Adam Masterson Interview

Leaving Rock City after watching Damien Rice I was handed a flyer which I stuffed into my pocket without thought until discovering it again the next morning. I had never heard of Adam Masterson but something about the flyer tempted me to buy a ticket and see what he was like.

Adam Masterson is a real Londoner, accent and all, but he has an eerie peacefulness about him. He speaks softly, so much so that it is sometimes hard hearing what he is saying. When he gets on stage, however, his singing takes over and fills the room with his music.



The support bands were excellent too, Bodixa from Leeds and Scottish band Astrid. Both had female vocalists with superb voices that could sedate even the most hardcore metal fans. I hope all of them go far. I interviewed Adam straight after the gig:

How long have you and the band been playing together?

"Since July. We started playing gigs together then, but I've been writing songs since I was 17."

How did you and the band get together?

"Through contacts that I already had, people I knew who were out of work. To start with I put some ads in the NME but nothing really worked out until I met who I'm with now. I actually recorded the album with a few session musicians who had worked with Van Morrison in the past."

That must have been an experience...

"Yeah it was a bit daunting to start with, I'd never met them before but we just got together and played my songs. It was weird as I hadn't ever heard my songs being played by other musicians and instruments before!"

Who are your musical influences?

"Well I don't know about any musicians in particular, but I liked all the music from the 30's and 40's, also the 60's and 70's. I guess I like singers that step outside themselves to survey what's going on, right from the early country blues stuff to rock singers in the early 60's."

Is this your first tour?

"No, I've toured with Thea Gilmore. I also supported the Stereophonics in December at Earls Court and the Millennium Stadium. I met Kelly a few years ago and we sort of got on but we didn't swap numbers or anything. Then I bumped in to him at a club after that and he was like 'Ah how's it going mate?' Keep up the good work!? He was digging what I was doing you know."

"Then in December I got a call out of the blue asking if I wanted to play with the Stereophonics at Earls Court the next week and I was like 'What do you think!?' Then when we were sound-checking Kelly came up to me and was like 'I've been trying to find you for 2 years now and I was asking around but everyone thought you were American so I couldn't find you!"

"I'll tell you what, walking out onto that stage was amazing with the huge speakers and massive crowd cheering for you even though they don't know who you are. I could have been a big clown for all they knew!"

So what's next for you?

"Well I want to record a new album which will be similar to the last one due to the fact that it will still be me, my voice and my sort of songs but maybe the production will change, I don't know really.. I'll have to sort out some demo's first, then we'll go from there."

How do you feel about being compared to the likes of David Bowie and Kelly Jones?

"Well it's quite a compliment really, but I'm not really the best person to tell what I sound like. I'm too involved with it all. When I first met Kelly Jones I'd only heard him singing on the radio, but then I heard him in a room like this (Adam indicates to the small box room we're standing in) and he sounds awesome. There just something about him that makes him stand out from the rest of the great singers around at the moment."

Would you rather write the greatest album ever, and make no money from it, or sell your soul to the commercial world making loads of money but average music?

"Well, it's about the music isn't it! At the moment I'm not exactly living like a vagrant tramp, but up until now I've had some good times and been making music and basically I'm quite happy how I am at the moment. As long as I'm making music and getting by I'll be a happy bunny!"

If you could describe your music in a sentence what would it be? (Adam looks down at the floor and I suddenly think I've asked him the wrong question, but he just avoids the question)

"My music is just me telling stories, and I think there's a lot of work to be done on my songs to cut them down a bit and really portray what I want to say. Apart from that I don't really know what to say..."

Adam Masterson's album, One Tale Too Many is out now. It's definitely worth looking at!