Strawbs, Ripe Strawbs por Jerry Gilbert, Sounds, 10 de noviembre de 1973

Strawbs, Ripe Strawbs
Jerry Gilbert, Sounds, 10 November 1973 
THE STRAWBS are at last beginning to mature into the kind of band that does justice to the eminence of the musicians involved. "Come down to a rehearsal and see us now," was Dave Cousins' plea, a month or so after I'd seen the Strawbs perform a fairly loose, lifeless set at Amsterdam's Concertgebouw
The opportunity of hearing some playback demo tapes in the midst of the rehearsal was proof enough that when the Strawbs head out to Denmark to record an album mid-November they will be fully equipped to handle the job.
The material is so typical of Dave Cousins in that there are cases where the songs link together in much the same way as 'River' and 'Down By The Sea' did, and there's some fairly heavy suicidal stuff involved which bear out the mental changes Dave has been going through this past year.
Now, however, they've got Moog and mellotron to help implement these ideas and providing they don't get carried away with the idea of using synthesizers as a means of frightening the audience rather than as a simulator of other instruments, they should get along fine.
The two tracks to which the above applies are 'Out In The Cold' and 'Round And Round', the latter featuring the eerie, sub-human Cousins voice, doctored, synthesized and moved into a zone about ten degree colder. They've not finally decided on the end product of that one yet but by the time it reaches the studios it's going to be pretty damned amazing.
"Lyrically those two songs link together very well," Dave explained as we sought a spare room for the purpose of the interview and wound up in the w.c. "The second one is very suicidal, it makes people feel very uneasy."
Although the Strawbs have yet to find an album's worth of material, Dave Cousins admits that he found himself writing prolifically during the recent Stateside tour which, by most accounts, went remarkably well. I say most because the band were particularly disturbed at reports which filtered back to the detriment of the band although Dave re-affirms that the band were given standing ovations every night and he'll remember the trip as being the one where the band clicked right from the word go.
"I wrote all the time while we were out there and I finished a new eight minute song called 'Autumn'. The songs are beginning to string together more and more now because not only are they compatible songs but there's more to get into and you get more out of it than playing those three minute things.
"We've been rehearsing like mad since we came back from Europe and for the first time we've actually got a surplus of stage material".
Cousins agreed there was a danger of over using synthesizer. "I don't think it'll happen though because when John (Hawken) joined he was reluctant to play anything except piano - but now synthesizer is his pride and joy".
Since undergoing a severe personnel transplant back in the summer the Strawbs have kept relatively quiet and played no British dates whatsoever. A single 'Shine On Silver Sun' looked as though it might have put the band back into the charts but missed out. "I didn't build up any hopes with the single," confessed Dave. "The idea was really to introduce the changes in the band and show that the Strawbs were still around and that we'd got back to the more accepted Strawbs sound."
What is the accepted Strawbs sound? "I don't know but 'Part Of The Union' was the departure. Really melodic songs is what we specialize in but things are changing so rapidly right now.
"So the single really served its purpose because it got fantastic airplay and we did a Top Of The Pops on the strength of it so it showed we were still around. It showed that the glitter days are gone forever."
Recording at Denmark's Rosenberg Studios is no new experience for Cousins. The original Sandy Denny and the Strawbs album was recorded there as was Dragonfly.
Psychologically the Strawbs have benefited from their recent American experience. "We spent time working on American technique and it was so slick and polished by the end of our European tour that we knew we'd do well. I must admit I was shocked to read reports to the contrary - I couldn't believe it because the audiences were tremendous.
"The feeling now is really ripe, just as it was at time of Lay Down. The album won't be out until the New Year and we'll have to go back to the States in the New Year.
"But I'd like to do dates over here because I really think we'll shock people now."
© Jerry Gilbert, 1973