The BIG Über Rock Interview: Suzie Stapleton

Written by Nev Brooks
Saturday, 21 April 2018 04:00

It’s starting to move towards that time of year as writers when we start to plan holidays around the festival circuit or more to the point look for festivals that we can turn into holidays, bearing that in mind we sometimes choose to go with the festivals/gigs that had the biggest impact on us the year before.

Looking back to last year I suppose the festival that had the biggest impact on me was Camden Rocks and for all the right reasons: attitude, atmosphere and new music/artists that really took me by surprise. I remember writing a piece looking at artists I’d recommend and trying to plan where I was going to be and when – and then blew the whole thing out of the water and just went with the flow. Bearing that in mind, I ended up in the Brewdog about an hour before I was due to be there to catch Brandy Row and was blown away by what I saw… the lady in question? Suzie Stapleton. Talk about raw emotion, talent and the perfect rock/underground voice! I walked away making notes to pick up as much of her stuff as I could track drown and ‘Obladi Diablo’ has become a firm favourite.

Coming more up to date on that day I put my name and email down and was sent links to the new single ‘Negative Prophet’:

As I delved in deeper I found links to Suzie’s other recording credits include appearing as guest vocalist on Lydia Lunch & Cypress Grove albums ‘Under The Covers’ (2017) and ‘Twin Horses’ (2014) as well as on-going involvement in The Jeffrey Lee Pierce Sessions Project (feat. Iggy Pop, Nick Cave, Debbie Harry, and Thurston Moore). Suzie first appeared on the project’s 2014 album ‘Axels & Sockets’ and a fourth and final album in the series which is currently in production.

What I started to get was a picture of a lady that was grounded in music, being pinpointed by some real heavy hitter’s as a go to. What I’ve also found is someone still in touch with her fan-base and I for one can’t wait to catch her live on 11 May with her band, including Gavin Jay (Jim Jones and the Righteous Mind) on Bass and Jim Macaulay (the Stranglers) on drums… I mean come on what a powerhouse rhythm section.

Suzie has been touring Europe with amongst others Mark Lanegan, Mick Harvey, and Jim Jones & The Righteous Mind. How much more of a pedigree do you need? So, let’s get the story from the lady herself…

I’m an artist from Australia. I moved to London three years ago as I’d been coming over and touring Europe for a few years prior to that and I wanted to be based closer to the action so I could tour more frequently. I’ve been performing for around ten years. I started out playing solo gigs and over the years have had different band line ups come and go. I’ve got a new band together in London, we played our first show together in January at Servant Jazz Quarters.

You struck me in Camden as someone who tells a story through song, as a listener you really find yourself wrapped up in the spoken word, where do you take your inspiration from?

I spend a lot of time reading – books, poetry, lyrics – Cormack McCarthy, Pablo Neruda, Octavio Paz, Patti Smith, Leonard Cohen, Nick Cave. I guess I’m drawn to the melancholic – the human condition interests me. I put a lot of importance on lyrics – though words don’t always come that quickly to me. I work hard at them, chip away.

Tell us a little bit about the new single, ‘Negative Prophet’?

I wrote ‘Negative Prophet’ in 2015 when I was staying in a mountain house in the Granada region of Spain for a few weeks. I had a lot of random phrases that I had written on scraps of paper, the seeds of the song started from these. I’d been thinking a lot about how we humans are in a really strange place – we have more technology available to us than ever before, and the capability to automate pretty much everything and lead fulfilling, relaxing lives. Yet the opposite is occuring and we’re spending 50-60 hours a week stuck in office cells working meaningless jobs, away from our loved ones, and a vast majority of the population is popping pills as a salve because Big Pharma have taken the human condition and rebranded it as ‘Depression’ and ‘Anxiety’ and told us that we have a condition rather than a reaction.

I’m not saying people don’t feel those emotions, not at all, but taking a pill ain’t gonna fix it. We’ve all got to get outside more walk away from the screens and connect properly. I’m saying this as someone who was diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder by two separate psychiatrists – I’m not judging. But I’m fine, I don’t have a disorder and I haven’t been on meds for years. Anyway, the song – it’s kind of about that and the world at breaking point, and asking if we’re gonna stand up and make changes or just roll on into oblivion.

What are your plans moving forward? Is there an album to follow?

The next stage is an album, I’ve been writing bits for it for ages and have a lot of material. I’m working up the new material with the band over the next couple of months. I’m also finishing up work on The Jeffrey Lee Pierce Sessions Project’s fourth album which I’ve been involved with over the past couple of years. We recorded our own track plus I’ve been able to contribute as an arranger and producer on some of the other tracks which has been a real pleasure.

I caught you live at the Brewdog in Camden in 2017 and was suitably blown away, the raw energy and emotion really caught me, do you prefer the live or recorded environment?

I don’t have a preference. They are different beasts with different rewards. As long as I’m playing music, I’m happy. I love live gigs for the immediacy and buzz. Interacting with the crowd and feeding off their energy is something you don’t get locked away in a studio. But on the flipside I can be locked away in my home studio for months and not get bored. I studied Audio Engineering so take a great interest in the nerdy side of recording. I like to layer things up and experiment with production, I can achieve sounds that perhaps I can’t produce live, so there’s different elements of creativity I can explore.

Where can we catch you live this year?

I’m off for a quick solo tour in France mid-April. Then I’m playing with the band at Liverpool Sound City on 5 May, and 11 May 11 we’re playing at The Finsbury Pub in London.

In your words what can a new listener expect from the live performance?

Well, I think the band shows are going to be pretty exciting. We’re really gelling as a unit and are pumped to get out there and play again as we’ve only had the one show together so far. Gavin and Jim are a great rhythm section, they are a powerful force though can lay right back when the song calls for it. There’ll likely be some new tunes in the mix – I don’t know yet, it’s an adventure in progress.

PHOTO CREDIT: Picture courtesy of AMP (Aaron Thompson Music Photography). Taken at Camden Rocks 2017

www.suziestapleton.com

www.facebook.com/suzie.stapleton/