Read below our interview with Andy Cairns - founder/guitarist and vocalist of the legendary band Theraphy? on their most recent album Hard Cold Fire, their remarkable career milestones as well as their upcoming visit to Athens, Greece in a few days.
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RockOverdose: Hi Andy! First of all, a happy new year to all of you, we hope we find you well. This year marks the 35th anniversary of Therapy?, did you see it coming when you first formed the band, lasting that long? Which were your dreams and expectations back then, and how much of them have you achieved in your special career?
Andy Cairns (THERAPY?): When we formed the band we never thought we'd be here 35 years later. What Therapy? is to do and we still be do is going from release to release. So when Theraphy? started our dream in the North of Ireland was just to have a 7" single because we played a few gigs but we wanted to have a legacy just to say "Hey! We were once in a band" and that led to an album and every time we just moved a step ahead. In that time we sold some records worldwide, we've recorded a song with Ozzy Osbourne, we've performed with Sting, we've supported bands we like and seen most of the world. We have also one record which is a global success and we've probably happier than we were. We've also made a very famous concert in Belfast which was a dream for us since we were kids. Yeah! It's been great and it doesn't feel like 25 years!
RockOverdose: For the first time in history, we had a 5-year gap between albums. Was it mainly because of the pandemic or did you feel you needed some rest at last? How much did it take you to create it and how much satisfied are you from the final result?
Andy Cairns (THERAPY?): We were going to make the record, it was a lot darker, slower and melancholic than the final result. Then the pandemic hit and we decided to make it more energetic and have the songs a bit more melodic and catchy. So we've worked better on that and then we had a book that was released and the greatest hits album, so we thought it wouldn't be right to release a studio album at the same time. So the album is been recorded for about a year and a half, it didn't seem like 5 years and the pandemic helped to feel like that, so yeah I think it was the right choice.
RockOverdose: 16 albums in 32 years, an average of an album every two years, not to mention the rest releases. How much easy or difficult is an album of yours to make in general? Do you have to feel a certain vibe before starting composing? Was any of these albums more stressful or loose for some reasons?
Andy Cairns (THERAPY?): Well, everytime we want to know what kind of album we're going to make. As I mentioned before, with our new album Hard Cold Fire we had a lot of songs that were slower and more depressing but we had a few songs like "Joy" or "Poundland of Hope and Glory" that are quite uptempo and energetic upon we decided to focus and have a direction we want to go. That's quite similar to the way Theraphy? work. We decide what kind of album we want to make and see what fits to the whole direction and move on. The difficult part is writing so much music, we spend a lot of time together, make a lot of music, different riffs and ideas until we decide as a band where we want to go and then things move quickly.
RockOverdose: You’ve been mostly the main songwriter, but lately we see more of a team work, what new has the band to offer with this combined work in your opinion and how much of it has shined on “Hard Cold Fire”?
Andy Cairns (THERAPY?): Well, Michael (McKeegan) our bass player is very good in writing riffs, so he's written a few for this album. I usually grab my guitar and write song chorus or riffs, that's great but many times they sound simple. So, Michael send me some of his riffs, with no chorus or verse and I find it very challenging to get a riff and then write a song on that.
Then Neil (Cooper) our drummer, writes on a computer keyboard, he doesn't play guitar but he writes ideas for guitar riffs on his synthesizer. They sound very strange e.g. our song "Woe" has this big guitar riff which is actually written by Neil on a computer keyboard! That's also challenging for me 'cause it's actually something I'd never come up with. I was able to take that riff and then write a solo on it.
I like that cause it's not only adds an extra dimension on the band but also makes the band working like a team. It's a teamwork!
RockOverdose: With a really magical way, the band has managed to become accepted by all kinds of rock subgenres, punks, hardcore fans, metalheads, always have a respect for you and speak for you with the best possible emotions when you are on reference. Do you believe there’s a “secret” that made this all happen, or were you just blessed to be among the special ones?
Andy Cairns (THERAPY?): I think what it is When we were kids growing up in North Ireland there was political unrest and a lot of artists didn't visit Belfast because there were army on the streets, bombs explosions, political fighting. However, there where some other bands that did come to Belfast, they were punk or metal bands, some indie and hiphop bands as well, and we were going to every single gig! So we saw Public Enemy, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Anthrax, Metallica and all those have influenced a little bit our music. There's no one genre in our music, people can listen to it and whenever we look into the audience you can see goths, punks, metalheads ... and that's fantastic!
RockOverdose: Allow me to say, that no matter how I love your albums, when I first saw you live I was like “the albums don’t do justice to these guys”, your live experience multiplies your energy by 100% and it’s like listening to you for the first time. Any time I saw you felt like getting to know you from the start. Is it about adrenaline, playing for your fans, or not think about it that much in the end?
Andy Cairns (THERAPY?): The fans is the most important thing, they are the reason why Therapy? are here. The energy we get from our fans is exchiting and we love to play everywhere and visit people. We love the fact that we come to Greece this year and also othe places like Australia! Whenever we play the songs belong to the fans, because they know the lyrics and often we can see their reactions and they sing along with us! We become one with the audience and that's what make it really special.
RockOverdose: From what I’ve understood, the response on the last album has been quite remarkable. How have you perceived it so far? Do you think bringing back the familiar to all the fans Chris Sheldon played its part on that since “Cleave”?
Andy Cairns (THERAPY?): I think Chris Sheldon had a big part on the last albums becoming very popular with our fans. The albums sold more copies and some of them got in charts in some countries. We had some kind of success after many years. He got the best out of us but also the album have catchy melodies and good riffs and the fans really like.
RockOverdose: We’re seeing you in Greece once more, where I have to say that you’ve been welcomed from your very beginning, even before “Troublegum” made the breakthrough. We know you love us too and you kinda feel like home. Do you have any special memories playing here, and what should we wait this time from you?
Andy Cairns (THERAPY?): We can't wait to come back. I remember the first time we played in Greece in 1994 on a beautiful sunny day and we were shocked to see how many people had come to see us. We've come back many time since then, and we have many friends there and others who travel to see us.
Normally we'll play some stuff from the new album but also we'll do a set with stuff from "Troublegum" and "Nurse" as well. We'll play some 90's songs that people in Athens were waiting for many years. We're very excited!
RockOverdose: We would like to know what’s the deal with your plans for 2024 after leaving Greece, if you have any material that wasn’t included on “Hard Cold Fire” that could end up on the next album and if you have any special celebrations in mind for 2029 when you reach your 40th anniversary.
Andy Cairns (THERAPY?): Well we don't know about 2029, but this year is the 30 anniversary of "Troublegum" and I think in April or May this album is going to be re-issued via Universal Records. We're touring Australia and Europe on its 30th anniversary so we're playin 15 concerts all around Europe. which is why we're going to play lot of "Troublegum" stuff in Greece as well although this show is not part of that tour.
We stop touring "Troublegum" shows in September in Australia and December we'll play in the UK. So we have some new songs left and we hope we will get the chance to finish writing a new album. We'd like to get some new music next year.
RockOverdose: I believe many people would like a piece of advice from you as an experienced and established musician on what to do on their first steps and when drawbacks may come their way forward.
Andy Cairns (THERAPY?): Just make sure that you play music that you want and that you can feel in your heart. That's the most important thing. That way you'll always defend and love that music. Some bands might get worried or scared that their music is not be popular or people don't like it and try do something else, but my advice is to stick on what you believe and your audience will find you.
My second advice is about stepbacks. When we started Theraphy? we sent away 100 demo cassettes to 100 record labels. We had 99 rejections and one acceptance and that acceptance made us a record deal. It all came from there. So, no matter how many rejections you have, or no matter how terrible you might think you are, you have to give your heart and don't give up, keep playing and believe in yourselves.
When we started there were cassettes, now you have the internet and people can hear you easily. So, make sure you get your music out there!
RockOverdose: Thank you very much for your time Andy. It was an honor having the chance to talk with you! See you soon in Athens!
Andy Cairns (THERAPY?): I just want to say to people in Greece that we really apreciate your support from our early years and for their messages we get. See you very soon at Gagarin!
On behalf of RockOverdose.gr
Zisis Petkanas
Questions: Aggelos Katsouras
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