Sean in Soundi - translated by Emmi

Hello it’s us again!

January 2000 Manics released The Masses Against The Classes single. No promotion, no video. Still the trio’s angry outburst went straight in at number one in UK’s single chart. After that there was 11 months silence. No gigs, no interviews, nothing. But they weren’t totally idle… At that time they wrote and recorded 27 new songs, and 16 of those will be on Know Your Enemy.

After his parents divorced 10-year old Sean Moore moved to live with his aunt. There he had been put up in the same room with his cousin James Dean Bradfield. On the same day (almost 20 years ago) James and Sean bought their first guitars.

In January 2000 Q’s readers voted Manics as the best band in the world.

Sean: that’s what we aimed (he laughs)

In autumn 1998 they released This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours, it sold much more than any MSP record before and that’s how they got a new audience outside UK. Many long-time fans found the new serene album disappointing and thought that now Manics had finally gave the first concession to market powers. The band got their credibility back by releasing The Masses Against The Classes single and finally made the album, which others than just Nicky Wire, will think as the best wholeness of all time.

Sean: hopefully this album would be the top of our careers. Though, it might be that it’s the next one. Who knows?

We didn’t set any hopes nor goals. This time we only wanted to please ourselves and make a record that would sound exciting. We thought that our mission isn’t only to write well-balanced albums, just write separated songs. The new album is a collection of different songs. You can find many different influences and styles. There’s everything we’ve listened to through years.

At least it feels to us that we’ve made a very important record. Our career has been built step by step to success. With every album we’ve reached something new. This Is My Truth attained many good things. I wouldn’t want to think that some day we are like the Rolling Stones. I wouldn’t want us to quit when we don’t mean anything to people. I want that when we retire there’s still some respect and credibility on us. Might be that after two or three albums we feel too old and it’s time to say goodbye…

Soundi: Nicky Wire admitted that This Is My Truth was too calculated. That doesn’t sound like your way to work.

Sean: I agree with you. It was probably too much continuation to what people expected us to do. The record has its moments, but there’s also too much same kind of material and not enough edge, that has been connected to band. We didn’t try to make that kinda album, it just happened. It was an addition to what we’ve done before.

This time it was essential that everything happened more spontaneously. We didn’t have any exception [expectation?] when we went in the studio. Many of the songs hadn’t been written until we got in the studio and those are from broad-minded ideas, but the songs turned up very fantastic. Example we didn’t even know what kinda song So Why So Sad will be. Now everybody says that it sounds like The Beach Boys. That just happened, just like many other songs did. It wasn’t considered.

Soundi: The album doesn’t have any stringed instruments nor orchestration. One of the album’s working title was No Strings.

Sean: it really was only the working name. It wouldn’t be a good name for the record.

This time we wanted to do everything by ourselves. David Holmes helped a bit with some songs, but we didn’t want those to sound too dance influenced. Kevin Shields was also in the studio with David, so we asked him to join as well. Besides those few songs, there's only our vision on the album. We thought, that musically, if not counting Nick Naysmyth’s keyboards, he’s almost like the band’s unnamed member, we can do everything by ourselves and the way like we want.

Soundi: In mid February the band will get attention by having a gig in Karl Marx theatre, Havana, Cuba. Have you visited there before?

Sean: no, we haven’t. None of us hasn’t. Although Cuba’s not far from USA we don’t have good idea what kinda circumstances Cuba has.

Soundi: Did you select Cuba to annoy Americans?

Sean: it just felt like an appropriate gesture. Cuba is a little and remarkable country and they have many great athletes and it tries to stay away from western totally commercial culture and its technology central way of thinking. They’re a real spike in USA’s flesh, which is yet the biggest and wealthiest country. They’re at USA’s backyard and USA thinks that even Cuba’s existing is almost criminal, but in other parts of the world people are always on Cuba’s side, when those two bump into each other.

Soundi: When you all have Cuba’s mark on your passports you might have some difficulties getting in USA.

Sean: we’ll see. Maybe we got back to subject, if next time when we’re at New York’s airport and they say to us, that “sorry, but we can’t let you in country”. In matter of fact, it might be a quite relief.

Soundi: Already Simon Price’s Everything (a book about Manic Street Preachers) had some rumours about your sixth album. Then Nicky told that it might be Nebraska type gentle and soft album.

Sean: we thought many different kinds of albums, but I wouldn’t probably have mentioned Nebraska. Maybe Nicky had back then some idea, which he didn’t tell me and James. Somehow I feel that the idea wouldn’t have much to do with the wholeness of our collective minds, music taste and personality has constituted.

Soundi: In the book there’s also discussing about the collection album called Forever Delayed after Know Your Enemy.

Sean: maybe it’ll be out on this xmas or maybe the following. Those kinda cds are always released on Xmas. However that kinda collection is coming in future. We have a pretty huge back-catolog of hits in Britain and many new fans don’t know our older songs. We’ve been releasing cds now over ten years. We’ve released over 30 singles, so those would be collected together. The collection shouldn’t be just the greatest hits-package, but there probably will be also b-sides and remixes, essential album tracks and other that kinda things.

Soundi: Have you read Simon Price’s book?

Sean: no I haven’t, none of us haven’t. We’ve been reading some short pieces and laugh at ourselves, but none of us haven’t read it from cover to cover.

Soundi: Wouldn’t it be too painful?

Sean: reality’s and fantasy’s line is very thin. We three are the only people who know the truth. Maybe one of us will someday write a definitive biography of the Manic Street Preachers.

Soundi: In my opinion Everything is one of the entertaining rock-books, cos I can’t even assume that it’s totally true, but it's Simon Price’s outlook of your history.

Sean: as I said we’ve been laughing at some of those stories too. It certainly isn’t just “four guys in Blackwood starts a band, does a couple of albums, one of them disappears and three carry on” book. That kinda book would be quite dull.

Everything isn’t 100% truth, but I believe that in some way, it’s the best possible book, which an outsider can write. He's pretty colourful person himself. Definitely worth of book.

Soundi: How much you’re in touch with other members outside the band?

Sean: I use my spare time with my family and dogs, and so does Nicky. Because we spend so much time in studios and gigs, we try to not disturb each other too much when we have free time. Maybe we phone to each other once a week and talk about sports and things we should do. But we don’t get involved in each others lives too much.

Soundi: What kind are your dogs?

Sean: I have two draft dachshunds, those little sausage look a likes. Nicky has a black labrador. James’ father has an old cross-bred stray dog, which is pretty close to him. We’ve always liked dogs. As you probably know Richey had Snoopy (Snoopy was a spaniel, which died in January 1995. After his beloved dog died Richey shaved his hair and disappeared two weeks later)

Thanks so much to Emmi for the translation which must have taken ages.