Cruel Sea Are Heading ‘Straight Into The Sun’

The Cruel Sea kick off their National Australian Theatre Tour this week starting in Adelaide, which will see the band play two huge sets, the first performing the new album Straight Into The Sun in its entirety, followed by a second set of evergreen classics and rarely played deep cuts.

Adding to this, The Cruel Sea are pleased to announce that special guest Mick Harvey (The Birthday Party, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, Crime & the City Solution) will join the band on keyboard, percussion, and backing vocals for this tour (*except Mandurah). These will be a very special, one-off run of shows that are not to be missed. Kenny Gormly answers a few questions about the tour for Hi Fi Way.

Is there a different vibe now in the band since getting back together for the thirtieth anniversary of The Honeymoon Is Over?
Since day one of getting the band back together we realised we had all our old chemistry, we had all the muscle memory and we were actually wiser, better players. With Tex’s incredible accumulated experience and the soulful calm presence of Matt Walker, replacing dearly departed James Cruickshank, we all felt the vibe and were relaxed and confident from the start. And so we smashed that first tour out of the park.

We know that our best asset is our vibe; our love for each other and our reputation, which is all intact! The only difference now is that we have ironed out all the bugs on stage and we are match fit!

Did you enjoy that tour a little more than some of the others?
That tour was an overwhelming tsunami of love. We felt lifted up on shoulders and we played out of our skins. We gathered in strength and confidence and it ended with two sold out hometown shows at the Enmore Theatre, the people’s palace. It was like the end of a feel good Netflix movie.

For a week after I felt like my Under 15s footy team had won the grand final. It was a magical feeling of a job well done.

Was there always the intention of recording another album?
We had no intention at first of recording another album. On one hand it seemed presumptuous or indulgent, but on the other hand we realised that we didn’t suck, in fact we still had the magic. So to record while we were all alive and together on the planet seemed almost a duty to ourselves.

Did the process start with jamming some ideas until you had something?
The real reason we were able to strike while the iron was hot and record was because our guitarist and leader Dan Rumour ( aka The Little Black Duck ) had home recorded and bunch of demos up in the remote hills, and burnt them onto a CD, old school!

I had to find one of my daughters’ Year 9 Panasonic Walkman to listen to it! But it was Tex who was the great motivator as ever, writing lyrics and putting a stick of dynamite under the band to get us off our arses before we got comfortable again.

Did it all go to plan in the studio?
We recorded quickly over three to four days, with minimal prep and on a budget, which lent itself to the way we work anyway. This meant we relied on our wits and chemistry. We gave ourselves no time to second think or indulge and the tracks are all early studio takes. This gives the album a spontaneous ensemble feel.

Sonically, how would you compare Straight Into The Sun to the rest of the back catalogue?
Sonically the album is pretty much quintessential Cruel Sea with the trademark interplay which really became possible because of Matt Walker, who slipped seamlessly into the role and brought his own thing.

Our easy ensemble approach dictated the mixing, which was only to serve and enhance the performance on tape. The mixing was quick and direct and done within our cottage circle.

Was there much debate about what was on or off the album?
We had a vinyl mindset with this album. Back in the 90s the trend was to load a CD album with a lot of tracks, it seemed demanded. This time we thought in terms of a side one and two with lots of room to cut big grooves. We had no time to spare, so once we had ten tracks that included a couple of planned instrumentals for atmosphere, we just put them down.

Once it was finished did you listen to it as a band and what was the reaction?
We listened back quickly as a band during the session, and at the end of the last night we had a tired rushed listen together as we downloaded raw tracks before going home. Then we were left to listen individually before the mixing. Rough mixes were done. But basically the takes spoke for themselves and the initial rough mixes needed only minimal tweaking.

Are you looking to play this album start to end on this tour?
Yeah, we’ve never done that before so it’s a little challenge we look forward to. Because we had a vinyl approach, the album is coherent and has an emotional theme running through it, so it lends itself to being played in full. Side two of the album is very interesting and strong. The songs also relate more to our early albums, so we’re also doing a set of deeper cuts that run with the theme.

Beyond the tour what is the plan for The Cruel Sea?
Our plan is to have no plan. Other than to protect our vibe, our love for one another and our reputation and see what happens. We feel like what we are doing is actually a worthy thing, carrying a cool message of music and unity, so we wanna keep going that while we can.

Any plans to celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of Three Legged Dog?
Oh yeah after we get this out of our system, we’re definitely wanting to do the Three Legged Dog thing late in the year and get back to that side of the band which is more Rock ‘n Roll and groove based. It’s a really interesting and diverse album and we can really be wise and deadly in bringing it to
life and add something to it.

Interview By Rob Lyon

Catch The Cruel Sea on the following dates, tickets HERE…