As frontman in seminal eighties indie mod band The Moment, Adrian Holder was responsible for delivering anthemic tunes such as “Ready To Fall“ and “Sticks And Stones“. Described by the NME's Paul Moody as “English pop music's greatest ever secret”, the band released one album - “The Work Gets Done” - plus a fistful of top tunes and were one of the few beacons of genuine inspiration in that decade. Their best of compilation “Mod Gods” was a fitting testimony.
Now the man is back. We gave his new material a definite thumbs up with the top drawer “Goodbye Tuesday” on the Biff Bang Pow compilation “Shimmy”. And now there are more. The three tunes on his My Space site - “Ordinary Lover”, “Like A River” and “Letting Go” are equally dynamic. Power pop tunes that stay with you, trademark quality guitar, and thought provoking lyrics. He is planning a new album later this year. Can't wait to hear more. So our advice is to head off over to http://www.myspace.com/adrianholder and give those new tunes a listen. Then read Rob Massey's interview with him below. But, before you do, check out the legacy of The Moment at http://www.myspace.com/themomentuk .
....Where do I start ? The Moment were one of the bands that influenced my very young years,Adrain Holder was the King of Cool, not many people in the 80's could have pulled off that Beatles Style Hair cut, wearing beads and THAT whistle around the neck Mr Holder could and Mr Holder DID, yeah 1-2-They Fly.From hearing the opening bars Of the Deut Album, to being very very lucky to have promoted the band many times to becoming friends of the band.Indeed a great Singer/Songwriter Adrian Holder has proved with his new Current songs that his talent is never ending, it's very good to hear that Angry Voice again..Welcome back,we fall at your feet Sir... Tony Clark Sohostrut......
Where do you hail from?
“I was born and lived in Haverhill, Suffolk until my early twenties when I moved to London. I lived there in various locations until the year 2000, when I crossed the water to mainland Europe to live in Düsseldorf, a city I had played in so many times in the past.”
What inspired you to start playing in bands?
“When I was a kid, musicians were the new rock stars! All my heroes were in bands. My hometown was small and the only way up was to get out. Music was a vehicle for me to ride. I wanted to live life as if I was in a cool Sixties movie so London was calling me from a very early age. Punk exploded in my early teens… For me, the message was clear; ‘if they can do this, so can I'. I liked the fact you didn't have to be beautiful, clever or well connected to give it a go. We were just kids doing what we wanted to do. We honestly believed we could make it happen.”
Tell me a bit about The Moment, who played a crucial part of the mod scene in the 1980s.
“The Moment was more to me than just a band. It represented youthful dreams, a mod way of life. We started out playing a gig at our local workingman's club and a few weeks later we were playing at the 100 Club on Oxford Street and being offered a recording deal. We travelled all over the UK and mainland Europe with the band, we met and made friends with so many special people and had the time of our lives.
“At one point we realised the band had grown bigger than the sum of its parts and we really had achieved something. We jokingly used to say we were the biggest mod band in the world and – as so many other bands had called it a day, we probably were for a short while. The problem was the scene was a closed shop back then. Being a mod band had its benefits but it also turned non-mods against you. We came close to landing bigger record deals and mainstream interest but didn't quite pull it off. That doesn't take anything away from what we did achieve.
“Mods all over the world came to see us play and we toured in Germany, Holland, Italy, Austria and Switzerland many times. We had a small army of dedicated and loyal fans who we respected then and still do today. You can catch a small helping of what The Moment were about by heading to www.MySpace.com/TheMomentUK and checking out a few of the old tunes.”
Which artists would you say have influenced your musical direction?
“There really are too many to mention. If I were pushed to pick a short list it would read something like…
The Beatles – John Lennon is God. I wanted to be a Beatle from the first moment I saw and heard them as a very small child.
The Jam – I would put Paul Weller on the same street as John. I can't really explain it but the man is just cool.
Black soul/dance music from the Sixties and early Seventies – you can't touch it, you can't reproduce it, you can only dream about it… it is magic and never fails to take me to another place and time.
The Who – how R&B should be played, very English.
The Small Faces – the band I would have most liked to have been in!
The Byrds – I always come back to them. No matter who has caught my ear I always return the masters of Folk-Pop. Put any Byrds album on and take the trip…
The Moment – I have been very, very lucky to have known and grown-up with the likes of Robert Moore, Steve Rinaldi, Chris Hunt et al. They have influenced my writing since the beginning and continue to do so.
“I have always been inspired by the music, the people, the clothes and way of life of the mods since the late Seventies to the present day. As Eddie Piller noted about me so many years ago, I am a mod for life. It has been the single most consistent influence in my life over the years.”
You were featured on the compilation ‘Shimmy' with ‘Goodbye Tuesday'. Tell me a bit about that tune?
“It really was one of those songs that came very quickly as I was writing it. As a young man I had imagined one day I would have a beautiful daughter who I would call Tuesday because, as Chairman Of The Board would say, everything is Tuesday. But life didn't go exactly as I had planned and my beautiful daughter turned out to be called Georgie. Therefore, ‘Goodbye Tuesday'.
”It has been a great experience having a song on the album. The feedback and reviews have been fantastic. I consider my self very lucky to have been given the chance to show my work again and thanks goes out to Paul and everyone at Biff Bang Pow Records, for making it happen. There's some great music on the album, check it out.”
Have you other new tunes? Which ones should we especially be listening for?
“I have been working on material for an album. I hope people will get the opportunity to hear them sooner rather than later. There are a few demos to try at www.myspace.com/adrianholder <http://www.myspace.com/adrianholder> , so have a listen and drop me a line. I hope you like them.”
Where have you played live recently? Any gigs that stand out?
“The last time I was on a stage was with The Moment at a one-off reunion gig in 2000 - it was planned as a follow-up gig to the Mods Mayday event at The Forum the previous year. Things didn't quite go as planned and instead of being at The Forum the gig was moved to Clacton and only The Moment and Ian Page kept to their original commitment and played.
The gig was great if a little smaller than we had hoped – who knows if we'll ever have that chance again. There was serious talk of us reforming to support The Vapors at their reunion gig at the Astoria, but The Vapors seemed to have even more problems getting together than we do and the plugged was pulled on the idea!
”Of late, I have been concentrating on the writing process. Studio work can be very demanding and there are only 24 hours in each day! Perhaps, if there is a demand, there'll be some live shows following the release of the album. I would love to play live, let's wait and see.”
Are there any books or films that you would mention as influencing you?
“Keep the Aspidistra Flying by George Orwell influenced me enough to write a song about it. You can find it on the ‘Mod Gods' CD out on Tangerine Records. The story is basically about our struggle with the ‘Money God'. Why does he always have to win?”
If you had to choose any life changing record by another artist, what would it be?
“Easy. Time For Action by Secret Affair, Maybe Tomorrow by The Chords and Going Underground by The Jam.”
What are your plans for the future?
“I would very much like to work with other musicians both on their projects and on my own. I would like to join in a little more than I have done since the days of The Moment. In addition to my solo work, I have been working with a few ‘old friends' on another project which could surface during 2007.”
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