Gents good morning!
Both: Hello, good morning!
Welcome to the show. You've never really been away though have you? I know this is a new single and new album, but you have always been working haven't you?
Vince: Yeah, we've pretty much been working all the time. The last record that we did was an acoustic record that was released two years ago, and that we toured with an acoustic band, and now we're back to making electronic music.
You see I said a couple of weeks ago that Erasure are making a comeback, suddenly a fan comes on the phone saying "They're not making a come back, they've always been around."
Andy: You're getting told off!
They're very passionate the fans!
Andy: Yeah
So tell us more about the album?
Andy: Well it was recorded in Portland Maine where Vince now lives, and we hired a house and kind of had a little studio there, and did everything on computer and we also done writing there. We've written about 24 songs in an hotel room on guitar and then it was mixed in London, so it took about 3 months probably, the whole thing.
But your sounds have always been quite different, I think as soon as one of your records comes on people immediately know that it's Erasure. So with the new album can people expect that?
Vince: Yeah it's very up this record, I think it's the most upbeat record that were written in quite a while. But it is truly electronic.
I understand as well that some of the lyrics in the songs are very personal, in terms of music in the past, that these lyrics are particularly personal.
Andy: Yeah we've been going through quite a lot of stuff, in relationships and things like that, and I think one really nice way of getting through that is just putting that all down on paper and singing about it, and hopefully it relates to other people as well.
The fascinating thing about it to me, is how do you sit down and write music? You've had thirty two top forty consecutive hits which is quite some achievement. How do you actually sit down and make a record and you think to yourself that is the one, that is going to be a big hit record, where does that thought come from?
Vince: Well I'm not sure if we know if it's going to be a hit or not, but we don't come with ideas in the room. I'll start playing the guitar and Andy will start singing, and it is amazing still that you will come out after an hour or so and you've written a song. And I still have no idea where it came from! It's like magic, and that's what keeps it interesting for us both.
So then, Erasure, in brackets, Paul Daniel in the future!
Vince: Exactly!
So where did you two first meet each other?
Andy: Well we met in through an advertisement in the Melody Maker in 1985 and I was looking to join a band at the time and I was a huge Vince Clarke fan, and it just so happened that this advert was from him.
Do you think that could still happen today? We've got all these tacky shows like Pop Idol and the X-Factor, and it's just so commercial and just so cheesy and all fake. So you think in the future that we would have people like Erasure that have come from adverts?
Vince: I'm sure it will. I mean there is all that hype thing going on, but there are other people going on making serious music. Now that there is the internet and people can get exposure that way and people are making music in their bedrooms I think that is very healthy.
And of course you two started the whole Abba revival. I remember buying the EP from Woolworths - lots of good songs on there! Have you actually met Abba, you must have done?
Andy: No we haven't! They've been to a few premieres. We were invited to go to the premiere of Mamma Mia in New York but we couldn't go. I know that Agnetha isn't around, she's kinda retired. No we haven't. I dunno what we would do - I would probably bow if we saw them!
If I was you I would get your cheque book out and ask where's the money, because lets face it, Abba are absolutely huge right now and it's you boys that have made this - you boys created the Abba revival! Surely you deserve some cash don't you!
Vince: Well we got this really nice letter from their accountant when we made our record I remember…
Andy: Yeah, saying where's the money!
But what was the whole point behind that, why Abba? Why did you guys decide at the time decide to go for a Abba EP, as it was really different at the time.
Andy: Well I was a really huge fans of theirs, and I just thought that they were just misunderstood and they were quite out of fashion for a while. It was just something that we didn't really think about, just a spur of the moment thing. We were going to do an album which I'm glad that we didn't as we did get a bit swapped by the EP anyway. But its just one of those things really, it was just a fun project to do for us.
What I liked about it was that it was good value for money, we hadn't seen EP's for years, and suddenly there was an EP back on the market and it was different.
Andy: Yeah - and I think that there was an EP video of that as well.
And of course it shot to number one as a cracking piece of music. Now with this new album of yours, that's coming up shortly, and not just the album and not just the single, you're really going for this, you're touring as well.
Vince: Yeah we start touring in America next week actually, and we'll be there for eight weeks, and then we'll be coming back to the UK and doing some dates in Europe in the autumn.
What's it like in America in terms of the music business compared to this country. When you perform live, there must be some sort of difference?
Vince: We do get a younger audience in the States actually, but we've been touring their since we started and there are fans that came to our very early gigs that we still see at concerts now - they're very loyal.
And in terms of performing songs, obviously you're going to enjoy performing the new stuff, but in terms of the old stuff, is there one song that sings, really stands out at as they one to sing?
Andy: Yeah, definitely "A Little Respect" as it gets everybody going and their kind… it's one song that… We know them all off my heart, but you almost don't have to think about it when you're singing it.
It was covered a couple a few years ago wasn't it? What did you make of that?
Vince: I thought it was cool actually. We did this gig a few years ago and we performed "A Little Respect" and I heard one of the sound guys say "It's that old Wheatus song isn't it?"
Forget about Erasure, Wheatus! Do you actually get the final say? Say someone says that they want to cover "A Little Respect" or "Stop!" or any of those songs, do you get the final say on that?
Andy: No we don't. It's a bit weird, I don't really know how that works. We were going to record "Good Vibrations" once for a film, and then the Beach Boys said that we had to pay them one hundred and fifty grand up front for the privilege, so we didn't do it. So I think it just depends on how famous you are, and how much sway you have.
Well here's my tip for you, go after Abba they're give you one hundred and fifty grand, you perform them and go and release "Good Vibrations".
Andy: Okay!
Well thanks a lot for your time today, I really appreciate that Vince and Andy, and best of luck for the album and the single, I really appreciate your time.
Both: Thank you very much
All the best - That's Erasure live on the show, cracking songs and hopefully this album for them will be a success and it sounds really really good and they're on tour, and they're back with a bang, not that they've really been away, but they're certainly out there again, live on Saturday Breakfast, stay tuned lots to come to you.