ON TRACK: THEA GILMORE ANSWERS OUR QUESTIONS

New album Ghosts & Graffiti is currently causing excitement, and creator Thea Gilmore will return to The Stables later this month to share material from the opus.   During a 17 year career, Thea has been a prolific creator, and Ghosts & Graffiti is album number 15. It is a part retrospective, part new album - with new recordings of old songs, fresh material and her recent A-list radio hits all taking space. "People have asked me many times about a compilation," Thea says, "but I've always said no.  I'm a bit of a 'Best Of' sceptic and I've never felt it was time to look back; I always had new stuff I passionately wanted to get out there.   "Then I realised last year that I wanted to bring new light to some older songs...colour, and the perspective that just living for a while affords.  I was so young when I wrote many of them, and I've come to see some of the early visions as no longer definitive."   But when Thea isn't cultivating her own creations, what - and whose - music does she turn to?   Thea went On Track with Total MK...     The song that first awakened your musical senses

The song that first awakened my songwriterly senses would have been ‘Its Alright Ma’ by Dylan. I remember hearing him sing ‘Money doesn't talk it swears’ when I was about 11 and thinking, wow! I want to be able to write like that. Musically speaking, I was singing from a really early age...probably my mum singing me ‘Super Trouper’ when I was about three made me want to sing along.

Physical or digital - how do you take your music?

I’m not particularly fussy. I prefer physical because it sounds better and there’s a real connection to the music when you can hold it in your hand. But digital has made music so accessible and instant. I think its easy to be curmudgeonly about these things, but we have to accept that things evolve at a more rapid pace these days and in order for music to remain relevant, its delivery system has to keep up!

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

That would be sitting in a recording studio when I was on work experience watching all these musicians making a record. They called it work! It just looked like a party to me. I thought ‘I could do that’.

Your best on stage memory...

There are so many, usually the memorable ones aren't what you’d expect. They can be special because something funny happened, or because someone heckled well, or just because the show flowed and you felt the audience come along with you. 

I do remember doing a show in Canada to about 10000 people and I turned to my right to see Steve Earle at the side of the stage listening. That was pretty cool.

And the worst gig you've ever done

Again, there are a few. In the very early days of my career, I played a tiny place in Bath where a guy got up on stage with me, stood in between me and my guitarist and then threw up on the audience. I suppose I should be thankful none of it hit me. More recently, I was playing a really quiet acoustic show and the venue in their wisdom had booked a death metal band in the tiny club below. You could hear them more than me. They were pretty good I thought but I don’t think my crowd were too happy.

What, specifically, made you take up singing

I just loved to sing. You couldn't shut me up as a kid. I would listen to music all the time and work out harmony lines. It was the pure joy of hearing music turn to magic. 

Which one song by another artist do you wish had written

It's hard to just choose one, but if that's all I get then probably ‘Everybody Knows’ by Leonard Cohen. Lyrically it's stunning and always relevant. But then, musically speaking I’d definitely go for ‘God Only Knows’. I actually think that’s one of the best melodies that will ever be written. So complex but feels so simple.

And one - by yourself  - which holds special significance

Hmm. I wrote a song called Mexico which was about a period of quite dramatic change in my life starting with a trip to Mexico and ending with the birth of my first child. That will always be a special song to me.

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

Musicians shoes are notoriously tricky (and smelly) so I’d have to tread carefully. Actually I don't think I can answer that one. I was going to say Dylan or Cohen, but I’d screw it up and then we wouldn’t have Dylan or Cohen. A world without that music is unimaginable to me!

Are there any current musical influences that you might look to

There’s so much amazing new music out there at the moment. I think Kate Tempest is extraordinary, Blurs new album is brilliant, most things by Passenger are really good. I’m a song and lyric junkie and we’re living in times where people don’t really notice that side of music any more. Lyrics tend to bypass most people so when someone new comes along that shines lyrically I get pretty excited.

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

I try really hard not to close off to any genre. Anything that spreads mysoginist, homophobic or racist values is completely off my radar. I’m not interested in anyone who would use music to perpetuate prejudice.

Finally, plug The Stables show - what can we expect?

We’re bringing a full band to The Stables so we’ll be making a big noise. We’ll be playing most of my new album ‘Ghosts & Graffiti’ so there’ll be a mix of the new and the old.

The Stables is one of those venues that, when you see it on a tour sheet, your heart does a little jump. Its always such a great, fun gig and so well run and because of that you want to give it everything you’ve got.   To book tickets to The Stables show  on Monday, May 25  visit www.stables.org or call 01908 280800.   Hurry though, they are going fast.