The Wild Swans - Press - No Ripcord

Possibly surprising to some, but not the man himself. "When I was at school I used to plan my albums in the back of my exercise books. Title, track listing, cover and line up. I was always the singer on these non-existent records." He recalls. "The trouble was in the real world I was shy and only ended up playing organ in The Teardrop Explodes because no one knew I could sing." Which must have made for a lot of surprised faces when he did. His essentially English singing style helped to define the band, though his own much-copied image could just as easily have done that. Refuting claims that Manchester Factory-funksters were first with the Brideshead Revisited look (shaved back/heavy fringe haircut), Simpson scoffs that "They were 'It Ain't Half Hot, Mum', we were 'Love On The Dole'”. The trio, who would go through numerous bassist/drummers, managed to avoid any serious record company interest throughout the first phase of their existence and managed even to cause Zoo records Bill Drummond and Dave Balfe to wonder if putting the Wild Swans in the studio was really a good idea. However, like all the best stories, help came from other quarters, namely Bunnymen drummer Pete de Freitas who (with an early royalty cheque) stumped up the cash to fund recording a single as well as providing drums and chemical assistance. The Revolutionary Spirit, described by Drummond as "the best single we put out on Zoo", would tragically be the only release the band would make in this initial phase. Indeed the "Glorious racket" that they were seeking, driven by some pretty intense drumming and guitar soundscapes similar to those being perfected by the also often criminally neglected Chameleons. Lyrically, Simpson avoided the typical themes of so many songs, see also the b-side God Forbid. As he says, "I may have had my hand up a few skirts at the time but my eyes were on the afterlife." It's from the 1981-82 period that the bulk of material on Incandescent is taken. As with many bands of that era, we can thank the BBC for giving the Wild Swan's an opportunity to record their songs.