The Sums… Digsy’s winner

In 1997, a young Rocksucker was introduced to the spikily melodic and downright grin-inducing pop blast of Merseyside band Smaller when two of their songs (namely “Wasted” and “Giz a Life”) were featured on the resultant album of the Hillsborough Justice Concert, a bill which also included Manic Street Preachers, The Lightning Seeds, Stereophonics, Space, The Beautiful South, Dodgy and The Bootleg Beatles. The band’s debut album Badly Badly was subsequently procured and it still sounds fantastic to this day, a sort of wryly humorous melting pot of Oasis, Half Man Half Biscuit and Primus. Intrigued? You should be.

Unbeknownst to this writer at the time, a second album had to be shelved when their record company Better went into administration, bringing about the demise of Smaller and their subsequent rebirth as The Sums. As if to push the boundaries of how much bad luck can befall one group’s recorded output, another album’s worth of recordings went missing for years until the master tapes, which had been presumed deleted, were eventually recovered by a studio engineer.

This album was belatedly issued last year as If Only…., and we hope that you don’t presuppose hyperbole on our part when we say that it is an absolute joy from start to finish, a tour de force of skewed yet heartfelt psych-pop that showcases not just the brilliantly original songwriting of front man Peter ‘Digsy’ Deary, but also his disarmingly stunning voice, which sits bolder, prouder and raspier in the mix than ever before. That he claims to have another two albums’ worth of material ready to go is cause for great excitement at Rocksucker HQ, and if there’s any justice left in the world then it should bring about a well overdue commercial breakthrough.

It would be a dereliction of journalistic duty not to mention that Digsy is indeed the very Digsy referred to by Noel Gallagher in the Oasis songs “Digsy’s Dinner” and “Be Here Now” (the latter including the line “your shit jokes remind me of Digsy’s”) – and that Noel played guitar on the Smaller single “Is” – but it would also be remiss of us not to fete the contributions to The Sums’ sound of guitarist Lee Watson, drummer Chris Campbell and bassist/backing vocalist Chris Mullin, the latter of whose musical partnership with Digsy dates back to the days of Smaller.

Rocksucker caught up with Digsy as he and his band – whose sound he marvellously describes as “country and northern meets Scouse grunge” – prepare to record their next album, which with any luck should see the light of day this summer. First, though, a taster of If Only…., and details of their not-to-be-missed 7th April show at Liverpool’s Zanzibar club…

How’s the recording going?

It’s sound. I’m just recording new songs in the bedroom at the moment, then I’ll take them to the band and we’ll get them properly arranged.

Can you tell us much about what the new album might sound like, or is it too early to say at this stage?

It’s a bit early to say I suppose, although all the songs are written. The songs on If Only…. are four or five years old; when we recorded them, we lost the master tapes and we couldn’t get them back for ages. We eventually got them back, but in the meantime I’d already written another two albums. So most of the songs written now are for the next two albums coming up. We want to get into the studio as soon as possible so we can get the new record out in the summer.

Losing master tapes must be fairly devastating…

Oh, it was just a nightmare. All that time and effort, and then it’s gone.

Where did they turn up?

They were actually in the studio; the engineer had misplaced them, and they thought they’d been taped over. It turned out they hadn’t been taped over, so we got them back eventually.

Do you know yet when the next record might be released? (Dozy Rocksucker says: evidently I hadn’t noticed that Digsy had effectively answered this just two answers back. To his credit, he didn’t bring this up.)

Well, it’s too early to say at the moment. We want to sell enough copies of If Only so we can make enough money to go back into the studio, because we don’t have a deal at the moment. It’s only a small distribution deal that we have, so all the recording has to be paid for by the band and the manager. So as soon as we get enough money, we’ll be right in there.

Is the material on If Only…. the material that would have made up the second Smaller album?

No, no.

Will that ever see the light of day?

No, I don’t think it will. What happened was that we went in to record the second Smaller album, and in that time our record company went into administration. They owed the recording studio £11,000, so they were keeping hold of the masters until they got that money. Then just by luck, our producer Mark Coyle was working with another band in the same studio a year or two later, and the manager of the studio said to him that we could have the album back, so he gave it back to me all on two-inch master tapes. I know it sounds funny, but we ended up using the master tapes to record If Only…. . We loaded the songs [from the second Smaller album] onto Pro Tools, and now no-one can find that! So all we have now of that second album is a rough monitor mix. It was called A Shoulder Full of Chips.

I couldn’t help but notice on your Facebook that you’re advertising for a new keyboardist. How’s the search going?

I’ve no idea, but I was talking to Chris about it. We’re talking about doing a gig at the Water Rats in London in March, but that’s too soon. I haven’t played London in a long time, so if I am then I want to take a proper show there; that’s why I thought it would be good to get a keyboard player, to recreate some of the noises on the album and stuff like that. Chris said that someone had got in touch on Facebook saying he’d love to have a go, but let’s wait and see.

I was introduced to Smaller by the CD of the 1997 Hillsborough Justice Concert at Anfield, which included your songs “Wasted” and “Giz a Life”. Do you consider playing that show to be a career highlight?

Oh yeah, it was. It was a really good day, like. Very emotional. We ended up playing it because we were going up to London on a promotional trip to play HMV Records on Oxford Street. We were just sitting on the train and we got talking to this fella and this woman who it turned out ran the Hillsborough Disaster support group. It was them who brought up the idea of getting a concert together; our manager got in touch with them, they put me in touch with others, so it was them that really set the ball rolling for it, and that’s how we came to be on the bill.

Whose idea was it to have a child reciting incorrect sums at the end of “The Biscuit Tin”?

(Laughs) That child has just given me a granddaughter! It was just because of the chorus on it: “And the teacher said, ‘You’re all bad at sums!’” When I was at school, we wouldn’t get any confidence-building comments, we’d just get told that we were stupid; it was basically a song about that, so we had the idea of getting her to read the wrong sums out at the end. It’s a good link from Smaller into The Sums, so when we come onstage we have “The Biscuit Tin” playing through the PA.

I just found Ian McNabb’s splendid review of If Only…. …

It’s good, innit?

We spoke to him recently, as it happens. Have you heard any of his new stuff yet?

I haven’t, but I’ve just recorded with him. A mutual friend of ours is doing this charity single for Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, and he’s got me, Ian Prowse, Ian McNabb, a guy called Barry Sutton who used to be in The La’s, loads of Liverpool musicians, and I think Shaun Ryder’s doing something on the chorus. It’s got all kinds of people on it, and we started recording it a couple of weeks back.

Are there any obscure and/or up-and-coming artists that you’d like to recommend or give a shout-out to?

Yeah, there’s a band who supported us at the Zanzibar called The Fallows; I thought they were really good. And there’s a band I was listening to the other day called Ratty Little Fingers. They’re pretty odd; they’ve got a tea chest bass like they used in the ‘60s, and there’s a fellow who plays a melodeon and a banjo. Really obscure! They’re like punk-folk or something, really different but really good songs, like.

Finally, if you were forced to spend the rest of your days in solitary confinement, but were allowed to bring the entire works of five different artists along to tide you over, whose would you choose?

Tom Waits…Sam Cooke…Super Furry Animals…

Great shout with the Super Furries. They’d make Rocksucker’s top five as well.

Oh yeah, that’s what you call a pop group. I aspire to be something like Super Furry Animals. They’re a fucking amazing band. (Getting back to the question at hand) The Beatles, obviously…and it’s got to be Marvin Gaye…no, Aretha Franklin!

Digsy, thank you.

It’s a pleasure, mate.

Talking Liverpool With… The Sums

The Sums… More than their parts 

Odd-pop marvels The Sums return to preview new material with a hometown gig at Liverpool’s The Zanibar venue on Saturday 7th April, so Football Burp caught up with the band’s guitarist Lee Watson for a hearty natter about his beloved Reds, who just so happen to be taking on Cardiff City in the Carling Cup final this weekend…

First off, how’s the recording going?

Not bad, actually. We’re going to go in tonight – we’ve got these two new songs that we’re really happy with, and we’re going to do some guitars and vocals on it, see what they sound like. We’re rehearsing tomorrow for the gig in April, and we want to try and get three new songs in the set.

Did you see the game against Brighton last weekend?

Yeah, yeah.

Do you like the look of Andy Carroll at the moment?

Yeah, he played really well against Brighton. It’s funny, ‘cause he was getting rugby-tackled by Romain Vincelot, whose brother plays for the Toulouse rugby team, I believe!

Stewart Downing finally got his assist, didn’t he?

Yeah, but that had been coming for quite a few games, to be honest with you. He played well the other day, but his final ball and delivery are going wayward at the moment.

It’s strange – his delivery from out wide always seemed like such a strength of his game in the past.

Exactly, yeah.

Do you see anything in Charlie Adam or Jordan Henderson that impresses you?

Adam is way too slow for my liking. His range of passing’s really good, but he’s too slow. Henderson’s a work in progress, I think – I know he’s got the ability, but it seems like it’s hard for some players to settle in after coming to a big club like Liverpool. I’m really made up that Bellamy’s come back, though.

Can you see any way of accommodating Carroll, Bellamy and Luis Suarez all in the same starting line-up?

That’s the big debate, that. I’m sure there is a way. Bellamy’s the fastest player we’ve got, and I really think we do need pace.

Overall, are you happy with the direction the club’s going in under Kenny Dalglish?

Definitely, although the Swansea game at Anfield was the worst I’ve seen Liverpool in any match I’ve ever seen. It was just terrible.

Will you be going to the League Cup final next weekend?

No, no. I think we’re going to be doing something this weekend, actually – probably working on these songs again. I’ll watch it on the telly though.

Do you think Lucas has been as big a miss as people feared he would be?

I’ve never really liked him, to be honest. I’ve never seen a player take so long to settle in. Sometimes he’s good – I like his tackling in midfield and stuff like that – but it’s only in fits and starts, for me. I don’t think we’ve really missed him.

Is that a position that needs upgrading, then? Perhaps with someone already at the club?

Yeah, I don’t know what the money situation is, but I think they should be looking towards some of the young players coming through.

Do you like the look of Jay Spearing?

I do like him a lot. He’s only small, isn’t he? But he’s come up against some brilliant players and held his own against them.

Martin Kelly’s looked good at points.

Yeah, he’s a good player.

It’s such a thorny and divisive issue, but what was your stance on the whole Suarez-Evra palaver?

I just wish it hadn’t happened. I don’t think the players should be made to shake hands anyway, but the fact is he said he would shake Evra’s hand. I felt a lot better when he and Kenny Dalglish made official apologies the next day. The whole thing was just horrible. I hate anything like that.

As great a player as he no doubt is, do you worry that Suarez appears to be prone to pushing the self-destruct button?

Yeah, you can see that in him, can’t you? I’d be the first to say it. He’s a brilliant player, there’s no doubt about that, but with that comes another side to him and I don’t know how long that can go on for. Hopefully he’s learnt his lesson now.

It is a tad alarming though that on his first game back from suspension he tried to kick Scott Parker in half.

I saw that, yeah (laughs). I couldn’t believe it.

Do you remember the first match you ever went to?

Yeah, it was against Ipswich Town at Anfield in 1978. I went with my dad and we beat them, although I can’t remember what the score was. We were in the Kemlyn Road stand. In those days, the opposition team would barely touch the ball – everyone used to go because they knew that whoever we were playing would get torn to pieces. So as good as they were at the time, Ipswich hardly touched the ball. Paul Mariner was dangerous for them in that game, I’ve always remembered. I think he was playing for England at the time. I just remember the excitement – I couldn’t concentrate all day at school ‘cause I knew I was going to my first match that night. (Laughs)

You’ve already effectively nominated Swansea as the worst game you’ve ever been to. How about the best?

I tell you what made an impression on me – and I was only young at the time – was when we beat Dynamo Dresden 5-1 in 1978 or ’79. They scored before half-time and then we just annihilated them. I was sitting close to the goal that we scored all our goals in, so I got to see them all clearly. It was all standing in those days, so that just seemed like the most amazing thing ever. I’ll never forget that.

Finally, if you had to select a five-a-side team out of all the Liverpool players you’ve seen in your time as a fan, who would you go for?

Reina, Gerrard, Dalglish, Alonso and Souness.

Lee, thank you.

If Only, the brilliant debut album by The Sums, is available now from Probe Records (Liverpool) and from Townsend Records, ITunes, Amazon. Click here to order it online. For more information and a list of live dates, please visit thesums.net or the band’s Facebook page.

The Sums headline there first Liverpool show of 2012.. showcasing old and new songs

Here it is folks The Sums return with their first gig of the year, which promises to be another one to remember, The Sums are on top form at the moment and we are told they will be playing some brand new songs in the set list.

Saturday 7th April 2012 – Liverpool; Zanzibar 7.30 till late
THE SUMS

THE STERLINGS

PROFESSOR YAFFLE

THE DECEPTION

DJ ANDY CARROLL ( ibiza rocks set )

Tickets £6.00 or £7.00 otd

click on the link below to buy tickets

http://www.ticketline.co.uk/tickets/13266829/the-sums/liverpool-the-zanzibar-club/2012-04-07

The Sums debut album ” If Only ” out now and available from

Probe Records (Liverpool)  and from Townsend Records, ITunes, Amazon.

click on the link below

http://www.townsend-records.co.uk/artist.php?artist=The+Sums&pType=1

Please join the mailing list on the website for all the info first.

Read more on “Mull’s Moan’s Part 1- xFuctor” »