Rock Me, I'm A Deus Fan

dEUS have always contradicted expectations. First and foremost, the idea of a Belgian band who could produce music of the quality of "Suds & Soda" surprised many. Secondly, their live show earned them a reputation as an act who knew how to experiment at the right moments and rock out when the need arose.

Two albums down the line, and dEUS are about to go up another couple of notches on the success scale with the launch of The Ideal Crash, their third album proper and their most cohesive to date. Yet it has taken two-and-a-half years to produce.

"I think we made a mistake because when we finished touring, we went straight into writing," recalls Craig Ward, their Scottish guitarist/vocalist. "We should have all fucked off and forgot about dEUS for a couple of months before we got back into it, because we were tired and the ideas were coming out pretty damn slowly.

"But as a unit we were much tighter and more powerful than ever. Playing like that definitely has an impact on the way you write and the way the songs take form."

Certainly, The Ideal Crash sees dEUS with a more orthodox, focused sound than ever before, while still remaining true to the band's natural ethos.

"There are only 10 songs on the album and there's nothing throwaway; there's nothing incidental; no short pieces; no lo-fi pieces. There was a definite decision to cut the crap and make 10 equally well-constructed, well-realised and well-worked out pieces of music."

An accusation that has been levelled at dEUS in the past is that they do not care about commercial success, a notion which Craig strenuously denies:

"That's absolute nonsense and lies," he states. "We would like very much to be successful and to make a living out of this. I'd like to dispel that myth once and for all."

The new album should put those rumours to rest because it is, while not exactly "shiny happy chart music", an album that is quite accessible and should bring the band a wider audience. However, the band's hardcore following are undecided about The Ideal Crash.

"I've been looking on the Internet and watching the dialogue between dEUS fans, and there's already two clear factions: those who see it as a step in a more commercial direction, and those who defend it, saying that it's more polished but not more commercial, and not a cynical attempt by us to make a bit of money. Some people are arguing that it is just that, and you know what," he laughs, "they're right. We're sick of being out here on the commercial periphery. We want people to buy our records."

Ward cites Radiohead as "the one band who keep giving me hope. Their last album was, by anyone's standards, pretty difficult to get through, and yet they do really well."

Surely there has been a change of mentality in recent years, with more punters returning to live music and an organic, guitar-based sound? He agrees, but with reservations.

"A few years ago, you could turn on Top Of The Pops and there was a real mix of dance music and young guys with guitars. Mainstream pop was kind of converging. It was all crap but at least it was trying to be equally accepting of all forms.

"Now, it's like we've gone back to the '70s," he continues, "and there's a huge gulf between serious music, or albums bands, and the singles chart, which seems to be more puerile than ever before. When I look at the top 40, it's absolutely without merit anywhere. But I love the fact that people are willing to have the patience with albums now."

dEUS have always been as much about their live show as their recorded albums, though, and they are already in the midst of a gruelling three-month European tour, which takes them to the Olympia on Saturday, March 20th. Seeing as Ward maintains that their last Dublin show was among their best ever, this should be a gig not to be missed. The timing should also be just right, as the band will have shaken off any ring-rustiness by the time they hit these shores.

"My favourite part of being in a band is once you record the songs, they take on a new life when you play them live," enthuses Craig.

"You start rehearsing them and realise that you can't do them like on the record, so you work out new ways to do them. Once you've played them 10 times live, they sort of become second nature and I love when that happens."

*dEUS play the Olympia on March 20th, and the Limelight in Belfast on the 21st.