Hello! Welcome to WASTE 7 - this time with even
more useless information than normal...
The Radiohead European
Bonanza... We emerged pale and blinking into the spring sun from a 3 month
recording stint in a dark London studio, and took off to Seville for 3 days (as
you do) to rehearse for our impending European tour, and to colour our cheeks
with a drop of Spanish air. So, armed with a gaggle of new songs to unleash onto
unsuspecting fans, the intrepid five worked their way upwards through Spain,
Italy, Switzerland and Germany, ending up back in dear old blighty for 3 UK gigs
in Manchester, Wolverhampton and London, supported wonderfully by The Julie
Dolphin. We had some of our most memorable gigs on this tour, particularly the
shows in Barcelona and Wolves; two of our favourite gigs ever, completely out of
control, technology breaking down left and right, in short, the ideal Radiohead
show. Thanks for creating such a good atmosphere. Unfortunately we couldn't play
at Biella due to the dodgy right-wing Italian government forcing a last minute
cancellation with some feeble excuse about emergency exits; more likely they
were worried that people were in danger of having a good time. Suddenly
Radiohead are a radical political force, infiltrating a government near you
soon. We took solace in a three day break, soaking up the profoundly beautiful
Florence, and mixing with daft tourists with trainers that light up in the
dark.
Sadly, Italy is not the only place with a dodgy right wing
government as the Criminal Justice Bill has more than proven. A police state
around the corner, this is another indication of the paranoid desperate lengths
to which the Tories are prepared to go. We are of course, whole-heartedly behind
the campaign; please our British fans, lend your support before it's too
late.
And so to Germany's Rock in Riem/Rock am Ring Festivals where
Thom was rather impressed to find himself quite literally rubbing shoulders with
two old pros from the biz, Neil Finn from Crowded house and Peter Gabriel, as
they stood together side-stage to watch the Smashing Pumpkins. He was less
impressed however, with our 10 am slot, not even time for tea and cocoa pops to
loosen up those vocal chords. Our exhaustion was compounded by nervousness on
our return to the UK at the prospect of headlining our first UK gigs for a
goodly while and of how the UK press would receive us. The warmth ot the
audiences soon made us forget all our worries, and we thoroughly enjoyed the
whole UK leg.
Coming to a video store near you.. For those of you at
the Astoria gig you may have noticed you were being filmed, no we're not that
paranoid. We're going to be on the telly on MTV Europe (we made sure we were
well turned out in case our mums were watching). If you're rigged up or with
access to that new fangled equipment, it is being shown on July 24th. The
Japanese Kawasaki show on the 8th June was also filmed. Retail videos are not
available at present but the idea has not been ruled out.
Radiohead
Guide to Lauding it up... With another month's touring under our belt we got
global, playing to packed audiences in Japan, Hong Kong, and 'semi-packed' in
Australia and New Zealand. Sorry to anyone who couldn't get into the shows due
to the Over 18 rules, we try our best but sometimes it's hard to find venues
without age restrictions. Our first stop was Tokyo where we were met with untold
warmth and hospitality, a plethora of letters (we'll try and reply to as many as
we can), and beautiful presents. Nobody was more impressed with Japan than Thom.
He was lost in an ideal world where he towered over people and clothes fitted
him. He also developed a total fascination for Japanese TV, filming it for many
an insomniacal hour. Nursing a string of Saki hangovers, Ed O'Brien became Edo
Brien as the Japanese fans got confused as to where to stick the 'O'. We also
did well with 'Itch', the Japanese 'mini album' of B-sides to accompany the
tour.
Who's that bloke in the corner surrounded by adoring fans, it's
Phil What's-His-Name It is commonly known that Phil, on previous tours has
bravely faced countless exasperating instances of complete non-recognition,
ranging from being asked if he can get a fan to meet the band (the fan thinking
him the bus driver) to being offered tickets by a tout to his own gig, has
finally gained the recognition he deserves and now has his very own fan club in
Japan. Fans were even spotted at gigs sporting 'Phil is Great' T-shirts.
Everything comes to those who wait.
After the near-death experience
of arriving in Hong Kong (Who's idea was it to put an airport there?), we became
VJs for a day on VTV, Asia's MTV, avenging crap VJ's the world over and getting
to play all our favourite stuff; sadly we weren't much better. Ever onward to
Australia and more decadent behaviour awaited us in the form of champagne
breakfasts on a cruise around Sydney harbour (...disgusting isn't it?) Next
we'll be capsizing yachts like Monsieur Le Bon. Australia bore witness to a
magnificent display from the newly-formed Radiohead Noctumal Synchronised Scuba
Diving Team from Ed, Phil and crew (sounds like an idea for a new Olympic
`sport'. On arrival in New Zealand Colin got 'rumbled by the Feds' (ooer) when
Customs caught him in possession of an offensive citrus fruit (Rock 'n Roll!),
and confiscated his tangerine. Jonny had a bit of a shock whilst showing our
lighting engineer his repertoire of fish impressions (you have to make your own
entertainment on the road). After performing one of his favourites, the trout,
the room kept flapping around even when he'd stopped; we were witnessing an
earthquake. Undaunted, we visited some of New Zealand's beautiful scenery,
including Kari Kari where The Piano was filmed, and where Thom plans to become a
hermit.
Releases I bet you're all wondering what happened to that May
single we promised in our last newsletter, WASTE 6; errr... sorry, we spilt
coffee on it, no...the cat chewed the tape...erm...we left it on the bus...well,
it isn't actually ready yet; we got so carried away with the touring; and with a
repertoire of such quality, we found it difficult to decide with what we should
next grace your lovely ears. Not a very good excuse but you may be pleased to
know that it's re-scheduled to come out in September. for those of you wondering
what to do with your obligatory record tokens from Auntie Maude this Christmas,
we reckon that the album will now be out in Jan/Feb'95.
Happy Birthday
Colin Adomed in tie-dye, beads and sun-block for those sensitive areas, we
toddled off Somerset-bound to chill out at Glasters on the 25th anniversary of
Colin's birth; a rousing chorus of the aptly named song, 'Happy Birthday To You'
was sung to Colin by a vast crowd, almost enough people to blow the candles out
on his cake. Thom, resplendent in his 'Mighty Atom' T-Shirt faced more people
than you could shake several sticks at, enough to warrant a butterfly-settling
scrumpy by the cider bus before-hand. Not- usually festival goers, we were very
pleasantly surprised by the peaceful and harmonious atmosphere (if one can still
say that after the shooting incident). The warmth of the audience made us feel
really at home, and assuming festivals will still be legal, we'd like to go
every year from now on. Other festivals on the cards are Poland's Sopok Festival
25th August and Reading Festival on the 27th August.
In danger of missing
the World Cup, we're being sent off into the studio this week to put the
finishing touches to album No. 2, but true to form, we'll be kicking off on tour
again, but this time it's in our home strip. So if you want to cheer us on,
we'll be playing with The Julie Dolphin at the following grounds:
missing