IAIN
CLARKE
In a musical world where the focus is on the fast buck, image over content and cash over credit, a small corner of the real world takes a step back. "The best way to describe my music would be to call it 'art for art's sake'. I'm not in this to get signed, to get my face on TV, to promote soft drinks, to make my money, I'm in this because I love doing it. I always have." Leeds based singer songwriter Iain Clarke has been around the block a few times in the musical world; playing guitars, keys bass and drums for various bands and well as lending his own vocal talents. "I've had this need to write and arrange and express since 15, it adds something to my life, if it goes to others that's cool," he explains, "I've always been immediate, I've always reflected where my musical leanings are at the time, and I stand by them. I love to write, polish record and send out. Doing this allows me to do this even quicker."
No song sounds the same as the previous, no album the same as the last, where does the sound come from? "I'm a musical magpie," Iain grins, "I take my inspiration from a variety of sources and shape them best I can into my own direct sound. I'm a closet mod in my attitude, I couldn't stand to be limited to just one style or thing, I'm always on the lookout for something new." His 6th album, Scrapbook showed a variety of pop influences as sound, attracting good reactions and reviews, but he was worried about how he could continue. "My songs reflect my paradoxically laid back yet passionate approach to writing. I try not to write about myself, because there's never much to write about. What I like to try and do is get in other people's heads or make observations, to make the listener empathise, or maybe think a little about the characters I create. With Scrapbook I did that, and did it will, it's a compete recording and I'm very happy with it. Following on from Momentum it just seemed so right, and I was enthused for playing live. Once it was done, I was like...right, how do I top that?!"
For better or worse, fate intervened. "As one of the new songs says," Clarke sighs, "The walls came down. My Grandad died, I fell ill, which lead to me losing a major part in a play and would up in hospital and laid up on my own for a good long while, and when that happens the demons come out to play again, because you've only yourself to deal with." Clarke's way of dealing with it, and a lot of other things was to write. "I found that with a few other things that fell through that I had a lot of time on my hands all of a sudden, so I just sat down with a guitar and played and played and played. For the first time I put my demons and other things head on into the lyrics, which made this an intense personal experience to make, but a good one, because I was really behind it." Dealing with all this, did he worry what it would do to the sound? "Absolutely, when I first played to people I was worried what they woudl think, because there was so much of myself in it. I was thinking, 'have I gone to far? Have I done too much?' What I've found is what I was hoping for, the whole record is a positive thing, with an up vibe. Good songs and tunes, and I hope that people get something as positive as I have from it."
With Downtime, his 7th album, now out, and more and more live appearances in the offing with Barry Darnton from Almost Grown on guitar ("He's like Craddock to my Weller!" Clarke jokes), does the future hold more? "Absolutely!" Clarke nods, "The momentum's back, I'm enjoying playing, I'm enjoying writing, and the ideas are still coming thick and fast. So watch out."
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