16 • UNCUT • OCTOBER 2019
“Touringis a bitlikebeing
anathlete youhaveto
doyourwarm ups and
your stretches”
theglitzandtheglamourthere’sa lotof
sadness,so“Laura”wasanodetoallof
thosefragile,beautifulsouls.AndI think
it hassucceeded– thepersonthatI wroteit
forlovedit,andthere’salwaystearswhen I
playit live,whichis reallyspecial.
Whatis Becklikeasa collaborator
anddoyouthinkyoumight work
togetheragain?
JeffCairns,viaemail
We’refriendsandweseeeachother
everynowandagain,sowhoknows?
Weactuallydidcollaboraterecently:
I sangwithhimontheJamesCorden
showforthe“Tarantula”songhedidfor
theRomasoundtrack.It wasbeautiful
- I wassingingwithBeckandFeist,
withGustavoDudamelconducting
theLAPhilharmonic.Beck’sgreatas
a collaborator,verysupportiveand
generous.He’sveryfriendlyandopenbut
thatdoesn’tseemtotakeawayfromhis
explorationintodarknessandweirdness
andalwaysbeingprogressive.I thinkthe
bestartistsarelikethat;byhavingone
footfirmlyinreality,it allowsthemtofly
andrevolutionisethemselvesandkeep
progressing.That’swhatI aspireto.
DidplayingthecharacterofThe
Bridefortheshowsofyourlastalbum
putyouoffmarriageforlife?
AnnaCerny,Brighton
Hahaha!No,TheBridewasa heightened,
melodramaticversionofa characterfrom
a story,shedidn’treallyhavemuchto
dowithmyideaofmarriageormyown
relationships.I mightweara reddressbut
I thinkmyownweddingwouldbemuch
moredowntoearth.AndI hopemygroom
doesn’tdieonthewaytothechurch...
Whatwasit likesupportingDepeche
Modeanddidyougetto hang out
withDaveGahan?
AriFrantz,viaemail
I didgettohangoutwithDaveandthe
band,andtheywereverysweet.It wasfun
to watch them do their thing every night.
Theywouldhave
heatersputonstage,
eveninreallyhot
countries,soDave
couldsweatand
takehisshirtoffand
hewouldn’tbecold!
WhichI thought
wasfantasticand
very’80s.Wedid
lotsofbigAmerican
datesinplacesI
probablywould
neverhaveplayed
otherwise.The
audienceweren’t
thatinterestedin
us,buttherewere
a fewpeoplewho
appreciatedit.
Whenis thenextSexwitch
albumcomingout?
JuliándelCampo,Vigo,Spain
I don’tknow,butI’dreallyliketodo
anotherone.Weonlyeverdidtwo
showsandit wasveryraucousand
liberatingtoperformthatstuff,
soI’dlovetodoit again.I enjoyed
theideaoftakingthesefolksongs
fromIranandAfricaandIndiaand
feedingthemthroughthemedium
ofpsychedelicrockmusicand
singingthemina waythatwasvery
free.I couldusethoseinteresting
MiddleEasternscalesbutit still
soundedlikeme.Thenewalbum
hasa songcalled“SoGood”thatwas
influenceda little bit by modern-day
Iranian pop.
Whatsportsareyougoodat?Did
youinherita competitivenature
fromyoursquash-playingfamily?
Paul,Northampton
Well,I’mnotverygoodatracquetsports,
unlikemydad.I probablycould’vebeen
a worldchampionif I’dtried!ButI dolove
swimming,andI’vealsoplayedsoftball
inAmerica.I didgeta competitivespirit
fromwatchingmydad– throughoutour
childhoodwehadpeoplecomingtostay,
youngkidshe’dbecoaching,andhe’d
getthemupatthecrackofdawntodrink
raweggsanddosit-ups!Watchinghim
motivatethemwasinspiring.Whenyou’re
touringit’sa bitlikebeinganathlete,
youhavetodoyourwarm-upsandyour
stretches– I takeit quiteseriously!I thinkI
gotthatfocusanddisciplinefrommydad.
Howmuchis yourmusicinfluenced
byyourPakistaniheritage?
UmerAli,Manchester
Obviouslymydad’sfromPakistanand
I’vespentlotsoftimethere.It’snotso
muchinthesoundofthemusic,butI
realisedthatmymemoriesofgoingto
Pakistanasa childhaveinfluencedthe
LostGirlsconcept.Allmycousinsrode
motorbikesandI usedtojumpontheback
andwe’dridedownthesedustyroadsinto
thetowntogetbottlesofPepsi– theywere
obsessedwithUSculturetoo,butthere
werealsopeoplewithpetmonkeyson
theirshouldersandsnakecharmers.Then
I realisedtheemblemfortheLostGirlswas
a handwitha snakeintheair,andtheyall
ridebikesandtheyliveinthedesert.SoI
thinkmovingtoa hotcountrystirredup
thosememoriesinmysubconscious.
WhatdoesBatForLashesmean?
GregFinnegan,Dublin
I’vebeenaskedmanytimesand
I neverhavea goodanswer.It
justsoundedlikethemusicto
me.“Bat”becauseI’vealways
beenobsessedwithHalloween
andnocturnalanimalsand
subconsciousrealms.And
“lashes”becauseit soundsquite
femininebutalsoa bitheavy
metal.Orsadomasochistic!
Haveyoustillgotthe
glitteryheadbands?
AnthonyK, viaemail
I’mnota hoarderbutI liketokeep
mementos,soI havea littlestashof
glitteryheadbandsthatmeandthe
girlsmadeallthoseyearsago.It’ll
benicetolookatthemwhenI’mold.I love
howexperimentalandfreewewereatthe
beginning;it wasa magical,creativetime.
Andquiteinnocent.Wehadnomoney,so
we’djustgodownthehaberdasheryand
buycheaprollsofsequinsandold-lady
broochesfromSnoopersParadise.Being
abletocreatea universeofmyown for the
firsttimewassomuchfun.
LostGirlsis outonSeptember 6 via
AWAL Recordings
AsTheBride,on
stageatUnion
Chapel,London,
May 16, 2016
WithTomDougall
ofToyasSexwitchat
XOYO,London,
September 29, 2015
Sportingoneof
herglittery,
homemade
headbands,
November 2006
GAELLE BERI/REDFERNS; MICK HUTSON/REDFERNS; CHRISTIE GOODWIN/REDFERNS
