![]() ![]() It was important for me to write lyrics about things that I felt I knew about and were relevant to me and us as a band. How do you think that the rural landscape of Worcestershire influenced your music? From the still-life of the cover to the sound, it’s a more bucolic album. About the second record of the band, Virus Meadow, the band has said that “they have become aware of how the environment shapes people”. I’m speaking personally, of course, but as a band our musical tastes and discoveries were pretty much in line. In that period of our development, we were discovering types of music that were new to us as well as what was current – buying old jazz albums, Miles Davis, Pharoah Saunders, John and Alice Coltrane… film soundtracks by Morricone, Bernard Herrmann, John Barry – The Doors, The Velvet Underground – when you’re in your early 20s there is a hell of a lot to discover… classical music too, I didn’t expect to like classical music – I think I thought it was for old people but there were times when it was all I wanted to hear. Our influence from other bands came more in a way where we avoided doing what they were doing rather than doing things in a similar way. Which bands influenced you during this period? The first album of the band is the most “post-punk” but the rage starts fading with the following records, and is replaced by some romanticism. We’ve been in touch with Laurence because we’re about to re-issue our 1st album And Also The Trees which he produced as you said. Robert invited us to perform at his curation of the ‘Meltdown’ festival in 2018. We toured with them after because they liked us and our energy… and I reckon Robert saw something of himself in Justin. ![]() Then, remarkably our 4th was supporting The Cure, that was in 1980. Yes, our first 3 gigs were in the village and a nearby market town. Everything started when the first demo was sent to them, right? Are you still in touch with Robert Smith and/or Lol Tolhurst? And Also The Trees was their support act in 1981, the band’s second demo was co-produced by Robert Smith and the first record by Lol Tolhurst. Really soon the band started a certain relation with The Cure. We were naive, but had a strong creative will and thought that being in a band was just about the best thing imaginable. We made our own equipment out of salvaged wood and speakers our brother-in-law found for us in old electrical shops. Then we created as we learned and learned as we created. Justin sowed the seed when he bought a second-hand guitar and started teaching himself to play it. ![]() We got very into the punk scene and although none of us could play an instrument the fearless spirit of punk gave us the idea of forming a band. What set us a bit apart was our passion for music. I looked even more like a girl than Justin but I was determined to be as masculine and tough as any of the other lads – which got me into more trouble than it was worth. Nick’s brother was Graham and we became friends. We’d come from Birmingham and the village was still a quiet rural place at the time. Nick thought Justin was an American girl when he came to the school for the first time because he had long hair and said ‘Hi’ which was something pretty new to the village in 1971. We were childhood friends, my brother Justin met Nick Havas at primary school. Everything started with two pairs of brothers, right? How did you meet? How was the beginning of the eighties in Worcestershire? The first name of the band was Control, wasn’t it? We have talked with Simon Huw Jones, singer of the band about his career and his concert at the W-Fest, where the band will play on Sunday 24th of May. Forty years later, those trees have grown up and now they cast a shadow over lovers of melancholy melodies. Just with their name, And Also The Trees announced that post-punk could also smell like fields, ponds and barns. ![]()
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