Stereoboard Talk To Sucioperro Drummer Fergus Munro Following The Unveiling Of Fourth Album 'Fused'
Friday, 17 August 2012
Written by Ben Bland
With the band having recently unveiled fourth album 'Fused', Stereoboard took the opportunity to have a chat with Sucioperro drummer Fergus Munro…
Hi Gus, good to be talking to you again. The new Sucioperro album 'Fused' is out, well, now for fans who have pre-ordered. What are you most excited about with regards to the release of the new album?
It’s always an exciting time when you’re releasing a new album but I suppose this time it’s very exciting because we’re releasing the album on our new label, Medals for Everyone, and we have increased control over every aspect of the release. Things like the artwork, for example, therefore become more exciting than ever because we have complete control over them. We’re not just giving direction; we’re in charge of it all!
It’s the first record released by the band via your own label. What factors contributed to that decision?
Well, part of it was what I said just there, with regards to complete control over every aspect of the record. I think, as well, it was also about wanting to get albums out as we wanted them rather than writing a record and then sitting around waiting to record it and then sitting around waiting to release it. Now we can just write, record and release very naturally and as quick as we can. Furthermore we obviously aren’t a big band so we need to make as much as we can from our records in order to invest in making another one! Going via our own record label enables us to do that as much as possible. Originally we were aiming to release two albums in 2012, which was obviously a bit optimistic because it’s August now and we’ve only just got the first one out!
This album follows just eighteen months or so after the last, which is noticeably a quicker turnaround than between the first couple of albums. What would you say has prompted that? Has it simply been playing catch up with songs that were written some time ago or have there been other reasons for this increased productivity?
J. P. (Reid, vocalist/guitarist) kinda just wrote this record in about a week, as he does. It was soon after 'Heart String' came out and he just came up with these songs and, although some changes got made in the studio and we have all had our hands on the arrangements, they were just the same batch of songs for the most part. It all came out in a big block. I think J. P. just got some whiskey, went into the studio and wrote it! Originally the whole album was in Drop B, which is obviously a bit weird, but then 'To Nothing' got added later on so Drop D is represented too!
We had some tough times after the last album came out. I think we were doing this massive tour for it and then there were some rough nights and by the end we were all kinda thinking that we had toured a little too much. We were basically having crisis meetings after that tour, and then we sort of decided that we would try and distance ourselves from doing really big British tours…having said that we are on the verge of another one now so we’ll see how that goes.
The last album 'The Heart String…' was very much at the poppier end of the Sucioperro spectrum. 'Fused' is very much not! Was it intentional in a way to so obviously contrast the two sides of the band on consecutive records? I mean, not many bands go straight from making a really good pop rock album to a really good psych-metal album...
Firstly, thanks for saying the last record was good...I think there were maybe a few dissenters out there, or people who were at least a little bit disappointed. With regards to the contrast though, I wouldn’t really say it was deliberate. I mean, we don’t want to do the same record twice of course, but we appreciate that there are those people who loved the first two records who won’t be that surprised necessarily by the new album…and that people who only know the last album will be thinking “What the fuck are they doing now?” I mean, even from the mean average the last album was very poppy and this one is very, very heavy.
We aren’t trying to shock people, but also we aren’t too self-aware about these things. We don’t make an album deliberately in one style or another so much as it just comes out as it does. I don’t think there are that many people who would be shocked anyway because I think most of our fans have checked out the back catalogue, not just the odd ‘poppier’ tune, especially if they have seen us live because we play stuff like 'Hate Filters' all the time as well as 'Reflexes of the Dead'!
I’d just like to clarify if I can the situation with regards to the line-up of the band now. I know Gordon and Hooligan from the Fire & I have been joining you at live shows for a while now, is that a permanent thing now?
Argh, that’s a difficult question…
Be as cryptic as you like...
I don’t think we know, I don’t think any of us do. I mean, obviously they have their own project which we are 100% supportive of. When it comes to live stuff we basically have to have them nowadays. We haven’t had a chance to stretch out on tour with the five-piece line-up yet either. We’re really excited about getting out on the tour with them in September and October. They’re as full-time as any of us really. I’ve been in the band seven years, but I wouldn’t say I was permanent! What is permanent even? I said that to someone the other day, I was getting very philosophical about it. I’m only permanent until the day I decide not to do it anymore...or the day I get fired…
When I said be as cryptic as you like…I’m not sure I meant that cryptic!
Haha, well...what is permanent? Have we got an answer to the question? I don’t think so!
Their addition has given the live show a whole new edge. How has that affected the way you approach aspects of touring such as the choosing of the setlist, etc? When I last saw you, in November I think it was, I noticed you actually played relatively few tunes from 'Heart String' but played plenty of the more complex things from the back catalogue…
Maybe it was a little bit. Generally we have never thought about it that much; we have just played the ones that we think are working. Some songs just never fit in the set. There were a couple of tracks we played on the first tour last year and they weren’t working 100% so there was no point in them being in the setlist really, we felt.
Obviously it has enabled us to make a better fist of some songs, like 'Conception Territory' perhaps, something that really benefits from the extra drums. We’ve got more guitar and vocal harmony opportunities now as well. We’re definitely narrowing down a set for the current tour now. Six songs from the new album are certainly going in I think, right from the start. Then we’ll have others from the back catalogue too, of course, some of the usual suspects. It’s hard to please everyone of course but there isn’t much you can do about that! We can’t play every song!
A nice retrospective, list-like question for you now! Four albums in, if you had to pick a track or two to summarise what Sucioperro are all about as a band, which ones would you pick?
'Hate Filters' I think really shows the ambition of the band, the fact that we can do really heavy, lengthy, proggy stuff. Stuff like 'The Final Confessions of Mabel Stark' and 'Grace and Out of Me' shows us at our poppy rock best I think. Those songs really show what we are about in terms of the riffs and the two different sides of the band…also I’d like to give a shout out to 'What a Fucking Chump' off the new album. Probably one of the heaviest things we’ll ever do for sure.
Sadly Sucioperro remain outside the mainstream, which I obviously think is a travesty as a long-term fan myself. What is it that makes it continually worthwhile for you despite the lack of large-scale attention?
Overall, I think it is just the love of the music. I mean, I just get really excited being part of this band and being able to hear the songs that J. P. writes…only the other day he sent me a new demo idea through and I was so excited I had to go and wake my girlfriend up to make her listen to it as well! That sort of love of the music never gets old really, so it is always worth keeping going. We know that we are a long way from mainstream success but any money that comes in at all is good for us, and it is great to know that there are people out there who love our records. It makes it all seem worthwhile for sure.
Thanks Gus. I’ll see you on the road in October.
You will indeed - thanks for the interest as always!
'Fused' is released via Medals for Everyone on 3rd September. Sucioperro tour the UK in September and October.
Thu September 13th 2012 - King Tuts, Glasgow
Fri September 21st 2012 - Ironworks, Inverness
Sat September 22nd 2012 - Newmarket Bar, Thurso
Thu September 27th 2012 - Beat Generator, Dundee
Fri September 28th 2012 - Tunnels, Aberdeen
Sat September 29th 2012 - The Windsor, Kirkcaldy
Wed October 17th 2012 - Soundhouse, Leicester
Thu October 18th 2012 - Waterfront, Norwich
Fri October 19th 2012 - The Railway, Winchester
Sat October 20th 2012 - West End Centre, Aldershot
Sun October 21st 2012 - Labour Club, Northampton
Tue October 23rd 2012 - The Maze, Nottingham
Wed October 24th 2012 - Borderline, London
Thu October 25th 2012 - The New Adelphi Club, Hull
Fri October 26th 2012 - Stereo, York
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Hi Gus, good to be talking to you again. The new Sucioperro album 'Fused' is out, well, now for fans who have pre-ordered. What are you most excited about with regards to the release of the new album?
