Since forming in London in the late ‘70s, The Psychedelic Furs have excelled in creating their own unique brand of post punk.
“I think we’re the missing link between punk and alternative,” says bass player Tim Butler. “When we started with punk, we had the sort of songwriting of like a sort of more of a Roxy Music. We took the energy of punk and added it to those bands and came up with our own sound.”
While the band’s tour plans last year were put on hold due to the pandemic, they made up for it by releasing Made of Rain, their first album since 1991.
“We had a hiatus from ‘92, all the way through to 2000. And when we started getting together again, we had our song ideas that we passed around through the past whatever it is, 20 years, since we got back together,” says Butler. “But we were always nervous the songs we were writing wouldn't stand up alongside some of our so-called classic Fur songs. We were really nervous actually about going and recording.
“But it came to a point, a couple years ago, where we were listening to our demos. And we all said to each other, ‘Well, we have the makings of a great album.’ And we were halfway through our tour, and we were firing on all cylinders, musically. We just thought, ‘Let's get in while we’re together and we’re playing well together and record this stuff?’”
The band recorded the album in two two-week sessions, often recording songs into two or three takes and picking the best one. “It’s really first album we didn't over-bake it, or overthink it, or over-overdub,” says Butler. “I think it’s very fresh, and I think it does stand up there with our older stuff.”
The band is excited to get back out on the road and share these songs with their fans. “We’ve been off the road for almost two years. It’s been almost two years since I’ve actually seen the other members of the band, which is bad enough. My brother [Richard], I haven’t seen him in-person,” says Butler. “That’s going to be exciting, and to get back onstage and play new material … We’re excited. Hopefully, the audience is excited. It's doubly exciting, because of the new album. So, I just can't wait.”
The Shepherd Express caught up with Butler recently to talk about returning to the studio and the band’s legacy.
With the band's most recent album turning a year old, what's your relationship with these songs?
We were all geared up, to get out and play the songs when the album was out, because it’s been a while since we had a new album. And it was postponed. Everybody was really depressed. But now, we’re gearing up to go out. And we’re really excited, to actually get out and play the new songs in front of people. Because I know people have been waiting, certainly the older fans, for quite a while for new Fur stuff. So, it’s going to be exciting, I hope, from their point of view, but definitely from our point of view.
Do any of the songs have deeper, different kind of meaning for you now, over your …
Yes. The [album title] is basically about death, which has been on my mind. With this pandemic, the fear of getting it and dying, because I have diabetes and asthma. So, I’m extra in danger if I get it.
I think it’s really right for the time we’re going through. It’s a dark, moody album, and I think it’s been, last year especially, a dark, moody depressing year.
What song was the most surprising to write and record?
Most surprising was “Don’t Believe.” It was a bass riff I had. Initially, it was a verse and a chorus. But we were in the studio, and I started playing the riff, and Rick started writing lyrics to it. He said, “Keep playing that.” And I said, “Oh, it’s got a chorus as well.” And he goes, “No, no, just keep playing on that groove.” And I did, and that came together really quickly. We probably recorded and overdubbed it in two days.
The band reunited in 2000 after a hiatus. In what ways is this run with the band similar and different from the first run?
I think we've just learnt, as we did back in the ‘80s. You learn songwriting from album to album, and you improve when you hear things that you hear around you, and you take influences from what you musically hear around you, whether it’s jazz, or folk. And I think that the difference with years between ‘93 and 2000, we've all had our own albums and favorite bands we listen to. And when we go together, it all melded together.
It’s a current sound, but it’s definitely still The Psychedelic Furs, but it can stand up there with bands like, I guess, Coldplay and the Arctic Monkeys. It’s not a dated sound.
I imagine it's neat to have multiple generations of fans.
Oh, yeah. Our older fans have been with us since the early ‘80s, but I think we have a lot of fans that came to hear of us through being in the soundtrack for Call Me By My Name and the soundtrack for Stranger Things, which caused them to check out our older work. And a lot of bands, in our hiatus, they'd name-check us, and say we’re big influences, like The Killers.
We’ve played The Greek Theater in LA with The Killers, and they asked to do “Pretty in Pink” with us. So, we were on with them, and we did “Pretty in Pink,” which was cool.
It just shows the younger audience that their new heroes, or whatever, were influenced by us, and other bands of course. But I think that’s the way that our music got through to a younger audience. So, we get an audience from 16 to 60 going to our shows.
What's one of your favorite memories from the band’s early days?
In the ‘80s, walking into The Forum in L.A., which is I think it's like 60,000 people, and our tour manager saying, “It was sold out.” And we were thinking, “Wow, we made it.”
