вот, нашел на просторах тырнета недавнее интервью Нуно. Будет новый альбом Экстрима!!!
Here's the translation (hope it's not too bad) of that famous french interview !
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How’s that European Satellite Party tour going ?
Nuno : Well.. it’s… going ! (Laughs). Everything has been fine to this date. It’s been, for me, an interesting project, and quite different from what I did with Extreme for instance.
How did this adventure start ?
Perry and I met at a party. He made me listen to some of his demos in his garage and I started layering guitars on what I heard. As far as Guitar playing is concerned, that was something quite new for me, but for the writing, I did as I always do, trying to find the best fitting guitar parts that suited the songs.
At the beginning of the project, we had no idea whether we would get a record deal like this or not, and that we would even tour. Everything went naturally.. and here we are today !
It’s been 10 years since last time you visited us in France
I know.. I can’t believe it myself ! But thanks to all of this happening, I’m here.
What does it feel, being back in Europe ?
I’m very glad about it, even though I can’t help being disappointed that it took so long. Back in 1997, when I released my first solo album (Schizophonic), I came here to promote it and I was quite optimistic, but in the end, I couldn’t have any gig set up ! My Label wanted me to focus on the USA, which was a mistake. You never know what may happen (He takes some mysterious look). We’ll be back, better, I will be back…. With a little luck, I’ll come to visit you every year, from now on… Who knows with who, or in what context ? (The secret desperately wants to come out of his mouth).. Well, let’s say that that band’s name may start with an ‘’ E ‘’…
Are you announcing a definitive Extreme reunion ?
Well, I haven’t talked about that to anybody, but during the last 6 or 8 months, Gary and I have been composing new stuff together. That’s between me and you of course ! (Laughs).
How many songs have you composed to this date ?
We must have something like 21 or 22. In Extreme, we always started composing about fifty songs before starting doing a selection. Who knows how it’s gonna end, but that could really be fun… We did a few concerts in the USA that were really awesome. It was like we never stopped playing together !
How would you describe what you’ve composed so far ?
(Pointing his jacket’s poket) You wanna hear ? (Laughs). There are, of course, some funky elements, and some other that have a more ‘punk rock’ feel. Extreme developed different styles and sounds on every single album, and those new songs will certainly sound like… Extreme !
Gary came to live at my house for a time and we worked just like old times. Except that, back then, I was used to give him complete songs so that he could start working on the lyrics. Now, we’re doing more ‘four hands writing’, and we both contribute in writing the lyrics.
Well, that’s a very good news for all Extreme fans that you’re announcing today !
It’s very important that people do not misunderstand our motivations. We always refused to organize a ‘reunion tour’, promoting some vulgar ‘best of compilation’ like many other bands might have done. Gary and I agree to the fact that, if we go back together, it’s to restart the story from where it has stopped. Giving as much time and passion as we can to produce a new album.. So.. we’ll see… (smiles).
Paul Geary (Drums) being quite busy as a manager, your buddy Kevin Figueiredo from Dramagods and Satellite Party (Note : He also left Perry’s band since that interview) might as well be part of that, no ?
Yes, certainly. Paul is indeed very busy since he manages bands like Smashing Pumpkins, Fuel or Godsmack. He’s always had a ‘manager soul’ even when he was in Extreme ! (Laughs) But for the new album, he’d be the first to admit he wouldn’t be able to participate to such a project without having the time for all what he has to do on the side. He might join us from time to time, for a few songs, but Kevin is probably the right fit for that job. When he plays Extreme, the band sounds way more heavy. When Pat (Badger / Bass) went on stage in New York, on ‘Kid Ego’, we was more than impressed with Kevin’s powerfull hitting. Kevin thought Pat didn’t like his playing, while, in reality, Pat was juste scared ! (Laughs).
After that parenthesis, let’s come back to Satellite Party. How would you describe your collaboration with Perry on that album, Ultra Payloaded ?
Working with Perry was completely different from what I’ve seen before. The first time I heard SP’s compositions, those were completely electronic sounding, almost sounding like house music. I asked myself what I’d be able to do with that. Then, working around samples and chorus-parts, I tried to transform those long musical pieces into actual songs. That wasn’t always easy and I won’t hide the fact it gave Perry and I some headaches. He has his way of working, I got mine… But after some time, he eventually loosened up a bit (French expression : Release some ballasts) and I could take part in the production and mixing of the album. My “work-field” was delimited by Perry’s tastes, I appreciated that because it forced me to try out some things I would never had tried before.
Specifically, you handles numerous keyboard parts.. Something we’re usually not expecting from you.
Yes that’s true. Globally, this album ends up being a collaboration between Perry and I. People always focus on the many ‘guests’ that came to play on that album, like Flea and who knows who. But those guys weren’t actually ‘there’. They spend 2 hours in the studio, record the parts they must record, and then, we don’t see them for the next 3 years ! It’s not like they’ve been actually spending time with us to create something…
Many were surprised there are so few guitar solos on Ultra Payloaded. Why ?
Simply because I didn’t feel those songs needed that. Perry was always pushing me all the time so that I would add solos, but I didn’t feel like it.
Maybe because those songs weren’t originated from jam sessions ? I don’t know. But when playing live, that’s another story. The more I play, the more I feel like making those solos longer and longer. Add that to the fact that we also play quite a number of Jane’s Addiction songs, which are well suited for that.
Was it obvious for you that SP would include JA’s songs on stage ?
Yes, ‘cause SP has really been founded around Perry’s name, so it’s normal that he plays those JA songs that are part of him so much. And also, I love those songs ! Before coming to Europe, he suggest we might add sone Extreme covers as well.. but I didn’t want to. My role here, is to hold the guitar, I want to make that clear. He insisted a lot, especially after the London gig where the audience shouted my name on a regular basis.. Some even had made panels ! That was quite embarrassing… I think Perry didn’t realized how strong Extreme’s impact was in Europe, but right now, he’s entitled for quite a speed-up-training ! (Laughs)
What is your opinion about SP’s message, fighting against global warming, and about the whole concept of that album ? That one not being easy to catch.
I agree with you on that point ! All of this corresponds to Perry’s vision and personal involvement. As far as I’m concerned, I involve myself into such things more privately. With Extreme, we were used to offer a stand to Greenpeace at our shows, but I’m not the kind a guy who try to dictate things to do to others. That’s useless, because people have to actually think about it own their own to actually change their behavior. Everything that can help is good to have. The band associated itself with Global Cool, and we met Tony Blair in order to discuss those issues.. But politicians remain politicians… Anyway, one thing for sure : I don’t think of myself as being Bono !
During 10 years, you released many albums using various names, like Population 1 or Dramagods, and we don’t include your numerous participations to tribute albums, singles, clips, etc. Do you see your career evolving the same way in the years to come ?
No I don’t think so. I did enough damage ! (Laughs). Today, I still feel quite close to the Dramagods album, which is the only one I actually still enjoy listening to, but that’s pretty much it…. It’s really a shame that it hasn’t been truly released outside of Japan. Kevin and I were negociating for an (almost-) worldwide release, and then.. << That >> (Satellite Party) fell on us. At start, I though this would only be a simple project, but Sony BMG signed the band. I then thought that Dramagogs might benefit from it and get signed after seeing me in SP… I would have loved that, because those songs really reveal themselves when played live. But you’d be surprise how difficult it is for me to get signed by a label. Sometimes, record companies get scared of my past. I’m convinced that if my name hadn’t been mentioned on Dramagods’ album, four or five labels would have fought to sign it. With the ‘Nuno Bettencourt’ name in a band, it suddenly feels outdated / old for executives that only swear by the youth. They’re all after the next ‘Chemical romance’ and even though they do sign some very few good bands, they mostly sign very bad ones !
Looks like it’s way easier for you to fin record deals in Japan, where you’ve been quite ‘there’ all these years…
The only reason all my albums were released in Japan is that I always kept a record contract there. Right after my departure from Extreme, the Japanese label of the band told me : <<whatever you do, solo, we want to keep you with us !>>. That label gave me money and I had to record albums. I’m not saying I didn’t want to, but sometimes, the situation was bit awkward.. I’d release an album, do a little tour and bang, I would come home ! (an ‘’incident’ takes act as Perry and Etty come into the room where we’re doing that interview. Pissed of being disturbed that way, Nuno suddenly exit the room.. Then, comes back after Perry and Etty got out, and excuses himself a lot… Behind the ‘facade smiles’, some quite telling look are shared and our interview resumes…)
I really have good memories of Japan. I was always amazed by the fans coming to my shows, even for the smallest venues. It was comforting to see that somewhere on the planet, some people were still paying some attention to me !
In reality, you’ve been continuously occupied during all those years…
Absolutely…Some people I meet sometimes ask me the famous : << Nuno ! Where the hell were you ? >>. <<Bah I was on a beach, drinking cocktails ! >>.. Pffff… Even if most people didn’t pay attention to me, I never stopped working. As soon as a project was finished, I’d start a new one. It’s the only way I’ve found to convince me I was still 18 : I never stop long enough for me to realize that I’ve got some extra years “on the counter” (ZeGlobox : Sorry, that’s a French expression I don’t know how to translate).. While I can tell my elbows and knees aren’t that new anymore ! (Laughs)
Is it also to fight against time that you want to launch Extreme back ?
There are certainly numerous reasons. When I left Extreme, it was strictly for non-musical problems. We weren’t getting along that much anymore. There were some money-related-issues, and every little sentence or look took incredible proportions. Today, I realized this was childish/pointless, but the fact is that we weren’t touring for the love-of-music and that the business took to much place. I needed to start with that adventure. I wanted to write more lyrics, sing my songs, and I’m happy having done that ! But I’m starting to get a little tired fighting all the time, especially the record companies. Re-launch Extreme’s career today might look like the easiest way, but we all have a limited time frame during which we can still launch ourselves into that adventure still take pleasure doing it … And before all our fans get too old to even remember we ever existed ! (Laughs).
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