Having already marked out their territory with the fine, but largely overlooked "Natural History" album, Mancunian trio I AM KLOOT are again busy sending the pigeonholers off wild goose chasing with their recent singles, "Untitled #1" and the excellent new "Life In A Day." Now signed to Feeder's label, Echo Records, they have a new album due in the Autumn, but Whisperin' & Hollerin' couldn't wait that long and made a bee line for singer/ guitarist JOHNNY BRAMWELL to find out more.
Johnny, one of the things that attracted me to I AM KLOOT is your lyrical input. The lyrics to "Untitled #1" were nicely surreal, for instance. But what inspires you to write the way you do?
"Well, that one's ("Untitled #1") more or less a conversation I had, with a few bits taken out," says the thoroughly affable Johnny.
"It was a pub conversation, when I was steadily getting drunk with someone. I remembered it with clarity anyway, but I actually had a tape going, surreptitiously recording it. I must stress that's not something I make a habit of doing," he laughs, just in case we were worrying.
"No, but I do often use things people have said to me at some stage. On another occasion, the phone rang, and it was one of those times when someone's cancelling a meeting and they're full of excuses. They used the phrase "Dinner with a friend" and I liked that and used it later in another context."
So you don't use stuff verbatim?
"Oh no," stresses Johnny. "It'll mean one thing when they say it and I'll use it entirely in another context. In any case, it's not like a formula I use for every song or anything."
Meanwhile, at the time Johnny and I have this conversation, I haven't heard the startling, spunked-up rollercoaster surge of I AM KLOOT'S new single "Life In A Day" and I'm wondering if it'll be in the trundly, Badly Drawn Boy-style vein of the likeable "Untitled #1". At the time, I get a surprise when Johnny fills me in with the details...
"Yeah, it's totally different from "Untitled #1", says Johnny. "It's chalk and cheese. It's pretty Stooges sounding, actually (he's right - ed). Like with a lot of our new material, if you're being positive you'd probably call it "eclectic", whereas if you're being negative you'd refer to it as a "hotchpotch"," he finishes, laughing.
"The thing is, my voice is distinctive, so it's still obviously KLOOT, as is Andy's drumming. As long as those elements are still in there, then we can push it and it's OK."
On a broader scale, I believe there's a second KLOOT album available shortly. Can you tell me about specific tracks you're proud of?
"The album's now gonna be out in September," notes Johnny, with a tinge of disappointment.
"With the UK dates we're about to do, we'll be debuting a lot of the new songs. I mean the album's completed, but stuff happens...business...you know the form."
Yeah, I surely do. But tell me more about the new songs.
"Proof" is one I like, for sure," Johnny replies. "It's been knocking around for ages, but it's great. "Life In A Day" is another favourite, actually, because it sounds so spontaneous. Andy and Pete (Jobson - bass) had a lot of structural input on that one, which I like. On the other hand, there are also a couple of things on the new record I'm not ready to listen to yet, because I've heard them so much while they were being done. I need a bit of distance before I can appreciate them."
Of course, you recently toured with TURIN BRAKES. How did the gigs go? Did you socialise with Olly and Gale much?
"Yeah, it was all very good," Johnny agrees.
"The link with Turin Brakes goes back a way, actually. Our first album was only released properly in France and 18 months ago, Turin Brakes supported us in France. So they returned the favour with the UK tour in March."
"The thing is, if you go out as a support, you've gotta be sure you'll get a soundcheck, which was great with Turin Brakes, because they know us as friends and treated us well. We were new to a lot of audiences, because outside of Manchester and London where we usually pull about 800-1000, we often only get about 200 people in other places," Johnny admits, candidly.
So you should have a lot of new fans?
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"Yeah, we played to about 30,000 people on the tour, so that should count for something," Johnny notes sagely.
You're with the Echo label at the moment. Is this a long-term thing and are you happy with them?
"Yeah, hopefully it's a long-term thing," says Johnny.
"We were with Wall Of Sound previously and that was a disaster. Not that they weren't nice people, but they had a lot of financial problems and we got dragged into it. Echo, though, are nice to deal with on a regular basis and that's the bottom line with Kloot: we'll only do something with someone if we get on with them."
"Besides, I think Echo are the perfect size for us," he continues.
"They've got clout but it's not like we're up against Madonna or someone and they'll be pushing us onto the back burner all the time."
How important has the Manchester environment been to shaping the I AM KLOOT sound? There seems to be something of a "baggy" revival going on since "24-Hour Party People" came out. Are you too young to remember that?
"Mmmm...dunno how much it affects us, really," Johnny muses.
"It was certainly the key in that Pete moved down from Newcastle to try and be in a band purely because of Manchester's reputation, so we'd never have found him otherwise, so you can't deny that."
"But we've never been overly interested in our contemporaries. We try to distance ourselves to a degree. The whole baggy thing's a bit before our time, but we went to see 24 Hour Party People" and thoroughly enjoyed it. I mean, it's about myth-making more than a true story, isn't it? It's removed from reality. The premiere was great. Everyone cheered every time Tony Wilson got called a twat!"
Kloot have a number of headlining dates coming up, including a show at the Scala in London. How important do you think it is for bands to still think about "breaking" London these days, Johnny?
"I think it depends on what you're about," ponders Johnny.
"It's a bit of a weird one, actually, because we actually did our very first gig in London, in a basement. It's difficult because you can't build up momentum there, you have to go in with a following. It doesn't matter to me too much because my atttitude is that we want people there wherever we're doing a gig."
"The media, for instance, are different in other countries aroun Europe. They're less tribal if you go to France, Spain or Germany. We did Benicassim in Spain last year and it was great. France also is more akin to us. They're knocked out by Kloot because we have a strong literary aspect that appeals to them and serves us well. Over here you tend to get crucified for wearing the wrong jacket."
Now now, Johnny. The thing is, he's right, of course. But then, would you really like I AM KLOOT to be a really huge band, Johnny? Could you see yourselves as other than outsiders? Your sound suggests you could cross over...
"Yeah, we are very ambitious," Johnny replies with real certainty.
"There's no point in pussyfooting, as the band consumes our whole lives. I want to see us taking one the likes of Ronan Keating on TOTP."
"I don't see us fitting in with the White Stripes/ Strokes thing either, however. I do like the garage-y stuff about, but I don't think about it too much. Let's face it, most people in the street look as though they should be in bands these days now anyway, so we're definitely healthy as we're different!"
Absolutely, Johnny. Amen to that!
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