The Brilliant Corners hailed from Bristol & lasted a decade, 1983-93, the pillar to post members being Davey Woodward (singer/guitarist/writer), Chris Galvin (bass) & Bob Morris (drums). Various members helped complete the line-up along the way, most notably being Winston Forbes (guitar) who was there at the start & Dan Pacini (trumpet). The Brilliant Corners initial sound was something-abilly but with so many prefixes given there isn’t the space to list them here.
01. The Brilliant Corners lasted an impressive decade, with a strong core membership. What would you say kept the core together so well?
We were always a proper gang, when we were not rehearsing we were meeting up to go to gigs, the pub, and to meet girls. What also helped was that I had gone to school with Chris and Dan and Bob had gone to school with Winston. Long standing friendships.
02. You recently reformed to play at the ‘Scared to get Happy’ gig at 229 The Venue, London. How did it go? Did you spot the old faithful in the audience? Did you make any converts?
The gig was great, quite emotional really. Seeing people mouthing the lyrics with big smiles on their faces was really something. There was a real connection with the audience like it was a special moment. We must have made some converts as there would have been a lot of people at the gig who had never seen us play. But yeah I did see a couple of people from way back.
03. What is your opinion of the current pop scene? What aspect of it are you excited by? What aspect do you dislike?
Theres a huge amount of really good music around, right across the spectrum. I love the way new stuff can remind me of the many things I have heard before and it can still be really exciting. I still go out and buy a record and play it to death for weeks. Groups like Foxygen or Teleman are joyful. Its also great that my kids say things like ‘ Hey dad you know that band you used to bore us with 10 years ago. They are number one! ( Daftpunk)’
04. What were your thoughts on the issue of ‘Heart on your Sleeve’? Did you feel it summed the band up sufficiently, captured the band’s live sound?
In a lot of respects for an ‘indie’ band we were quite eclectic and eclecticism can be a real problem when you are trying to get across a feel and mood of a band over a whole album. I think the album manages this better than any of the other comps. Also there was a lot of stuff I had completely forgotten about so to my ears I listened to it with a lot of freshness and excitement. You can see a lot of thought went into putting it together. I’m very happy with it.
05. How do you feel about new technology? Do you like to keep up with the latest kit, or do you prefer your old, tested equipment? What are your reasons?
Blimey tech question! For me its a bit of a mixture of old and new. You cannot substitute an old valve amp, a classic guitar. or analogue synth. No technology will give you that but what digital recording can give you is the ability to capture that moment, that magic when you create something for the first time. The longer I have been recording the more I realise it is the first take that is usually the best, even if there are mistakes in it, the first 1 or 2 takes captures the magic. Long days in expensive studios with engineers who spend more time on x box than attending to your recordings is not for me. I really like the idea of recording an album under the stairs.
06. How did you arrive at your sound? How much were you affected by your peers and how much by those you admired?
It really was through devouring every little bit of music I listened to and being naive enough to wear those influences on ones sleeve. There was also the struggle between what really is rock n roll? When does loud guitars and leather jackets become predictable and not really rock n roll? Isn’t a simple chord played with some gusto and heartfelt words the real rock n roll? Also if you think about it too much it becomes contrived and that really is not rock n roll. So guitars should sound a bit raw, unpredictable and just when that gets predictable I want the sounds to be sweet, lush and melodic. Then one should ask the question why even be rock n roll be pop! But what is pop music? Define pop music ? Throwaway catchy, trivial, daft, popular! Yes but, but, but. This is what was going on and is still going on.
In many ways my peers were what ever I was listening too at the time and a lot of that was old stuff like the Velvets and Dylan. I guess the biggest contemporary influence on us that endured were Postcard Records, you can hear that influence on lots of the songs over the bands lifetime.
07. Which musicians/bands/singers did you admire when you were first playing? Why? How far do you feel they influenced you?
This could be a very long list, mmm lets see if I can do this in chronological order; In the early days, The Clash, Joy Division, Echo and The Bunnymen, The Jam, Orange Juice, Josef K, The Cramps, The Go Betweens. They looked great, the words were interesting, some of the sounds were revolutionary, great tunes, great hairstyles, there was a link to the old stuff too which I liked.
08. How do you feel The Brilliant Corners would fit into the current pop scene? Do you feel you have any younger kindred spirits? Who are they?
Well the pop scene of KISS FM not very well at all. 6 Music we would slot in quite easily. We probably do have some kindred spirits but I would not like to ruin their careers by making comparisons with us!
09. What’s your world like? Books? Films? TV shows? Pastimes? Why are they important to you?
When I was young I devoured it all. Russian classics, contempory Brits, Modern American literature, painters too, it was all there , up to the brim. Sad to say that all those pastimes are no longer available to me. All my kids take up my time, so apart from my continuing love affair with music, there is only football and my trusty bicycle.
10. Who would you say has inspired you the most, and why?
Well apart from all those people in bands it would be writers and artists I came upon in my early teens and twenties. Oh and the ever expanding Cosmos.
11. Who do you wish had never been born, and what do you wish had never been invented? Why?
Any figure who has managed to get people to hate and kill. I wish the Alphabet was never invented. I still cant get the alphabet and so many things are ordered alphabetically I just wish there was another way. I once worked in a record shop for a day, could I find anything? I was hopeless. It was very embarrassing.
12. Do you feel you’d like to reform on a permanent/semi-permanent basis? How would that work?
The plan is for us to do reunion gigs between June 2013 to June 2014. So we will be available for the Pyramid Stage as our final gig. Actually a small stage near the cider tent will suffice.
13. What does the future hold for The Brilliant Corners?
A few dates here and there , maybe a few more people discovering or rediscovering us. Having a damn good time.
14. Who is the best Footballer of all time?
That’s easy George Best.
Web Links:
thebrilliantcorners.co.uk
wearitwellrecords.co.uk/brilliant-corners
facebook.com/pages/The-Brilliant-Corners
Tour Dates:
Ripley,
Indie Tracks – 27/07/13,
Berlin, Pop Fest – 05/10/13
Bristol, The Exchange – 02/11/13
Davey Woodward Solo gig, Bristol, The Exchange – 18/08/13
The Experimental Pop Band, Bristol, The Exchange – 07/09/13
Link to buy the current Releases :
All releases at Wear it Well Records and Cherry Red Records
