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Formerly with Soft Machine, ROBERT WYA'IT has always been the musician’s musician. Now, he has released Cuckooland, his first album for six years.
How long did it take you to put your new album together?
Forever really I had brts and pieces of tunes knockng about and a few words. mostly tunes. I mrght spend a couple of months rust practrsrng Symbols. see what I could do wrth that. wrthout feet as rt were. Or I rnrght spend a couple of months gettrng rnto the comet or the trumpet. About 18 months; ago I thought to myself:
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Are you happy with the album?
Well. can't do rel.re‘.'.s; It's: rke when you haw a ham,
when everyone else thhle; rt lflt’fixS Irke a rht"‘:;te' in}. " "‘Ogfi“, my ' (w. most fully seen through that l thrnk l'\.e euev ritf'lt“
Do you have a favourite track on the album?
I've got moments I lrke Altre rBenge. \‘y’yatt's; 222‘»: ant collatvnrtr" .r flaw called ‘l_ulla|oop' yrhreh rt; about an old man who (an? get to weep .rrx: f" at". .t
was; really funny Annre «\‘l.’hrtetread' drd sortie reall. 'trce trc'ht‘uv‘e "‘fu f engineer \Jamre. drd a bass; lrne on rt. then Paul Weller came " that exe" “a .l’fit "r- slapped some lovely gurtar all oyer rt lt was rust any" a :zurr‘r : and rt was Just the rCrhg on the cake
Who would you say your influences are?
Polrtrcally, l'm a very old fashroned commie Mamet type really ~ people but It's; somethrng they have to put up '.-.rth Firehard's Chrrstranrty; everyone has got some nutty thrvrg they hang on .r: it That's mrne really, It's grven me a way of l()()'r\lllti at the world that mam-u t me. Beyond that. what would have been called the axartt garrle .irtr:.t:. rr‘ ’3» half of the 90th century. You know. Preasso. and all ttiirfw people, the Jr‘u‘r‘ around then 7- Bartok. Stravrnsky. lhe ra/x people of that per-wt like DUN-i rlrrxit 'lhat’s; my fantasy utopra. an rmagrnary land where thr-rt-V; a l re'lr‘lt gate \.-.-:'r Mar Chagall and Prcasso gorng rn and out of brothels; and parhtrng .rrrr paylllrt ray:
Do you still have the ideals?
lstrll buy the Morn/rig Star. rt't; a good newspaper lirt (txl><?tlt;r‘~.’(-, e: l; hr.’ they can't get the advertrsrhg understanrlably enough
You have quite a following in Japan.
RW: They're fantastrcally rnterested rn everythrng really, they 're very n:<:e
For anyone too young to know your work, how would you sum up the music you play in ten words?
Gosh. Not very popular pop rhtrsrc. I would say, normal lrttle turret; Wliil long \.'.‘r:)_;;, brts on the end. MuSrcal tadpoles; really.
What’s next for you?
To get our krtchen and bathroom frxed at; rt's all iallrng to preees.
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