Hey! Vinny Peculiar
Hey! Manchester first caught Alan Wilkes – aka Vinny Peculiar – playing solo at the Star and Garter in 2004. He was orchestrating technical problems to panic the sound man. The Smiths’ Andy Rourke was DJing (terribly) that night. Later, he and fellow Smithsonian Mike Joyce became Vinny’s backing band, while Bonehead, ex-Oasis, also played with him, somewhat bizarrely.
We’ve put Vinny on three times: for our first ever gig, with Jens Lekman at the Kings Arms; at our monthly night at Kro bar (he was ill but soldiered on); and at the Salford Arms as part of last year’s Sounds From The Other City. He always impresses the audience.
As part of a regular new series, we’ve asked Vinny to give us an unreleased track – a live performance of Everlasting Teenage Bedroom in this instance – and answer a few questions…
Reviews have included various comparisons from Bowie to Magnetic Field’s Stephin Merritt. But which artists have particularly inspired you?
Well I do really like Stephin Merrit; 69 Love Songs is just wonderful. I’m inspired by those who do what they do without overtly pandering to the forces of commercialisation, those who create stuff because they have to, it’s who they are. Working with Bill Drummond helped me to get some kind of perspective on art for arts sake. He is an inspiration for sure. Bowie of course goes way back, it’s a teenage glam generation affiliation thing… I mean, the 60’s had the Beatles, the 70’s belonged to Bowie – end of. Of the modernists I like Fleet Foxes… amazing singing. And I love people like David Byrne, Stephen Jones, Luke Haines; Joni Mitchell’s Blue is my all time favourite album… well it is today.
You’ve got a background in punk. What prompted the switch, and how would you describe your music now?
The music is kind of diverse: I’m not adverse to loud guitars; if it’s a folksy thing I’ll add a mandolin. I try and let the song dictate the feel/style… although sometimes this can play havoc with continuity. Not being signed to EMI, I am at liberty to experiment.
In Hey! Manchester’s opinion, you produce some of the most interesting lyrics of any artist in the city. Where do they come from?
I have ideas for lyrics that stew for ages. I carry a notebook and write them down, it’s a bit of a hobby come obsession. All ideas are borrowed but the best ones I manage to convince myself as my own. I think that’s the way it works? Sometimes it’s a stream of consciousness thing… sometimes more linear. There’s a song on the new album called Nurse of the Year about a nurse who wins a prestigious award by accident. ‘No one expected me to win, when they put my name forward they were joking,’ goes the refrain. Ideas come from experience… well of course they do.
The Joyce/Rourke/Bonehead connection has no doubt impressed a lot of local music fans – hell, maybe you’ll even been indirectly responsible for a Smiths reunion. Is it a case of simply asking these guys if they want to play with you?
Mike Joyce happened to see me play one night a few years ago in the Star and Garter at one of the Shadrack and Duxbury club nights. I was looking for a band to promote the Growing Up with VP album, it sort of went on from there. Andy Rourke then joined, then Craig Gannon. Bonehead got involved after loving the Fall and Rise album, initially as a manager and then as a last-minute replacement bass player for some European shows… it’s all pretty haphazard really. After a few years playing together we called it a day, needed to move on. We all still get along and see each other socially which is nice.
That’s a joke right, the Smiths reunion thing? Ha ha.
You’ve got a new band now… who’s involved and what do you think they can add to your music?
The new band have been loaned to me from Jelly’s Last Jam, who are making considerable waves of their own of late. Jellies supported us on a few shows last year. Andy the drummer and Martin the bass player have become The Blue Poppies of Ambrosia. We’re making our live debut in Birmingham at the end of the month. I love the way they play, all wild abandon and spontaneity. I am also looking for a keyboard player so if you know anyone feel free to get in touch.
Can you tell us a bit about the new album?
It’s called Sometimes I feel like a King – the title track seeks solace in the simple things in life, the ordinary, some might say mundane, the day to day. It’s about an appreciation of the moment, stopping the bus and taking in the view.
It was recorded at Analogue Cat Studios in Mossley onto two-inch tape, old school style. It’s the first album I’ve done to feature a cover version: Sun Comes Up its Tuesday Morning, a Cowboy Junkies song I’ve long admired. I played most of the instruments myself apart from the drums, which were played by Neil Carter. Some of the songs are quite noisy, rantish even; others more introspective. It’s coming out in May, I’m doing it on my own label, Shadrack and Duxbury, and it’ll be available through all the usual download sites as well as a hard copy CD in a snazzy little digipack.
Which is your favourite venue in Manchester, and what’s been your favourite gig?
I have a soft spot for the Kings Arms in Salford… have a seen a few good people there and played there too. It’s intimate and the sound is good. I like the fact they have all kinds of stuff going on there too… not just music. The cinema stuff they put on is superb.
A favourite gig I played was a fancy dress affair at the Green Room, a Victorian theme night. Drunk on absinthe amongst the bonnets and the britches, a proper party like it was 1899.
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Tags:
analogue cat • bill drummond • david bowie • fleet foxes • jellys last jam • jens lekman • joni mitchell • kro bar • luke haines • not being signed to emi • nursing awards • salford • shadrack and duxbury • sounds from the other city • star and garter • stephin merritt • the kings arms • the smiths • vinny peculiar
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