Heartland

Anyone speak Dutch?

https://www.humo.be/muziek/the-sisters- ... Zrx4hPXk3Y

I ran this through www.deepl.com and it's surprisingly readable. With machine translation though, you never know.

Highlights.

* He lives in Antwerp.
* They've written 'something like' 30 songs in the last two years.
* They've written 60 songs since Vision Thing was released.
* Has a Flemish girlfriend but 'it's complicated and should lead to some good lyrics.'
* Nobody recognises him without his sunglasses. Went to a Levellers gig in Sheffield, and nobody other than the band knew who he was.
* Iron Maiden track Fear of the Dark is a cover of Temple of Love, in his opinion
* Has been offered retro tours for First Last & Always but has no interest. 'Not healthy to live in the past'
* Deliberately experimenting with chiaroscuro in the stage show, light and dark, rather than smoke. Wants to get rid of smoke machines.
* Currently writing a book about science fiction movies from Russia in the 50s and 60s

Actually a really good read. Worth the cut and paste effort to translate it. Probably done in early March.

Thank you for the link, Todashi!!! ... ... I've also pushed it through DeepL and that is the result of their translation.
I had to type it out, since, of cource, they won't let you just copy&paste a text of that length.
But here you go. Enjoy... ... imho, it's an entertaining and lovely read...


The Sisters of Mercy:
"I stayed in one room in Antwerp together with my Flemish girlfriend for nine months".

The line is bad, and Andrew Eldritch mistakenly thinks I say "bummer" instead of "honour" in the sentence "it's an honour to speak to you". A mean sentence for those who doubt this, because The Sisters of Mercy may have been irrevocably catalogued in the "past glories" box for centuries, but they remain youth heroes. And they are touring youth heroes, too: their European tour, which kicked off in March, will stop off in Trix on 7 April and in AB on 17 and 18 April. What, oh great godfather of goth, can we expect?

Andrew Eldritch (62): More of the same.
HUMO: More of the same?

Eldritch (hums): "Hmm, hmm. But better played than ever. I hope so. We're going to bring new songs anyway: the past two corona years we've written about thirty. Thanks to Dylan Smith, the Australian surfer boy who's been our regular guitarist since 2019: he's somehow given the band fresh energy."

HUMO: Thirty new songs?
Eldritch: Something like that.

HUMO: I know you've been asked this question for at least three decades now, but why don't you finally record a new album?
Eldritch: Because making records is a great way to lose a lot of money. We are an excellent live band, so we sell enough tickets to make a comfortable living. So we don't need to make records.
But it certainly could have been. If you add all the unreleased material since our last record with new songs (Vision Thing) you get to sixty songs.

HUMO: A lot of fans would be very happy if you recorded the ten or eleven best and a...
Eldritch (interrupting): A lot of fans would be very happy if I came to dinnerr with them - but that doesn't mean I would.

HUMO: I have it from a good source that you do intend to settle in Belgium.
Eldritch: Your source is not that good, because I am already in Belgium. I have been officially living in Antwerp for a long time.

HUMO: Why?
Eldritch: One: it's convenient, because the Brexit is a complete f**k up, which has made my international life considerably more difficult. Two: it's pleasant to be able to say that The Sisters of Mercy is Belgium's greatest new band.

HUMO: Haha.
Eldritch: And three: there's a girl. Normally I travel a lot: I still own some houses in England, and I also have pied-à-terre on the Mediterranean. but in 2020, the first corona year, I spent nine months together with my Flemish girlfriend in one room in Antwerp.

HUMO: Did that work a bit?
Eldritch: Erm... Not really.

HUMO: How do you like Belgium?
Eldritch: Good

HUMO: Are you not often recognised in the streets?
Eldritch: When I take off my sunglasses, nobody recognises me. Not even in England, by the way. Just this week I went to see The Levellers perform in Sheffield. Only The Levellers recognised me.

HUMO: Do they still exist?
Eldritch: Of course they still exist!

HUMO: I had never seen a fan of The Levellers in you.
Eldritch: In England you have four or five bands that are known for being far left. We're one of them, and so are The Levellers. Hence.

HUMO: Have you ever heard of the Belgian group Whispering Sons?
Eldritch: Should we?

HUMO: But they sound very much like The Sisters of Mercy, except that they don't have a front man but a front woman.
Eldritch: And she sounds like me?

HUMO: Yes.
Eldritch: Hmm. I hardly ever listen to music anymore, because it reminds me of work. Since trip hop, I don't hear much that interests me anymore either. They only play ringtones on the radio these days, don't they?

HUMO: Have you ever heard a Sisters of Mercy cover that you liked?
Eldritch: Yes, the one from Iron Maiden.

HUMO: I didn't know Iron Maiden covered you.
Eldritch: Put on "Fear of the Dark": you can't possibly get much closer to a cover of "Temple of Love". Oh well, they know well enough themselves.

HUMO: Did they pay for it?
Eldritch: No. That's not unique. One of our songs has already been put on a soundtrack without being paid.

HUMO: What filmß
Eldritch: "The Brass Teapot" (by Ramaa Mosley, 2012, ed.), where some idiot is rapping to the riff of "Giving Ground". Nobody had informed me beforehand, let alone asked my permission or put money on the table. But anyway, the song was used in an sm scene with Juno Temple so I did't bother.

HUMO: It has been fashionable for many years now to undertake tours based on classic records. Did a promoter never offer you a big bag of silver to tour with say, "First and Last and Always"?
Eldritch: Yes. Promoters love those tours, because they are easy to market. But to me that kind of thing feels retro, and I hate retro. I don't think it's healthy for a band to live in the past. Our concerts are never, ever a string of greatest hits. You have to challenge your audience, and try something new from time to time.
At the moment we are exploring the possibilities of chiaroscuro, because we want to get rid of the smoke machines that we have always used. With the latest generation of spotlights, it's much easier than before to create deep shadows: good, because I like to have a hiding place on stage. You might not think it, but I'm quite shy by nature.

HUMO: To be perfectly honest, I was a bit nervous when I typed in your number just now.
Eldritch: Want?

HUMO: You have the reputation of being an extremely tough interviewee.
Eldritch: That's why I thought you said "bummer" just now. You wouldn't be the only one who would rather not deal with we.

HUMO: I must say: you are not so bad.
Eldritch: That's because you are not an idiot.

HUMO: I have always known.
Eldritch: You're welcome. Besides, you work for a magazine that still repects the concept of the "music section". The majority of magazines and newspapers no longer do that. Moreover, most music journalists have no higher ambitions than that you confirm what they have read about you in the press release or on Wikipedia. If you entertain them for an hour about science fiction films from the Soviet Union - and I'm talking about prints from the 50s and 60s here - you can be sure that the only thing that appears in print afterwards are a few copy-pasted lines from our bio.

HUMO: What is it with science fiction films from the Soviet Union?
Eldritch: I am writing a book about it.

HUMO: Go on.
Eldritch: I am a great fan, partly because they are fun, partly because the future looked very different in the eyes of the Soviets than in the eyes of the Americans. The Americans dreamt of bigger cars with more chrome, while the Soviets had visions of humanity as a whole. But hey, Americans. They are amazed when you tell them that here in Europe we have remote-controlled colour televisions.
Anyway, what I wanted to tell you just now. A long time ago, when we were stil with a record company, we fell into the retro trap once. The A&R people from that label - all the people from that label - weren't interested in artistic integrity at all: they just wanted us to re-record our hits, and as far as they were concerned, do it again afterwards. I hated the whole idea, but for the sake of peace I agreed to new versions of "Temple of Love" and "Alice". After that I had enough of it, and I thanked both the record company and our co-manager for their services. Since then, I'm the only manager, and we only do what we like.

HUMO: And that is?
Eldritch: Perform. As much as possible.

HUMO: See you in Antwerp then?
Eldritch: I will be there.

That book, which may or may not ever see the light of day, sounds like a hoot. Going with the timeframe, I'd guess he was referring to Pavel Klushantsev, who combined live-action with documentary footage. Soviets dug their scifi and were often very evocative with it. Wonder if the many adaptations of the Strugatsky bros. novels will yield a chapter or two.

Thanks for this

Cheers for typing that Sabine, much appreciated

Cheers for the translation. Sixty f**king songs and all we had was "Arms" and "Still" for about twenty years, JFC. Sounds like a firm no on a new record too.

nice interview, thanks for the translation

the Maiden intro riff is very similar to the TOL lead but that's about as far as it goes for me. Coincidentally (or not) Sheeran just won the case and this is a lot less derivative than Shape Of You.

An interesting read, thanks for sharing.
I love the fact that the interviewer, on hearing Von claim that The Sisters are "The Best New Band In Belgium", almost immediately asks if he's heard of Whispering Sons! Until he releases studio versions of some of the new songs, I would also have Ground Nero, Your Life On Hold and A Slice of Life ahead of TSOM but they might scrape into my Belgian top 5!
Which Levellers show in Sheffield is he talking about here? The one last Autumn at the Leadmill? Either the interview was conducted a while ago or something gets lost in translation.
Not sure I buy that pretentious chiaroscuro stuff - he could have hidden out of the spotlight if he'd wanted to at any time over the past 38 years!

Nikolas Vitus Lagartija wrote: ↑07 Apr 2022, 18:08 Which Levellers show in Sheffield is he talking about here? The one last Autumn at the Leadmill? Either the interview was conducted a while ago or something gets lost in translation.

Well from the times of UTR and earlier I think I've gathered that "this week" in Eldritch speak is not necessarily congruent with the standard 24/7 most people adhere to... ..

Found this link to Dutch interview with Andrew on Monday
I switched language from Dutch to English but no idea which will show on link

https://www.humo.be/muziek/the-sisters- ... ~be574a52/

Thank you very much for the translation.
60 new songs - OMG, he's definitely kidding us!

HUMO: Are you not often recognised in the streets?
Eldritch: When I take off my sunglasses, nobody recognises me. Not even in England, by the way. Just this week I went to see The Levellers perform in Sheffield. Only The Levellers recognised me.

Shhh hush hush, don't ever tell him that we pretend he is not him even when we smoke together with him or stand near him in a concert or take a pint in a pub somewhere near him or something similar that we actually recognize him but pretend that he is not him to make him feel fine and do what he is got to do and write his songs and lyrics in comfort for all of us to hear and enjoy

Good Evening All - The following is a unedited Google Translate of the above interview. All errors are nothing to do with me. Hope it helps


INTERVIEW THE SISTERS OF MERCY
The Sisters of Mercy: 'I stayed in one room in Antwerp with my Flemish girlfriend for nine months'
The line is bad, and Andrew Eldritch mistakenly thinks I'm saying "bummer" instead of "honour" in the phrase "It's an honor to speak to you." A mean sentence, for those who doubt it, because The Sisters of Mercy may have been irrevocably cataloged in the box 'Fallen glories' for centuries, they remain childhood heroes. Also, touring youth heroes: their European tour, which kicked off in March, will stop in Trix on April 7, and in the AB on April 17 and 18. What, o great godfather of goth, may we expect?

NOUD JANSEN
MONDAY 4 APRIL 2022
Andrew Eldritch (62) "More of the same."

HUMO More of the same?
Eldritch (groans) "Hmm, hmm. But played better than ever. I hope anyway. We will also bring new songs anyway: we have written thirty of them in the past two corona years. Thanks to Dylan Smith, the Australian surfer boy who has been our regular guitarist since 2019, he has somehow given the band fresh energy.”

HUMO Thirty new songs?
Eldritch "Something like that."

HUMO I know you've been asked this question for at least three decades now, but why don't you finally record a new record?
Eldritch “Because making records is a great way to lose a lot of money. We are an excellent live band, so we sell enough tickets to comfortably support ourselves. So we don't have to make records.

“But it certainly could have been done. If you add up all the unreleased material since our last record with new songs ('Vision Thing' from 1990, ed.) you already get sixty songs.”

HUMO A lot of fans would be very happy if you recorded the ten or eleven best and a…
Eldritch (interrupting) "A lot of fans would be very happy if I joined them for dinner — but that doesn't mean I would."

HUMO I have it from a good source that you do intend to settle in Belgium.
Eldritch «Your source is not that good, because I am already established in Belgium. I have officially lived in Antwerp for quite some time now.”

HUMO Why?
Eldritch “One: It's handy, because Brexit is a complete f**k up, which has made my international life considerably more difficult. Two: it's nice to be able to say that The Sisters of Mercy is Belgium's greatest new band."

HUMO Haha.
Eldritch "And three: there's a girl. Normally I travel a lot: I still own a few houses in England, and I also have a pied-à-terre on the Mediterranean. But in 2020, the first corona year, I stayed in one room in Antwerp with my Flemish girlfriend for nine months.»

HUMO Did that work a bit?
Eldritch "Uhm… Not really."

HUMO But you are still together?
Eldritch (groans) “It's complicated. Either way, it'll make for some interesting lyrics.”

HUMO How do you like Belgium?
Eldritch "Good."

HUMO Are you not often recognized on the street?
Eldritch «When I take off my sunglasses, nobody recognizes me. Not even in England, by the way. This week I went to a performance by The Levellers in Sheffield. Only The Levellers recognized me.”

HUMO Do they still exist?
Eldritch "Of course they still exist!"

HUMO I never saw a lover of The Levellers in you.
Eldritch “In England you have four or five bands that are known for being far left. We are part of that, and so are The Levellers. Hence.”

HUMO Have you ever heard of the Belgian group Whispering Sons?
Eldritch "Should that be?"

HUMO No. But they sound a lot like The Sisters of Mercy, except they don't have a front man, but a front woman.
Eldritch "And she sounds like me?"

HUMO Yes.
Eldritch "Hmm. I hardly ever listen to music anymore because it reminds me of work. Since trip-hop I don't hear much that interests me anymore. Don't they only play ringtones on the radio these days?”

HUMO Have you ever heard a Sisters of Mercy cover that you liked?
Eldritch "Yeah, Iron Maiden's."

HUMO I didn't know Iron Maiden ever covered you.
Eldritch "Put 'Fear of the Dark' on: you can't possibly get much closer to a cover of 'Temple of Love'. Well, they know it well enough themselves.”


HUMO Did they pay for it?
Eldritch "Nope. That's not unique, you know. For example, one of our songs has already been put on a soundtrack without being paid for."

HUMO Which movie?
Eldritch «'The Brass Teapot' (by Ramaa Mosley from 2012, ed.), in which some idiot is rapping on the riff of 'Giving Ground'. No one had notified me in advance, let alone asked my permission or put money on the table. But hey, the song was used in an SM scene with Juno Temple, so I didn't try too hard."

HUMO It has been fashionable for many years now to undertake tours based on classical records. Has ee

BUGGER My Bad - i have just discovered Google Translate has a 5000 word limit - Hence the remainder of the above AE interview is below

HUMO Which movie?
Eldritch «'The Brass Teapot' (by Ramaa Mosley from 2012, ed.), in which some idiot is rapping on the riff of 'Giving Ground'. No one had notified me in advance, let alone asked my permission or put money on the table. But hey, the song was used in an SM scene with Juno Temple, so I didn't try too hard."

HUMO It has been fashionable for many years now to undertake tours based on classical records. Has a promoter never offered you a large bag of silver pieces to go out with say 'First and Last and Always'?
Eldritch "Yes. Promoters love such tours because they are easy to market. But things like that look retro to me, and I hate retro. I also don't think it's healthy for a band to live in the past. Our concerts are never, ever sequences of our greatest hits. You have to challenge your audience, and try something new every once in a while.

»At the moment we are exploring the possibilities of chiaroscuro because we want to get rid of the fog machines that we have always used. With the latest generation of spotlights, it is much easier than before to create deep shadows: great, because I like to have a hiding place on stage. You might not think so, but by nature I am quite shy.”

HUMO Let me be honest: I was a bit nervous when I just dialed your number.
Eldritch "Why?"

HUMO You have a reputation for being an extremely tough interviewee.
Eldritch "That's why I just thought you said 'bummer'. You wouldn't be the only one who'd rather not hang out with me."

HUMO I have to say: you are not too bad.
Eldritch "That's because you're not an idiot."

HUMO I've always known.
Eldritch "You're welcome. You also work for a magazine that still respects the concept of 'music section'. Most magazines and newspapers don't do that anymore. Moreover, most music journalists have no higher ambitions than for you to confirm what they have read about you in the press release or on Wikipedia. If you spent an hour chatting with them about Soviet sci-fi movies – and I'm talking about prints from the 50s and 60s here – you can bet that the only thing that comes out in print afterwards is some copy-paste lines from our be organic.”

HUMO What do you have with science fiction films from the Soviet Union?
Eldritch "I'm writing a book about it."

HUMO Come on.
Eldritch «I'm a big fan, on the one hand because they are fun, on the other hand because the future looked very different in the eyes of the Soviets than in the eyes of the Americans. The Americans dreamed of bigger cars with more chrome, while the Soviets had visions pertaining to humanity as a whole. But hey, Americans. Those folks are stunned when you tell them we have color TVs with remotes here in Europe.

“Anyway, what I just wanted to tell you. A long time ago, when we were still with a record company, we once fell into the retro trap. The A&R people on that label – all the people on that label – weren't interested in artistic integrity at all: they just wanted us to re-record our hits, and as far as they were concerned, then again. I hated the whole idea, but for the sake of peace I agreed to new versions of 'Temple of Love' and 'Alice'. After that I had had enough, and I thanked both the record company and our co-manager for services rendered. Since then I have been the only manager, and we only do what we feel like.”

HUMO And that is?
Eldritch «Performance. As much as possible."

HUMO See you in Antwerp then?
Eldritch "I'll be there."

The Sisters of Mercy will play on April 7 in Trix (Antwerp) and on April 17 and 18 in Ancienne Belgique (Brussels).

Already sorted in the Interviews Section

Danke Sabine

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