Despite being something of a cult (read: fairly obscure) legend and someone who initially made his name more than 30 years ago, Vic Godard is still a familiar face, both around Scotland, and as part of the UK music scene in general.
With his band, Subway Sect, and solo, he’s recorded intermittently since the late 70s, and similarly made regular visits north of the border over that time, since the band supported the Clash on the White Riot tour at the Apollo. Edwyn Collins was at that show, and the two were reunited with at a Glasgow Green appearance in the 90s, with the favour repaid as Godard provided backing vocals on Edwyn’s big hit ‘A Girl Like You’.
This time out, it’s a tour of sorts, as they take in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee, which seems like a big deal, but given his regular appearancs north of the border, isn’t really. “I did lots of gigs here in the late seventies and early eighties,” he says. “Then we met Alan from Sounds in the Suburbs and the gigs became a regular thing.”
But there are plenty more Scottish connections, including an appearance on a Creeping Bent single.and Godard even worked with Irvine Welsh, a colaboration on ‘Blackpool’, a musical in the early 00s. Which should come as no surprise really given the diversity of musical styles that Godard has dipped his toe into over the years. However, he’s happy to take things as they come.
“I’d like to do a musical but I don’t really look for future projects as I am always doing the one I’m on at that moment,” he says.
For someone so prolific and versatile it does seem a crime that for many, he’s remembered as the ‘singing postman’ – but punk rockers have to eat, and yes, Godard did continue musical work in tandem with a career with the Post Office. “I did have a hiatus when I joined the post in 86,” he admits, “but got back into it fully through my hooking up with a postman-driver by the name of the Wizard. Since then I have been writing and recording songs consistently, originally on cassette and then went digital in 2001 – mini-disc. I still dip into the analogue stuff for a lot of what we do live and on record.”
Nowadays, it seems that you can’t go out of a night without some 70s or 80s act strutting their stuff – I’ve caught acts as diverse as Wire, 999, and the Psychedelic Furs in the past few months, with varying levels of enjoyment. However, Godard is less keen on this aspect of the industry, thanks to personal experience.
“We don’t do nostalgia shows, although we did one once – for the money – in Blackpool and it was such a dispiriting feeling we decided against doing it again within moments of our entry into the building, and have so far stuck to our guns.” However, he currently trades under the Subway Sect name. “The name is something I am reluctant to give up as someone else would soon nab it,” he points out. But given the diversity of tthe band’s output over the years, when they famously went from rockabilly and then to Rat Pack/swing at a time when punk was on the wane – there’s no guarantee as to what they may get under the Subway Sect banner anyway. Indeed, 2002’s Sansend, released under the Subway Sect banner – i.e. without the ‘Vic Godard and…’ prefix – was a collections of new songs driven by samples and beats. “The Sect sound is always mutating but we do plan to do the crooner stuff again when we’re working the liners, but not for a few years,” he jokes (well, I assume…). He does have a soft spot for the ballads, however, declaring his favourite style – from a singer’s viewpoint – as “anything jazzy,” adding: “as a writer, anything a group can learn quickly.”
This is an understandable viewpoint – Godard, as songwriter, is the only constant in the band since its inception over 30 years ago. The current line up includes Kevin Younger (Armitage Shanks) on guitar and keyboard, Mark Braby (Orchestra Pit) on drums (originally the bassist until Gary Ainge, once of Felt, had to retire with back problems) and Dan Ashkenazy (Bitter Springs) on bass. An attempt to get the band’s second drummer, Generation X’s Mark Laff back in to the fold, foundered. However, it’s all for the best it seems. “They are a lot better than the old lot but in the old days we didn’t need to be good because we rehearsed so much,” he confesses, “whereas an hour or two a week is our usual rate now.”
Coming out of the 70s and of course being part of that White Riot tour, Godard is still fired-up politically as well as musically. Indeed, when I remark that “We’re not fighting Thatcher any more” his response is a good-natured but firm “I wouldn’t be so cocky if I were you”. And for someone who has spent a lot of time in Scotland over the years maybe he knows what he’s talking about. “There is obviously a big line between us but down here we are experiencing exactly another Thatcher – they’ll reach you once they’ve totally obliterated us.”
On that rather chilling note, I switch tack to the music. What can we expect both at this week’s show, and in the future?
“We are currently trying to get the next LP rehearsed – it’s called 1979 NOW and is an album like 1978 NOW (an infamous ‘lost’ album) but Tamla/soully rather than punky. We are playing a couple in the set like ‘Stop That Girl’ and ‘The Devil’s in League With You’.
“For now there’s the new album We Come As Aliens – on CD on Overground and vinyl on my own GNU inc label – it’s new material and we’re doing most of it in the live set – vinyl/cd will be available at the gigs,as well as t shirts, mugs, postcards, badges…”
Something of a plug for the shows and releases there then. But given the years of producing top quality music, it’s well-deserved.
The band play Glasgow Accies Club (Sounds in the Suburbs) on March 11th, and at Edinburgh’s Citrus Club the following night. Then, it’s to Dundee for a set at Dexters on Sunday 13th, with Spectorbullets and Edinburgh School For The Deaf.