September 2010
August 2010Yazoo 'Reconnected Live' Audio Previews
Yazoo's new album, 'Reconnected Live', will be released on September 27th as a standard 2-CD set, a limited edition 2-CD deluxe edition contained in a 32-page hardback book, and via digital download. If you can't wait until then to relive Yazoo's 2008 'Reconnected' tour then help is at hand courtesy of Mute Records who have set up the audio player below, complete with two tracks from the album: 'Nobody's Diary' and 'State Farm'... enjoy!
Alison Moyet answers your questions!
1 September 2010
Last month we asked you to send us your questions for Yazoo. From the hundreds of questions we received (thank you!) we chose a selection which were sent over to Vince Clarke and Alison Moyet to answer; five questions to be answered by Vince, five to be answered by Alison, and ten questions that we asked them both. Today we're bringing you the five questions which have been answered for you by Alison Moyet (you can see Vince Clarke's answers in on the news page for August!)...
So, what did you have in the glass you so fondly sipped on stage during the reunion tour? ;) (Niels)
It was medicinal cognac you understand. It seems to work well in the devil-may-care capacity.
I have heard that your next album will be electronic. Will you work on that with Vince as he mentioned in one interview in 2008. I believe the quote was that Vince would like to 'have a crack at' some of your songs. (Stéphane / Mia)
I am working on a project that is electronic. I think the notion for me to work with Vince was a good one. We intended while touring to see what we might come up with but the reality of a tour that is brief and unlikely to be repeated meant the focus stayed on the job in hand. Added to which, Vince had acquired some new animation software that occupied his spare time and I made the most of seeing places I had not explored on earlier outings. The fact that we live in different continents and he was soon to be writing for the next Erasure album meant that the opportunity escaped us and normal lives resumed. It was a nice idea but the moment passed. We have not talked about finding time for it since.
As a performer with a personal relationship to the material, was it hard for you to go back to these songs and connect to them again? For instance, I recall that at one point you were disinclined to sing Invisible live ever again and that you wanted to move away from that phase of your career into new territory. How was reconnecting with this material different? (Ben)
Invisible was a song that I never wrote, so personally I was not in touch with its meaning and outgrew the sentiment it suggested. There is something about being in a band where you are performing songs you have written, or those you were informative in shaping, that connects you better with the work. Whereas with solo work I have ample opportunity to explore my material live and either own it or become tired of it, the Yazoo stuff was never worn out. It was still fresh for me and even though a swathe of time had passed, it still offered me a chance to explore the shape of it. It was refreshing working with different sounds and forms to those I had been spending solo time on.
Is there any chance of a duet between you and Andy Bell or you and Erasure? I'm sure those collaborations would be amazing. (Josh / Dave)
Over the years it has been mooted but never came about. Duets are about the song and the song has never naturally shown itself. That both Andy and I have worked with Vincent is not indicative of a shared musical taste. Erasure have a greater pop sensibility than me and I think perhaps the assumption of a natural musical relativity between the two groups is less correct than might be imagined.
If Yazoo had never been, do you think you would have got to where you are now in your own individual career? If not what do you think might have happened to you? (David)
There is no doubting that luck plays a significant part in where we end up. It might be said that neither Andy nor myself would have come to prominence without hooking up with Vince. It could also be said that without finding the right voices and the colours they bring, the songs may not have breathed the light they did. Andy brought a euphoric energy and I a darkness to our respective works that became signature sounds to our bands. I would have been unlikely to have ended up in the mainstream or involved in popular music and as such been lesser known or known at all. There were times that this might have seemed a preferable outcome. Perhaps I may have ended up outside of it all. Much of it has been wasted on me.
Keep an eye on this website for more updates as we countdown to the release of the forthcoming Yazoo live album, 'Reconnected Live' - which is to be released on September 27th in the UK and Europe and on September 28th in the US - or sign up to the mailing list for email updates.
Yazoo 'Nobody's Diary' video animation
1 September 2010
This is an animated version of 'Nobody's Diary' recorded during Yazoo's 2008 reunion tour and included on the forthcoming live album 'Reconnected Live'.
Yazoo's 'Reconnected Live' album will be released as a 2-CD set on September 27th (UK) and September 28th (US) in standard and deluxe editions.