The Zutons. 19.7.19

Tip toeing back onto the scene a couple of years ago, the mighty Zutons have played a sufficient number of shows to prove that their reformation has been a successful one. Gradually reintroducing themselves to larger audiences, the ‘Tons play August’s Hardwick live in one of their largest come back gigs to date. Damian Robinson caught up with lead Ton Dave Mcabe to find out about coming back, rebuilding relationships, and doing their best to stick around.

Hi Dave will the Hardwick show be part of the ‘Who killed the Zutons’ album anniversary tour?
It won’t be no. I’m not sure why we aren’t bringing that tour to the north east, which seems a shame as they’re some of our loudest gigs, but we’ll be there for the Hardwick show and hopefully back again as soon as we can be.  The crowds are always really good at Newcastle and Sunderland.

The Hardwick show will be one of your largest show since the band reformed. How’s life in the band at the minute?
It’s good thanks yeah. I think more than anything we just needed time away from each other for a while. We were really worn out when we stopped as we’d on the go for years. Now we just need time to heal some of the relationships in the band which we are doing. It’s great when we are on stage playing together, that was always one of my favourite things in the world, and we’ve never really lost that.

You’re on before the Manics, will you stick around to see them?
I hope so, yeah. I’ve seen the line-up and it looks like a great couple of days and we will do all we can to watch bands on before and after us.  Hardwick’s a family gig though isn’t it so we will have to behave ourselves and not swear, which I always do…. it’s never big or clever is it.

Is there any chance of one or two new songs being played?
Yeah we’ve been writing new pieces together which sound like a mix of rem and steely dan so we should get a few new tunes out. 

And then you’re planning to record them?
Hopefully yeah. We’ll do the producing ourselves on this one I think, unless rick Rubin is desperate to produce us of course.

So the future plans are for new releases?

We all hope so.  Really at the minute we’re looking forward to the gigs, and Hardwick may well actually be our biggest to date since we started playing together again, and then we’ll take it from there.  But yeah, Hardwick will really a big one for us and we’re really excited.

Hardwick Live will be on the 17th and 18th August.