ON TRACK: BABY CHAOS ANSWER OUR QUESTIONS

A little more than two decades ago that Baby Chaos issued their first album, Safe Sex, Designer Drugs and the Death of Rock 'n' Roll.  The Glaswegian quartet became a staple live act for us here at Total MK, and when they released album number two, Love Your Self Abuse, the love affair with our stereo continued.  

Now, after a 17 year hiatus, the band are back, and thankfully they are still blisteringly brilliant.

You'll hear proof on the new album Skulls, Skulls, Skulls, Show Me The Glory, which will be unleashed on April 17.

Frontman Chris Gordon went On Track with Total MK...

What was the song that first awakened your musical senses?

I remember pogo-ing round the living room with my brother to Ian Dury's “Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick” age 7.

It was exciting and I didn't really know why as I hadn't shown that much interested in music before then.

Physical or digital – how do you take your music?

I still have great affection for that feeling of coming home from John Menzies with a new LP.

You didn't buy many and those that you did you really gave your time to.

Even if you weren't that keen at first you kept going until you bloody well loved it cause you didn't want to admit to yourself or your pals that you'd bought a dud.

That said I am 100% digital these days hahahahaha; less clutter more music.

I don't remember vinyl sounding all that good either, I guess I had a crappy record player because the moment CDs came about I was knocked out by the step up in quality (vinyl lovers shake their heads in dismay).

We are, however, releasing our new album on heavyweight vinyl and this is absolutely related to the cherishing of the records of our youth.

The first time you thought 'Music - this is the job for me'?

I was on holiday in France when Live Aid was on but I listened on AM radio and then a friend had it all on VHS when I got back.

It was just incredible to see the whole of Wembley so exuberant and I thought, “What would it be like to be up there playing in front of that?

Not shite, that's for sure. We had already started tinkering about with guitars and written a few really lame songs about the size of our penises and anything else Dave Lee Roth might go on about, but on seeing this huge concert you just thought, “Oh wow; to be part of this world of music”.

Your best on stage memory?

There are just moments when you float, there's a guitar in your hands and you're singing or shouting but there's no effort it's all just happening, thoughtless and wonderful.

Sometimes they last a verse or a few songs, sometimes most of a gig. I heard the bass player from Sigur Ros say he goes through every show this way and I thought you lucky, lucky b*****d because it's just lovely when it happens.

And the worst gig you've ever done?

Ha! Which one to pick?

Okay, Omaha Ranchbowl in '95 the middle of America in a bar next to a bowling alley with 15 (and I may be exaggerating) disinterested people sat way to our left by the bar in a large room.

The temptation to beat a hasty retreat to the bus is great but you tell yourself just one convert and then they'll all come next time hahahahahaha.

We take to the stage with the cacophonous “Rearrange You” and come the opening chord and a mighty leap I fall flat on my arse, and it just gets worse from there.

A gig so bad I dyed my hair black the next day (don't believe the vicious lies spread by my wife that I wanted to look like Johnny Depp).

What made you take up the [guitar, bass etc ... depends who is answering these!]

I took up the guitar in order to get out of playing whichever brass instrument the school had told me I was good enough to play.

I hated it, the farty noise, the chapped lips, the teacher, the lot.

I cunningly told my parents I wanted to take up the guitar instead, thinking I would give up after another few months and that would be the end of it.

I had shown very little interest in music (at least the playing of it) up to this point (I was about 10). However, the guitar teacher showered me with so much of that drug of youth, praise, that like a junkie I kept going back for more.

Which one song by another artist do you wish you had written?

Eeesht! Today, “Higher and Higher” by Jackie Wilson, though I don't think he wrote it.

It's a song that has always given me that tingly feeling like it was coming from somewhere out of this world.

And one song of yours that holds special significance?

Well, it's often the last one you wrote that seems to hold the attention, or maybe I just feel that way just now because it turned out to be a belter.

Anyway it's called “Habibi” after Craig Thompson's inspirational graphic novel of the same name (as blatant a tribute as you could get). It's the last track on the new album.

If you could step into the shoes of another musician, living or dead, who would it be and what would you do?

I would step in Kurt Cobain’s shoes on the day he died and put the gun down and see how it went tomorrow or the next day or the next week or month.

There are countless others, but he’s from my generation and he's the one whose death really hurt.

Are there any current musical influences that you might look to?

The band I have loved most over the past decade are Sigur Ros but I think I would be pushing all boundaries of reason to call them an influence on Baby Chaos.

Coming back to rock music with the kind of limited palette of guitars and bass and drums and vocals was an interesting challenge for me.

I had no idea if I would be all that into it, but in truth it proved to be a wonderful release singing at the top of my voice again and writing the hugest riffs I could think of.

Is there any genre of music that you simply can't stand?

There is a lot of music I can't stand but it never has anything to do with genre more just a half- assed-ness or a voice that grates or just terrible, terrible lyrics.

Finally, plug your album and your dates …

Baby Chaos have a new album coming out (our third record and our first in 17 years) on 27^th April 2015.

It is called “Skulls, Skulls, Skulls, Show Me The Glory” and it will be preceded by a double A-side single of “You Can't Shut Us Up” and “The Whispering Of Giants”.

We are playing a few shows just before the release with more to follow later in the year. The dates are Friday 10^th April at the Barfly, Camden, London; Saturday 18^th April at Stereo in Glasgow and then back to London for the Camden Rocks Festival on the Saturday 30^th of May.