the band ACK, with Markus in his car, at Wild at Heart a punk club in Kreuzberg) , a few German songs I love (from the band Noah : “Help your police, Hit yourself” and from John F. un die Gropiuslerchen : “Berlin Berlin”) and a recent interview I recorded with Ralf who shares with us his night in Berlin November 9 th when he heard the Wall was opened !!

The Wall’s opening from East Berlin side : still some hesitations…

“Berlin Berlin !! dein Herz hat kein Mauer” (Berlin your heart has no wall)
from John F. und die Gropiuslerchen ( a lot of archives’ pics in that clip)

In a second part I propose to leave Berlin for a country which is waking up from a very hard nightmare too : Cambodia where the dictactors Kmher Rouge completly destroyed the culture and erected a kind of mental wall which isolated the people until they lost the memory of their own names.
I recorded a few days ago an interview with a long time friend of mine Bob Passion who lives and works there now with streets kids in the context of a project called Bhor Cambodia.

The kids who learn and do art performances with Bob in Cambodia

Bob brought me the last album “Peur de Rien” (Fear of Nothing) he recorded there with his new local band “Kanlat Rik Rié” : I played excerpts from “Chez Mike, Maconiero, Pas Là, Là”. Punk is not dead in Cambodia with Bob !!

Bob’s band Kanlat Rik Rié Live on stage

You can DOWNLOAD HIS WHOLE ALBUM FOR FREE here :
WWW.BOBPASSION.NET
and all your welcomed donations will go to his project for kids “Bhor Cambodia”.

I met Texas Terri in Berlin last February and we recorded the interview we missed in Marseille last year in November when she played at la machine à coudre during her European tour 2008 with her band Texas Terri Bomb : Texas Terri (vocals), Beano Skint (bass), Olivier “the Inspector” (guitar), Marina Maniac (drums).

Texas with her band in Marseille; Texas and Coco at Tiki Heart Berlin

This time we had the great pleasure to talk quietly at Tiki Heart a nice bar beside Wild at Heart (my favorite berliner punk rock club) about her long musical carrier who started in Austin (Texas) then in Los Angeles during many years before she decided to live in Berlin. Her talk is like she is : honest, direct, sincere, funny, touching, volcanic without compromise !!

Texas and Marina; Texas “the female Mick Jagger” in action !

I played some songs’ excerpts from her album “Your lips…my ass” : Never Shut Up, Strike, Dirty Action, The Rocker, One Hit Wonder, Oh Yeah! where a lot of famous American musicians participated to the recording : Wayne Kramer (MC5) Sonny Vincent, Marc Diamond (Motochrist), Ryan Roxie (Alice Cooper) Cherrie Currie (Runaways) just to mention some of them + an Iggy Popp’s cover I recorded Live in Marseille : I wanna be your dog !

Texas and Beano; Texas and Marina : chicks who rock !!

Meltingpod Connection :
Not better news from Mick Cocks than to see him Live on stage with Angry Anderson and Rose Tattoo in Sydney July 24th 2009 !!!

review about the show HERE. My best thoughts to you Mick !

Rodolphe Burger was invited by Marsatac in the Festival de Marseille to work with 6 young musicians from Beyrouth in Libanon and one musician from Marseille in the context of a project called “Mix Up Beyrouth” : what a great idea which at last gave me the opportunity to do a Live interview with one of my favorite French musicians !

Rodolphe Burger (guitar and vocals) during the show Mix Up Beyrouth; Rodolphe with Julien Perraudeau (bass).

I immediatly loved Rodolphe Burger’s music, special sound and style when I saw him Live many years ago with his ex-band Kat Onoma so I will play a lot of songs’ excerpts from this band to illustrate that interview (The Radio, Artificial Life, Idiotic, La Chambre, Le déluge “d’après moi”, John and Mary, Play with Fire with James Blood Ulmer, Billy The Kid) as well as some excerpts from the Mix Up Beyrouth’s first Live performance at la Friche Belle de Mai July 11th 2009 (including an excerpt from the soundcheck !!). You can also check Rodolphe’s solo albums : HERE.

Mix Up Beyrouth Live in Marseille !! a short clip but a great moment !

Rodolphe with Ziad Saad (keyboards, vocals, guitar); Rodolphe with Rayess Bek (vocals and computer) in the background Julien and Ziad.

Rodolphe met these 7 musicians from Beyrouth and Marseille for the first time just 10 days before the show and it really was a challenge to be creative and in harmony in a so short period of time : but they got it !! Second step in September for the Marsatac festival’s overture : don’t miss them if you’re in the area !

Youmma Saba (vocals guitar) Rodolphe, Julien and Ziad.

the whole band (from right to left) : Frederic Nevchehirlian (vocals guitar), Fady Tabbal (multi-instumentist), Youmma, Abed Kobeissy (busuk), Rodolphe, Julien, Ziad and Rayess.

Ziad taking the vocals, Youmma and Rayess during the encore !

Everybody focused during the soundcheck.

Obviously after the Mix Up Beyrouth’s project, I couldn’t resist to ask Rodolphe questions about Kat Onoma’s eventual future, how he built his own recording studio “The Farm”, launched his own label ‘Derniere Bande” and created his own festival “C’est dans la Vallée” + he announced me the next tour with his new trio…so many things that I forgot to speak about his last tour in China and Ouzbekistan !! Hoping it just was the part 1 !!