{"id":11645,"date":"2022-11-12T13:45:03","date_gmt":"2022-11-12T04:45:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.museonmuse.jp\/?p=11645"},"modified":"2022-11-12T14:02:04","modified_gmt":"2022-11-12T05:02:04","slug":"vol-130-jamie-west-oram-november-2022-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.museonmuse.jp\/?p=11645","title":{"rendered":"Vol.130 Jamie West-Oram \/ November 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jamie West-Oram <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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\nPhoto by C. Jansen<\/span><\/p>\n

There is no need to explain how big the British New Wave Rock movement was. The Fixx was a part of the movement but they had an original style and unique sounds therefore which led cult followers.
\nThe catchy and melancholy vocal of Cy Curnin emphasizes the track produced by Jamie West-Oram. Cy reminds us The Edge from U2 and Andy Summers of the Police. The guitar driven production of The Fixx has had followers not only core intellectual people, but also all music lovers. Their prominent album \u201cReach the Beach\u201d reached number 8 on Billboard album chart, and the album’s 1st single “One Thing Leads to Another” reached #4 on Billboard Hot 100. They have released the brand new album \u201cEvery Five Seconds\u201d which consists of the iconic vocal by Cy, diverse guitar sounds by Jamie and the aesthetic deep musical space made the album all killer, no filler. They demonstrated how creative and evolving they still are.
\nWe had a chat with Jamie West-Oram about his musical background, how he built his signature style, how he met The Fixx, and the brand new piece \u201cEvery Five Seconds\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Interview \/ Text\u00a0 Mamoru Moriyama
\nTranslation\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Hiroshi Takakura<\/p>\n

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\nPhoto by C. Jansen<\/span><\/p>\n

Muse On Muse : You played an important role in the big UK New Wave Rock movement in 80s with your unique
\nstyle and sound as a guitarist of THE FIXX. Please tell us about your musical background. What
\nmade you to start playing guitar?<\/span>
\nJamie West-Oram : I was the youngest of 4 in a lively household with lots of instruments and records played all day. My father played songs from the \u2018Great American Songbook\u2019 on the piano and loved chords. When he found a chord
\nthat he liked he would stay on it for ages, playing sweeping arpeggios and embellishments freeform. His
\nenthusiasm was infectious. He had a huge black acoustic steel-string guitar that I would put flat on the floor and try to play when I was very small. The first tune I tried – by ear – was Leadbelly\u2019s \u2018Where Did You Sleep Last Night?\u2019. He also had a banjolele and when I was 9 he taught me some chords. I discovered more by myself and became
\nunstoppable. Hooked. It was an instrument that he had been given when he was 9. I still have it. A bit later
\nmy brother Stephen bought a Spanish guitar and became proficient on classical pieces by T\u00e1rrega, Villa-Lobos and Sor as well as Bach. I played his guitar a lot and learned \u2018Hey Joe\u2019 and started improvising.<\/p>\n

MM : Which musicians or guitarists were your influences?<\/span>
\nJW : Back to my older brother and sisters\u2026they would buy the latest pop records: Beatles, Stones, Kinks,
\nYardbirds, Bob Dylan\u2026 One day my brother, Stephen, told me about a loud song with a stammering singer
\nand said: \u2018I\u2019m going to buy it!\u2019. He did. It was of course \u2018My Generation\u2019 by The Who. I was 11. I think it
\nwas Pete Townshend\u2019s playing as well as the controlled chaos of the track that turned me into a guitar player.
\nOthers influences: Keith Richards, Jeff Beck, Mick Ronson, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Nolen, Tom Verlaine,
\nDavid Byrne, Neil Young\u2026<\/p>\n

MM : You have your signature sound which is colorful and dreamy. Your solid and versatile rhythm guitar is a key of THE FIXX music. How did you build your originality?<\/span>
\nJW : When I first joined The Fixx I played a \u201955 Gibson Les Paul Junior straight into a Marshall – everything on
\n11. The others liked my playing but kept encouraging me to go for cleaner sounds which I did, reluctantly at
\nfirst but I quickly saw the sense of it. I also started experimenting with smaller chords and effects pedals and
\nthis fit better with what Rupert (Greenall, our keyboardist) was doing at the time. Rupert Hine, our producer,
\nalso encouraged this approach. I discovered the joy of experimentation and it was largely due to my
\nbandmates along with Rupert Hine and Stephen Tayler, his brilliant engineer, that I found my own sonic
\nidentity. <\/p>\n

MM : You were in Phillip Rambow’s band before you join THE FIXX. Please tell us about the band and that time. <\/span>
\nJW : Phillip Rambow: a strong singer and songwriter who could have made it big. Kind of Van Morrison on
\namphetamines and acid. (This describes the music rather than his lifestyle!) He had Blair Cunningham on
\ndrums and Dave Cochran on bass, both from Memphis Tennessee. We were based in London and nobody
\never understood what these 2 were saying because of the Tennessee accents. They were wild characters – out
\nof control but hilarious! Always in trouble, but brilliant players and very nice guys.
\nThe guitarist before me was none other than Mick Ronson. That was a big pair of shoes to fill. <\/p>\n

MM : Then you became a member of THE FIXX. Please tell us how you joined the band. <\/span>
\nJW : This was in May 1980. They were called The Portraits at that time and were trying to reinvent themselves
\nfrom power pop to something far more edgy and experimental. They advertised in \u201cSounds\u201d music paper. I bought the previous week\u2019s edition by mistake but spotted their ad. I called them up and spoke to Charlie who was the bassist back then. He told me they\u2019d auditioned 80 guitarists but had not found the right one. They asked me along. I liked them and they liked me. I didn\u2019t really want to be in a band but was looking for people to write with, so I decided to join. I liked their resourcefulness and \u2018can do\u2019 attitude. We rehearsed in a derelict factory in Vauxhall, London. Our power came from a generator that we took turns filling with petrol. The first time I filled it half the petrol spilled down my leg and soaked my jeans. For some reason they started throwing lit matches around and I burst into flames. Adam shouted: \u2018Lie down!\u2019. I did and they smothered the fire with cushions from the bass drum
\nwhich probably saved my life.
\nThe following week they discovered the city mains electricity cables down there under the pavement. I
\nwasn\u2019t there but apparently Adam hammered nails into the cables with the others holding his legs in case he
\ngot electrocuted. He tapped into the mains that way and we had a permanent electricity supply.
\nWe would meet there at 10 o\u2019clock sharp every day, write and rehearse solid and often play a club in the
\nevening. <\/p>\n

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\nPhoto by C. Jansen<\/span><\/p>\n

MM : : 80s was the time of MTV and the British New Wave Rock was dominating the world. THE FIXX of course was the part of the movement. Please tell us about that time.<\/span>
\nJW : Punk had torn everything apart in a great way. I\u2019d just left music college feeling very clever only to find that
\nall you need is 3 basic chords and a lot of attitude.
\nInevitably, a lot of people jumped on that bandwagon and soon something new was needed. Punk had exploded and left a big crater. It was time to fill it. John Lydon soon left The Sex Pistols and started Public Image Ltd. A typically smart move for him. Other post-punk acts in the U.K. such as Magazine, Wire, Cabaret Voltaire and Joy Division still had a raw energy but were experimenting.
\nWe did not really feel part of a movement but we were certainly inspired by those acts and just kept writing,
\ngigging wherever we could and grabbing opportunities as they came along. Working with Rupert Hine and
\nStephen Tayler was a turning point. Rupert Hine and his girlfriend Jeannette Obstoj offered to produce and
\ndirect videos for us. MTV had started up and were desperate for videos. \u2018Stand Or Fall\u2019 went into heavy
\nrotation. This got us noticed in the USA. We toured the American clubs in a van in late 1982 for a month
\nwhile we were halfway through recording \u2018Reach The Beach\u2019.
\nIn 1983 Reach The Beach came out. We opened up for The Police on their Synchronicity tour. Huge
\nstadiums. This broke the band in America. We saw ourselves as serious socio-political commentators but
\nsurprisingly we picked up a pop following in addition to our arty intellectual one. It was a great year for us.<\/p>\n

MM : What is your perspective about current music scene?<\/span>
\nJW : I like The Sleaford Mods because they are straight-ahead and exciting, and they comment incisively on
\nsocial and political problems. Hard to think of many other current acts that I like.
\nI don\u2019t understand the appeal of grown men breaking into falsetto and sounding as though they are crying. I
\ndon\u2019t understand the appeal of women showing off their complicated vocal expertise and hitting painfully
\nhigh notes. I prefer the aggressive side which often involves guitars in low tunings and singers screaming
\nand sounding as though they are vomiting. But I wouldn\u2019t necessarily buy that either.
\nProduction quality is very high these days, but armonic experimentation seems non-existent.
\nGrime is now the music of the street as punk was back then. Totally different of course. I appreciate it but
\ncan\u2019t relate to it; it\u2019s for a new generation, not mine. Mind you, The Sleaford Mods combine the intelligent
\nworking class punk attitude and message with Grime. My parents\u2019 generation didn\u2019t like my music and that
\nmade us like it even more. I don\u2019t care for most modern music because to me it sounds a bit lame. Maybe
\nI\u2019m missing something. Surely we need something exciting and real. Or surreal.
\nStreaming hasn\u2019t been great for most musicians. Record companies may have done well from it, but most
\nmusicians make virtually nothing. Many good musicians have given up and left it to those driven by fame
\nrather than fortune. This has lowered the overall quality. <\/p>\n

MM : Now please tell us about the brand new album of THE FIXX \u201cEvery Five Seconds\u201d. Your guitar sounds and keyboards by Rupert Greenall are very artistic and create a deep musical world.
\nWhat was the goal or concept of this album? <\/span>
\nJW : We did not start out with a specific goal apart from wanting to be together, in person, in a rehearsal room, to start the writing process and most of the songs began that way. We let things evolve naturally but were all
\nvery critical of each other\u2019s playing and paid forensic attention to arrangements and structures because we
\nknew that these were amazing songs that deserved maximum care and attention. Thanks for the compliments
\non the guitar and keyboard sounds. As always, we were constantly experimenting. Some of the sounds typify
\nwhat we are already known for but mostly we were looking to try new things and didn\u2019t care whether or not
\nit sounded \u2018Fixxy\u2019. <\/p>\n

MM : The info says all songs were written by all band members. Please tell us about writing process in detail and how you share roles. <\/span>
\nJW : Cy wrote most of the lyrics. He is very prolific. He would often come in with some lines and we would all
\ndive in and rearrange frantically. Or sometimes one of us would present a riff or chord sequence and he
\nwould look through his archives and go: \u2018I\u2019ve got something that fits\u2019. For instance, \u2018Suspended in Make-Believe\u2019 was not started in rehearsals. I came up with the chord sequence and sent it to Cy who added his
\nvocal part. We then arranged it as a band in a studio as minimally as possible. It\u2019s a brilliant piece. Unique
\nand haunting. Nearly all the songs were written before the pandemic but many of them including
\n\u2018Suspended in Make Believe\u2019 and \u2018Wake Up\u2019 could have been written about that subject. Eerie\u2026
\nI wrote \u2018Woman of Flesh and Blood\u2019 including most of the lyrics. I arrived at rehearsals and said to the band:
\n\u2018I\u2019d like to play you a demo of a song I\u2019ve written\u2019. They said: \u2018Sing it live instead\u2019. So I did. They all liked
\nit and helped rearrange it. Cy added some lyrics in the verse B sections. I\u2019d imagined Cy would end up
\nsinging all of it but they persuaded me to sing the verses and on the choruses Cy and I trade lines. He sings
\nthe manic verse B sections. It is a love song to my crazy wife, Bibi! It goes between manic paranoia and
\nblissful dreaminess. It came out well. <\/p>\n

MM : Your signature clean and sharp rhythm guitar can be heard on tunes like \u201cA Life Survived” and “Closer”, and it emphasizes the whole track.<\/span>
\nJW : \u2018A Life Survived\u2019 was recorded much later, along with \u2018Lighthouse\u2019. I believe that it is saying: \u2018Pull your
\nfinger out and make the most of this short life and don\u2019t waste it!\u2019 but in a much more poetic way of course.
\nI added the clean and sharp chords quite late in the recording process.
\nOn the other hand my rhythm part in \u2018Closer\u2019 appeared on day one and was always integral. I agree that
\nthese parts are typical of what I\u2019m known for. The vocal part is fast and relentless and to me it mocks
\nmankind\u2019s apathy in the face of urgent issues. Almost a rap. Written early on but just as relevant now as it
\nwas when written. <\/p>\n

MM : Take What You Want\u201d has a music video released. Cy Curnin’s vocal and dreamy sounds merged together to THE FIXX music.<\/span>
\nJW : Dreamy verses and powerful choruses. It drives itself and the challenge was to enhance what was already
\nthere from the start. It\u2019s probably the most \u2018pop\u2019 of the whole album but it\u2019s a serious song. The arrangement
\ntricks that we are proud of include the backing vocals and the way the final chorus was approached
\nharmonically. There is a mainly instrumental 4 bars with no resolve followed by a round of chorus that
\nresolves to an unexpected Eb chord adding a lot of energy. Then follows a double chorus with no resolve
\n(building tension) and a final round again resolving to the Eb and staying on it for 7 bars. <\/p>\n

MM : Mysterious guitar leads the thrilling structure of \u201cWake Up\u201d. <\/span>
\nJW : As mentioned, this could have been written about the pandemic (in my mind) but was actually written before.
\nIt comes across as being about people getting into a routine or rut and being afraid to break out. The verses
\nare creepy and wistful. The choruses are celebratory and exciting. I was going for a bit of a Duane Eddy
\ntwang in the verses. It doesn\u2019t really sound like him but I think it creates a dizzy feeling of vertigo and
\nworks OK. The choruses obviously needed something more powerful but instead of power chords I went for
\na skinny jangly part in a high register. The \u2018seasick\u2019 effect is still there. <\/p>\n

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\nPhoto by C. Jansen<\/span><\/p>\n

MM : Layered rhythm guitar on “LONELY AS A LIGHTHOUSE” contribute to the deep musical
\nspace. Also the guitar melody is compact yet touching.<\/span>
\nJW : \u2018Lighthouse\u2019 was written years ago. We recorded it, but were never happy with the result. We played it a few
\ntimes live and it went down like a storm every time. So it became a song with a strong cult following. We
\ndecided to have another go. There were some tricks that made it work this time such as a key change
\nbetween the 2 verses, the \u2018proggy\u2019 mid-section and the psychedelic coda. Most of the guitar parts were
\nunchanged from when we first recorded it. <\/p>\n

MM : The music of THE FIXX has melodic parts in guitar and keyboards, and they both play chords. What are the important things for you to choose notes to get along with keys?<\/span>
\nJW : I\u2019m unusual for an old rocker in that my harmonic knowledge is strong and I have strong relative pitch. I
\nunderstand scales and modes and use modes all the time. I\u2019m a total nerd in that way. But I\u2019m not afraid to
\nthrow paint around. In other words I can go from calculation to pure instinct and back again. Rupert is more
\ninstinctive in terms of note selection and that works great, but his technical know-how is absolutely
\nincredible. He hears a sound in his head and knows exactly how to make it happen. A mad genius. And his
\nkeyboard hooks are priceless. <\/p>\n

MM : How about the color of the guitar sounds. How do you keep your presence along with various sounds of the FIXX?<\/span>
\nJW : It\u2019s all decision-making. Respect the vocal. Rhythm and sound. Leave the right gaps. Create a sound and
\nplay in a register that enhances what is already there and doesn\u2019t get in the way of existing parts. Create
\ncontrast. A plain untreated part in one section and then a chorused or driven sound in another section. The
\nplain part makes the processed part leap out and vice versa. Looking for a guitar part is like digging for
\ntreasure. Finding a strong hook is a wonderful thing.<\/p>\n

MM : The powerful and emotional Cy Curnin’s vocal can be heard within whole album. Especially his vocal on “Neverending” is a stand out. <\/span>
\nJW : I agree. On \u2018Neverending\u2019 he\u2019s singing at the top of his range and really straining. We tried lowering the key
\nand it didn\u2019t sound as good. The phrase \u2018no pain no gain\u2019 is certainly relevant to that track. His pain was a
\ngain for all of us, him included! There is an urgency to the vocal delivery that was missing when we lowered
\nthe key so he just had to suffer through it. But he was the first to agree. <\/p>\n

MM : All tracks on the album have its own taste and it proves that THE FIXX is active and it’s a current-going band with enormous energy and creative minds. Thoughts on that?<\/span>
\nJW : When you\u2019ve been together for as long as we have you can\u2019t afford to churn out something mediocre. We
\nwill always try to surpass what went before and come up with fresh ideas. We are an unusual group of
\ncontrasting personalities that somehow functions. This is a rare thing, and it was worth investing all that
\ncreative energy.<\/p>\n

MM : : Please tell us about your gear. What guitar, amps, effectors and pedals did you use for this album?<\/span>
\nJW :
\nGuitars:
\n1. Custom-made Suhr S-Type made of Koa with EMG pickups. Made for me as a replica of the Koa Schecter Built by John Suhr at Rudy\u2019s Guitars in NYC that I bought in 1983 or 84.
\n2. 1961 Epiphone Olympic.
\n3. Fender Stratocaster \u201962 reissue.
\n4. Musicman Axis Super Sport.
\nAmps:
\n1. 2 x Fender Hotrod Devilles for clean stereo parts
\n2. An original 1962 Vox AC30
\nEffects:
\n1. Suhr Koji Comp
\n2. Ibanez Tube Screamer
\n3. Suhr Shiba Drive
\n4. Original 1981 MXR Stereo Chorus. (Bought new the day we signed our first publishing deal).
\n5. Boss Slicer
\n6. Boss DD500 delay<\/p>\n

MM : How do you re-create various guitar sounds in studio on live stage? <\/span>
\nJW :
\n\u2022 I have to use my feet a lot. I leave my amps on a clean sound and use 3 separate drive pedals for different
\nlevels of distortion. Instead of the Tube Screamer I now use a Xotic SL Drive and also a Vemuram Jan Ray
\nand a \u2018Golden Eagle\u2019 by Fredric.
\n\u2022 I use the chorus, Slicer and Delay as above plus a beautiful-sounding U.A. Starlight Echo Station that
\nI didn\u2019t have when we were recording.
\n\u2022 Recreating recorded parts on stage can be tricky and sometimes involves a compromise but I\u2019ll do
\nmy best to make it happen. The \u2018Stand or Fall\u2019 recording for example involved multiple tracking and
\nthat is not possible live but it always goes down well because of the excitement of a live show,
\ngetting the right settings and playing with conviction. <\/p>\n

MM : Please tell us your upcoming plans. <\/span>
\nJW : We are going to start new writing sessions soon. It will be very experimental.<\/p>\n

MM : Please leave a message to fans.<\/span>
\nJW : Thank you for staying with us all these years. For the new fans: welcome to The Fixx family. I look forward
\nto making it back to Japan again soon.<\/p>\n

THE FIXX official site\u00a0 https:\/\/www.thefixx.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n