Depeche Mode Bong 05 (1989-05)

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BONG 5
1989

1. Yallo! Me again!
2. 101 - the video.
3. Ask Fletch.
4. Daniel Miller.
5. Snippets.
6. Paris - again!
7. DM in Birmingham.
8. A DM crossword.
9. Backroom boys.
10. The San Remo festival.
11. Pinpals.
12. Letters.
13. Depeche Mode in Paris.

 

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[demoderus]

Bong 5 (May 1989)

Articles:
Ask Fletch
Daniel Miller (interview)
Backroom Boys (Andy Franks profile)

Pictures:
cover
page 1 Daniel Miller and Dave
page 2 the band at the San Remo Festival
page 3 Dave and Alan in New York
page 4 Martin at the 101 premiere
page 5 the band in Paris

 

[demoderus]

ASK FLETCH
[From Bong 5, May 1989.]

Andy Fletcher is grilled by questions submitted by Bong members.

I’m sorry if your question to Andy hasn’t been printed, or if someone else is credited for the same question you submitted – we had loads of questions and many of them were the same, so I’m afraid that it was the ‘luck of the draw’. Don’t worry though, Alan Wilder will be answering your queries in the next issue – envelopes marked ‘Alan’ please!

1: The ‘Dreaming Of Me’ German single has the track ‘I Like It’ on it – where and when was it recorded?
‘I LIKE IT’ WAS A LIVE-ONLY TRACK AND APPEARED ON A GERMAN BOOTLEG SINGLE. IT COULD HAVE BEEN RECORDED AT ANY DATE ON THAT TOUR. (circa ’81)

2: Who decides which live tracks go on the 12” singles?
THE BAND DECIDES COLLECTIVELY.

3: What kind of girl would you like to marry? – Have you got a girlfriend?
I DON’T THINK I SHOULD DIVULGE MY SEXUAL PREFERENCES.

4: Why don’t you ever sing?
HAVE YOU HEARD ME SING?

5: If you hadn’t joined Depeche Mode, what do you think you’d be doing now?
I DREAD TO THINK!!

6: How did you feel at the Rosebowl in front of 70,000 people hanging onto everything you did?
I THINK WE WERE MORE NERVOUS ABOUT THE RECORDING AND FILMING OF THE SHOW THAN THE ACTUAL NUMBER OF PEOPLE AT THE ROSEBOWL. PERSONALLY, I’M BLIND SO I CAN ONLY SEE THE FRONT ROW!

7: Have you ever written any songs?
NO!!

8: Why was the concert in Rotterdam on the 21st Feb ’88 cancelled?
THE PROMOTER WASN’T CONFIDENT THAT WE COULD SELL THE TICKETS.

9: What is the historical event you’d most like to have witnessed first-hand?
MOST OF MY FAVOURITE HISTORICAL EVENTS ARE VIOLENT (WORLD WAR II, THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS ETC…) SO I THINK I WOULD GIVE THEM ALL A MISS!

10: What’s been the highlight of your career so far?
I THINK THAT MUST BE THE ROSEBOWL.

11: Who’s your best friend?
I HAVE SEVERAL CLOSE FRIENDS, NOT JUST ONE BEST.

12: Do you ever listen to DM records for pleasure?
THAT’S ALL I EVER LISTEN TO!!

13: Do you have a car? What type?
I DON’T DRIVE.

14: What’s the strangest gift you’ve ever received from a fan?
‘ACID HOUSE’ BOXER SHORTS.

15: Who thought up ‘BONG’?
NONE OF US CAN REMEMBER!

16: Are you a right-hander or a lefty?
RIGHT.

17: When will the next studio LP be released?
FEBRUARY 1990 (WE HOPE!)

18: Have you ever refused to perform a song because you disagreed with the sentiments behind it?
SOME SONGS I’VE HAD TO THINK SERIOUSLY IF I AGREED OR NOT, BUT SO FAR THERE AREN’T ANY THAT I’VE REFUSED TO PERFORM. [1]

19: Do bad reviews upset you?
IT DEPENDS IF THE REVIEWS ARE CONSTRUCTIVE OR NOT. CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISMS CAN BE HELPFUL.

20: In the ‘Strangelove’ video, why does Dave look at you and start laughing?
I USUALLY HAVE THAT EFFECT ON DAVE.

21: Did you hurt yourself when you head-butted the shed in the ‘Pimpf’ video?
NO, I’M A HARDENED BOOT BOY!

22: What video did you enjoy filming the most?
ALL THE ANTON CORBIJN FILMS WERE ENJOYABLE.

23: Both ‘Little 15’ and ‘I Want You Now’ were released in some countries, yet neither were included in the live set, why not?
THE SONGS WE CHOSE WERE THE ONES WE FELT WORKED PARTICULARLY WELL IN THE LIVE SET. THAT’S NOT TO SAY WE WON’T INCLUDE THEM ON THE NEXT TOUR.

24: What happened to ‘Reason To Be’ which was going to be the ‘B’ side of ‘See You’?
I’VE NEVER HEARD OF IT! [2]

25: Do you like cats? Have you got a pet?
NO, I DON’T LIKE CATS. THEY’RE TOO INTELLIGENT. I HAVEN’T GOT A PET.

26: How would you describe yourself?
INTELLIGENT, VIBRANT, LOVING, SENSUAL, UNSELFISH, MODEST AND GENERALLY A GREAY GUY! (OH YEAH, AND ATHLETIC!)

[1] - This unusual question is no doubt being asked because Andy is and always has been a committed Christian who might chafe against the risque subject matter of some of Martin's songs.
[2] - Judging by his comments in this interview in early 1982, "Reason To Be" was probably the original title of the "See You" B-side, "Now, This Is Fun", and Fletch has simply forgotten the name seven years afterwards.

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[demoderus]

DANIEL MILLER
[From Bong 5, May 1989.]

Daniel Miller discusses the founding of the Mute label, the signing of Depeche Mode and their working relationship.

For all intents and purposes, Daniel Miller IS Mute Records. Born in London, sometime this century, he studied film at College and went on to be a film editor – but not for long. After a short stint as a club DJ the chance to do what he’d always wanted to do – start his own label – came up. “Pre-punk, it would have been impossible, but from that era, Mute just happened – it was basically an experiment that worked!” A few names were thought up, but Mute was the only one that finally stuck. “It was just a word I liked the sound of.”

The first Mute release, in the Spring of ’78, was a single by Daniel himself, under the alias ‘The Normal’ titled ‘Warm Leatherette’ (which, incidentally, was later covered by Grace Jones) followed by Fad Gadget’s ‘Back To Nature’ in the Summer of the following year.

DEPECHE MODE

“I first saw Depeche Mode in early October, 1980, at The Bridgehouse, Canning Town. They were supporting Fad Gadget and I was immediately taken by the combination of the songs and the openness of the band. They didn’t come across as ‘seen-it-all’ jaded rockers. Their approach to the music impressed me as well, they used their synthesisers to make straightforward music, not to be ‘arty’. It was very different to what was happening with other bands at the time. It was a decision between signing Depeche Mode or Soft Cell at one point!”

“Vince Clarke leaving could have finished any other band, but I was confident in Martin’s songwriting ability, he’d come up with some good melodies for the ‘Speak and Spell’ LP. The main problem with Vince going, was that he was the motivator in the group. Depeche Mode made sure that their spirits were kept up, it was a real joint effort to keep going and to knuckle down to prove to everyone that they could continue. We didn’t actually sit down and have a crisis meeting, though without in it maybe would have been different.”

"Don’t ask me what my favourite Depeche Mode track is – I really like some of the early ‘B’ sides, like ‘Ice Machine’ and ‘Shout’ in fact, I was listening to ‘Shout’ the other day. Tim Simenon from Bomb The Bass called to ask how we achieved a particular sound on that track, and I listened to it to work it out for him. I like ‘Everything Counts’, ‘The Things You Said’ and I especially like ‘Never Let Me Down’ live. The only one I’m not so keen on is ‘New Dress’. I mixed that on my own and I found it very difficult to do.”

REGRETS

“My only real regret is that Alison Moyet left Mute, I understand why she went, but I wish I could have prevented it. It’d be great to continue working with her. Everybody makes mistakes – you just have to live with them.”

At home, Daniel listens to “All sorts of music but NOT Country & Western, although Hank Wangford’s okay, I like Jazz, and I listen to current stuff, mainly to keep up with what’s going on.”

Every day, Mute is flooded with tapes from hopeful young bands, and they do get listened to. “The tapes are initially passed on to people whose judgement I trust, [1] and if they think it’s what we’re looking for, I listen to them myself – it’d take too long if I listened to everything we were sent! I make the final decision as to where we sign a band or not, although we’re not actively looking for any new bands at the moment.” Mute currently have around 12 bands with various ‘spin-off’ solo projects, like Martin’s solo LP.

“I eventually want to make Mute stronger, keeping it independent. I don’t want to expand any more, this way we do the best for the bands concerned and keep personal touch.”

[1] - In 1982, one such person was Martin. Speaking in Zig Zag in 1982: "What I have been doing is reviewing demos sent to our record company by prospective recording bands. It makes a nice change from sitting at home with my feet up. Some of the bands are very professional, although there's fair amount of rubbish too. But if bands don't send in demos, they'll never know. And I'm never discouraging. I like to offer advice where I can. I'll listen to the tapes and select groups I think are worth following up, and make constructive comments about the others. It's very enjoyable really, so long as I don't have to do too many of them!"

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BACKROOM BOYS
[From Bong 5, May 1989.]

A personal profile of long-time band assistant Andy Franks.

Full Name: MISTER ANDY FRANKS

Place Of Birth: CASTLE BROMWICH, BIRMINGHAM

Height: 6’ 1 ?”

Family Details: 1 MISSUS, 1 NIPPER, 2 CATS

Occupation: PRODUCTION DIRECTOR

How Long Have You Worked For DM?: SINCE 1981

Previous Jobs: APPRENTICE TV AERIAL ERECTOR, SILK SCREEN PRINTER, INSURANCE SALESMAN, TAXI DRIVER, BASS GUITARIST.

Favourite DM Song: NEVER LET ME DOWN, NOTHING

Favourite Film: THE TENANT (POLANSKI), ANY ROBERT DENIRO FILM (EXCEPT ‘FALLING IN LOVE’ WITH MERYL STREEP, WHICH WAS CRAP)

Favourite TV Show: WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY? CHEERS, HILL STREET BLUES

Favourite Group / Singer: ELVIS COSTELLO, THE THE, HANK WILLIAMS.

Favourite Songs: EVERY ELVIS COSTELLO SONG, I’M YOUR PUPPET (JAMES & BOBBY PURIFY), BACKSTABBERS (THE O’JAYS)

Favourite Book: I DON’T READ MANY BOOKS

Biggest Niggle: GINGER BARWICK BEING INTRODUCED TO ALCOHOL.

Biggest Fear: WAITING FOR THE CURTAIN TO FALL AT THE START OF A SHOW.

Most Hated Thing Ever: PEANUT BUTTER

Highlight Of Career: SURVIVING THE ‘MUSIC FOR THE MASSES’ TOUR