A Spaceman Came Travelling

We've come to expect Spiritualized albums to be huge, momentous sounding affairs incorporating sumptuous orchestral arrangements, gospel choirs and dramatic and daring production techniques. Not so Amazing Grace, the fifth Spiritualized studio album and easily the rawest sounding work they've ever recorded.

"This album was primarily influenced by a free jazz record I made last year with Springheel Jack called Amassed," a tired but relaxed Jason Pierce begins. "I love the way they make their music so spontaneously. They put the microphones right up into the action and record what I would describe as the physicality of playing instruments, so you get the squeak of the trumpet valve and the noise of fingers touching the instrument.
“It wasn't like we wanted to forget everything we know and go off and do a garage record. It's not a garage record. It's a very elegant record. The idea behind this was to make a record that was very naked where you just heard the sound of my voice through a microphone and it wasn't processed or too produced. I think the best music is made by people who are out of control working in areas where they don't know the answers."
Jason, or J Spaceman as he's known to his many fans, sees music as a primal and inexplicable energy source.
"Music is all about pushing air around, and when you put that in a small space with people, the kind of energy you get is phenomenal," he enthuses. "Capturing that immediacy is difficult. I think when people talk about capturing a live sound on record they're trying something which is pretty much unobtainable. Records by their very nature are a construct, where live music is totally the opposite. It's all to do with the people in the room and what goes on. You can get a live recording of a show, but it’s not a tenth of what it's like to be in that room. But I love the sense of what it's like to be in that room at the time and when it's fed to you in its natural state.
“So much recording is about processing the sound. It’s all about EQs and reverbs and effects. I have so little time for music where it’s about the production and sonics. You're supposed to like the guitar part or a drum sound or whatever and sometimes people don't recognise the fact that they are not listening to a good song or whether the guy has got anything to say."
Jason has got a lot to say, and the crux of it is that he wants to say it as directly as possible. This is perfectly illustrated on the paean to love and friendship that is 'Hold On'.
"I met Dr. John very briefly after recording the last album," he explains. "It was after the Twin Towers and he was saying, ‘You should write stuff from where you stand. People get your shit. You should just write it down and tell it like it is.’ That was the other thing that led to this. This is how it is and this is how I see it from where I stand. It’s that simple. It’s not specifically talking about something political and I would hate to say that this record is a reaction to world events. I loathed at the time the inclination for people to turn everything into their own disaster. People were saying things like, ‘Shit, I sell books in New York!’ or ‘I gotta go there on tour.’ I thought that was dreadful. It's got nothing to do with you. I hate all that stuff. But I do like that line – ‘Say it how it is.’ Just put it down straight. Blues to me should achieve what it sets out to do and just say it."
So yet again Spiritualized are with us with Amazing Grace and another Irish tour. They graced us with no less than five Irish dates for Let It Come Down and this time around Jason and his Sonic Argonauts played their first ever show in Limerick.
"I should add that we still don't play here nearly enough," Jason maintains. "It's easier for us to get into the back of our bus and go to Limerick than it is for the kids in Limerick to come to Dublin. Also, everyone is into music on their front foot. They come into that room and they want it to be an amazing night. In Limerick, they were like ‘Lay it on!’ A lot of people were very blown away and I was one of them. Mick Dolan (Dolan's Warehouse owner) was the star of the show. He treated us like kings. I'd like to put more small shows together but I do say that every time. It's not really about the records. They are the things that get reviews and allow people to get to know you, but we don't tour Ireland or wherever to promote a record. The way I look at it is that the records allow the promoters to put us on for a show.
"The key to great music is honesty and truthfulness," Jason offers by way of some sort of conclusion. "If you tell it from where you stand it will always stand. Take something like folk music, it will always resonate in some way. I think a lot of music comes from copying other people's attitudes or styles. It’s like, ‘Here we are in our leather pants combing our fringe down.’ It looks rock ‘n' roll so you can always sell it and you can probably sell more of it than the genuine article that’s paid its dues. But eventually people see through the cracks. There will be a load of stuff that will sound like eighties rock n' roll or 21st century rock ‘n' roll, whatever that is. But there will be some other stuff which will always stand."

Amazing Grace is out now on Sanctuary.