http://www.iloud.jp/interview/bad_lieutenant/
http://www.iloud.jp/interview/bad_lieutenant/2.php
I've translated the interview with Phil that they did.
Interviewer- First, please tell me about the process of forming Bad Lieutenant. Phil- When New Order split up, me and Bernard simply wanted to continue making music. I've been working with Bernard for about 10 years, but we didn't have any idea about what we were going to do musically. Then, there was a Christmas party at Alex James (Blur)'s house, and there was talk about doing some jam sessions. That was how it got started.
Interviewer- OK. Phil- Well, we did some jam sessions, and then we wanted to take this seriously, and Jake became involved in the project. I've been friends with Jake for quite a while, and I've written some songs with him, so I introduced him to Bernard. Then, we began to have a good band relationship among the three of us. Basically, Bad Lieutenant's songs are what all three of us wrote. So, there's elements of New Order, but it's also totally different. Jake also sings on a few songs too.
Interviewer- I'm assuming the band name Bad Lieutenant comes from the film of the same name. How did you decide on the name? Phil- Yeah, it comes from the film, and Bernard was the one who decided on the name. It's a very dark film, but we liked the name.
Interviewer- Please tell me about the album Never Cry Another Tear. What was the songmaking process like? Phil- Besides the very early sessions with Alex James, most of it was made in Bernard's home studio. Jake can play all sorts of instruments, even the mandarin or the piano. And Bernard is obviously a great guitarist, and he knows a lot about equipments used to make music. So if someone were to make a verse, someone else would have thought up of a chorus, and so like that, we wrote the songs with everyone coming up with their ideas.
Interviewer- So wasn't the recording process very different from that of New Order? Phil- It was very much different. The last album by New Order was recorded at Real World Studios, owned by Peter Gabriel, yet the usage fees were so expensive that it makes you think, "How much does it really cost to make an album?" It was so expensive it makes you think you shouldn't have even asked about the fees. But that was New Order. You know, spend a lot of money on the recording sessions or something. But this time it was a totally different experience.
Interviewer- Was there some sort of a concept or theme when making this album? Phil- Well, we didn't really have any sort of a concept. Instead of discussing about it, we just played music and seeked out the sounds we thought were right. I think music is something you create from playing it, not discussing it.
Interviewer- That's a good way of putting it. In the end, because there's three guitarists in the band, this album is quite guitar orientated, isn't it? Phil- If there's three guitarists, naturally there'll be more guitars. I don't think we're a 100% all-guitar band. There are songs that barely use guitars on them on this album. Although I know New Order fans may have expected something programmed, like "Blue Monday".
Interviewer- There's quite a few songs that use an acoustic guitar on them, but this was something that New Order didn't do much, so it sounded very new and interesting to me. Phil- That's Jake's influence. Bernard liked it, and had fun with the sound. So Bernard encouraged Jake to bring out his own sound.
Interviewer- How was the first single "Sink or Swim" created? Phil- At one point, I got a 1960s Fender 12 string guitar, and I used that to make a riff. When you get a new instrument, you want to make music with it, right? Then, Bernard started to put a melody to it, and that's how the song started to take shape. That's how it was created.
Interviewer- What are your favourite songs? Phil- "Summer Days on Holiday", or "Twist of Fate".
Interviewer- Why is that? Phil- Well, I don't know, but I like that song's (Twist of Fate) atmosphere. It's fun to play it too. Me, Jake and Bernard once went to a Killers gig together, and that gig was really good, and I also thought that it would be nice to play a rock-style song that would sound good live. I'm friends with Brandon Flowers (Killers), and I've been friends with him for several years by now.
Interviewer- So "Twist of Fate" is sort of like a tribute to a good friend, isn't it? Finally, please tell me your goals musically speaking. Phil- There's not much of a goal. I just want to do gigs. Now we're rehearsing, and I've heard these songs sound new and fresh, so it's really fun. The last time I did gigs was about 3 years ago, so I want everyone to listen to the album, and I want to play some gigs. I also think it would be nice if we could go to Japan too.
