Punk Rock Bowling 2011 Preview – Interview with The Undertones

Interview by: Sarah K..
Big Wheel Staff Reporter


Here is a short interview with The Undertones, in anticipation of the upcoming Punk Rock Bowling tournament in Las Vegas, NV thatThe Undertones will be playing at.

Are you guys excited to be performing one of the late night shows at Punk Rock Bowling as well?
 
Michael Bradley : Can I just say that we are excited to be at a bowling event. At the moment we're all in shoe shops trying on bowling shoes.  We're also excited that it's in Las Vegas, which we understand has many wonderful attractions that guarantee visitors the experience of a lifetime....... and the Hoover Dam !!!  What's that all about , eh ????  All that AND punk rock!  It gets no better.  Hold on, someone's just told me about something called an 'all you can eat' buffet............

John O'Neill: I don’t know much about the club we are playing in. Hopefully it’s a nice intimate venue, always the best for sweaty rock and roll. We haven’t played the USA very often so it will be nice to play to a new audience and maybe meet some old friends as well.
 
Your debut LP was voted the 90th greatest British album by Q magazine; how did that feel?

MB: I remember buying that magazine with a mixture of hope and dread - but when I saw we were at number 90 I was  so happy.
But then, it is a great record. We had a fantastic time recording it, staying at a really cool flat in London for a whole month. It was our first real experience in the studio working with a producer. We'd had most of the songs for over a year, so we knew what we wanted it to sound like.  Brilliant.

JO: I don’t really take much notice of those things. It’s obviously nice to be remembered, but those polls are such a subjective thing I think it’s a mistake to take them too seriously. We obviously think it’s a great record and it's even better live!
 
Who are you most excited to be performing at the Punk Rock Bowling festival with?
 
MB: Oh, we love all the bands.........that one, that one , those guys over there,  that chap with the wonderful hair cut........Punk rock, the love that never dies.
 
JO:  I’m afraid I’ve never heard of any of the bands. My idea of punk is taken from the original 60s garage band stuff from the Nuggets and Pebbles compilations, the Velvet Underground, Pere Ubu and the New York Dolls so hopefully there are a few bands that sound like that.

You guys are embarking on 35th Anniversary tour this spring and summer in the UK and the States.
 Did you guys ever think you'd make it to see your 35th anniversary?
 
MB: I never thought that far ahead, either to predict that we'd still be around, or that we'd be long forgotten - When you're 17, you don't think much further than next Friday, do you ?  I think it helps that we took an extended break.....and that we were friends when we started back in 1976. Some of us were even brothers. (John and Damian, in case you're confused)

JO:  Not really. When we broke up in 1983 I really thought that was it. We are so lucky to have Paul replacing Feargal. It would never have worked having Feargal back in the band, the atmosphere now is so relaxed, all we do is laugh.

 
Do you have any plans to release new material?

MB: Yes , John and Damian have been coming up with songs that we've been demo-ing. Our pace of work isn't as rapid as it should be,  but we hope to have something out by early next year.

JO: I have about twelve new songs written so it’s possible.