Date: Fri 17-Jan-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: SHANNO

Illustration: C

Location: A9

Quick Words:

Goldfinger-phoner-Williams

Full Text:

Phone Interview With Goldfinger's Bassist-

The Common Link: Goldfinger, Mortal Kombat & Duran Duran

(with cuts)

BY SHANNON HICKS

Goldfinger, a foursome with a lot of energy both on and off the stage (and

yes, the name came from the James Bond film of the same name), played 217

shows in 264 days in 1996. The band's schedule for 1997 is beginning to shape

up similarly. Currently on a series of headlining club dates, Goldfinger

shared stage time with the likes of The Sex Pistols, The Buzzcocks and No

Doubt last year.

Recorded in July 1995 (between brutal rounds of Mortal Kombat, if the band's

press release is to be believed...), Goldfinger , the band's eponymous debut

album, proved to be a challenge for a band more accustomed to performing on

the hither-may-care-anything-goes limelight of the live stage rather than in

the somewhat confining surroundings of a recording studio. Nevertheless,

modern rock radio stations came alive with the release of "Here In Your

Bedroom," the foursome's first single.

"Mable," the band's second single, may be the final one to be officially

released by the group, who has another month and a half of touring to complete

before taking a break and recording its follow-up. The remainder of the album,

for the uninitiated who may not have heard it yet, is as fast and furious -

and fun - as the singles that have been released. Guitarist Charlie Paulson

calls the group's lyrics "...hyperactive love songs for people on Ritalin."

Most listeners agree.

Bassist Simon Williams called Connecticut last week (band members, by the way,

also include lead vocalist and guitarist John Feldman, and drummer "Dangerous"

Darrin Pfeiffer), during load-out time after the band had pulled into Palo

Alto, CA, a few hours before a show at The Edge, to find out what's new on the

East Coast.

Goldfinger, who had a date in Hartford last year, is winding its way back our

way. The band has a date scheduled for January 28 at The Webster Theatre in

Hartford. We thought we'd take a look at what's been going on during the

months since their last visit.

SH: As much as it brought you wonderful attention, was "Here In Your Bedroom"

what you would have chosen as your first single?

SW: Yes, with Mojo [Records, the band's recording label] there aren't a lot of

things we are forced to do against our consent. We have like 150 percent

control; we really haven't been forced to do anything we don't want to do. On

the negative side, it allows us to be self-serving at times, but it's a good

label and it gets done what we need. It has given us a lot of opportunity.

Actually, I think every song could be a single; "Bedroom" seemed like the

natural choice. It was a really good representation of how we mix different

stuff together. It's the best representation of us on the album, I think.

What is slated as the next single? Is that what you want to go with?

I don't know if we're going to do another single; we're off the road in six

weeks, unless we hook up with No Doubt again. Maybe "King For A Day," if

anything. But I think we've built a good enough base without another single.

I think at this point we'd rather concentrate on the next album, and we've

already got 30 songs we're working with.

Then again, maybe we'll do the No Doubt thing. There is talk of maybe

recording a few songs, going pre-production, then get on the road with [No

Doubt] for a few weeks, and then finish the album.

It's hard to imagine what the next album is going to sound like. I would like

to think being on the road has lent a new perspective. We spent a month in

Germany, a month in Australia... that's had to have affected us somehow.

Who have you most enjoyed performing with during the last year - The Sex

Pistols, The Buzzcocks or No Doubt?

The Buzzcocks were good; The Sex Pistols were the worst. No Doubt was

definitely the best.

The difference was with No Doubt, we hung out with them every day, but not the

Pistols, which we toured with much longer. No Doubt's crowd really wanted to

hear our music, while The Sex Pistols' audience came to hear this classic

music.

Aside from having a longer period of stage time, how does headlining differ

from opening for someone else?

It's a little more pressure, and every show that we've done if it doesn't sell

out, it's close. I'm always one to check tickets. It's nerving to show up and

have no one there, but that hasn't happened.

When you're playing a half-hour, 45 minutes, your bladder can handle it; but

when you're headlining...

Did you enjoy your first visit to Europe, last summer-fall? Any highlights to

speak of in particular?

It was amazing! We went to New Zealand, which is where I'm from. We did

Australia with The Sex Pistols, went to Japan by ourselves (did a fair share

of headlining all year).... We played a few nights in Germany with this band,

Die Toten Hosen, which is like the biggest band in Germany today, which is

about the second biggest market outside the United States.

At that point, we had toured the States for about nine months, so it was

amazing - German and Japanese crowds are crazy! They're so enthusiastic, and

into it. There's a lot of jumping, and waving of the arms, things like that.

[Goldfinger will record its interpretation of Duran Duran's "Rio" for a

collection of DD cover songs by a number of bands to be released by Mojo early

this year.] The Mojo Records Duran Duran project sounds pretty interesting.

How did you guys get involved in that project? Who else has recorded singles

for that?

We've been doing "Rio" on stage for forever.

I'm not a fan of [Duran Duran's] new stuff, but when I was kid growing up, my

mom bought me Rio , and I really loved that album. The first girl I ever

kissed, I was listening to that album. I have a lot of fond memories; that was

a great time of my life.

I got to meet [Duran Duran's bass player] John Taylor last year. I started

playing guitar because of Kiss, but switched to bass because of John Taylor. I

had to hug him I was so excited.

The idea [for the album] came from the guy who did our "Bedroom" video,

Richard Reines, who's a big Duran fan. He mentioned it, and suddenly a whole

thing came out of it. No Doubt, The Deftones, Aerobic Fish, the singer from

Korn... there are a lot of bands involved. We haven't recorded our track yet,

and it was meant to be an earlier release, but now it looks like April or May.

A split 7-inch record with two bands [another Mojo Records project in the

works], regardless of the fact they're from the same label, is also an unusual

undertaking. Do you know why Mojo Records has decided to release such a

recording with contributions by your band and Reel Big Fish (another Mojo

band, with whom Goldfinger is touring this month)? How did "Up The Junction"

(an old Squeeze tune Goldfinger has done for this project) turn out?

We all wanted to do it, and it's kind of cool. We'll do an original song and

then a cover song. It's interesting. I don't think it seems weird at all,

either. I think it's cool.

What can folks expect to see when they go out to see a Goldfinger show,

whether it's at the upcoming [Jan 28] Webster Theatre show or anywhere they

catch up with you guys?

It's a lot of pyrotechnics, live tigers, naked dancers... I don't know! [he

laughs] It's a lot of fun. Come out and dance, it's just a lot of fun.

When do you guys plan on catching up on sleep?

We'll be off the road in five or six weeks.

It's been a big year on the road, and it's been a lot of fun, but I can't wait

to take a good long nap.

Reel Big Fish, another Mojo Records band, opens the January 28 Goldfinger show

at The Webster Theatre. For ticket info, call the Webster Theatre,

860/246-8001.