DrunkenWerewolf issue 5 is out now, including interviews with Lupen Crook, Kiran And The Night Owls, Untitled Musical Project, The Delta Fiasco, Planningtorock, Day For Airstrike, The Old Romantic Killer Band and Tim Holehouse. My reviews of recent releases from Elks, Kez Pietersen, bIRDbATH and The Jelas sit alongside plenty more by my fellow contributors.
It’s almost exactly three years since I first came across Lupen Crook (blogs are useful). Since then he’s become one of my favourite musicians and I’ve spent a lot of time immersing myself in his intriguingly skewed vision of the world. Offered the opportunity to interview him earlier this year, I thought hard for at least ten seconds before jumping at the chance.
It eventually happened in late June. His responses – couched in a characteristic blend of baroque embellishment and arresting bluntness – were fantastic. Quite literally, in some cases; “Medway Council don’t tell you that in their brochure, but I shit you not: it’s all true,” he concluded after one particularly juicy digression into Kentish mythologising.
The questions reflect many of my own broad preoccupations – identity, location, context, influences, and so on – as well as covering more specific areas like the recurring theme of anti-authoritarianism in his work. His answers reveal much, sometimes with a startling degree of candour, about his background, motivation and growing sense of purpose.
“I was told once that my song writing was a direct contributor to my ‘illness’ and that I must ‘stop chasing this idle obsession immediately’ if I ever wanted to get better, or avoid getting worse. I ignored them. I lied to them. I fake wellness. Now I deal with any abnormal thoughts honestly and without embarrassment. Most important to me is a clear head and a good night’s sleep when I can get it. Be ready to fight when I have to and most of all to know that when the time comes I know whom I’m fighting against and exactly what for.”
Sporting a crookedly feline cover shot by Jenny Hardcore and retailing for the bargain price of Three British Pounds, DW5 is stocked in shops in Bristol and Liverpool and is also available via the online/offline magic of PayPal & post. You can keep up with Drunken ravings and recommendations via the blog, as well as becoming a fan of the magazine on Facebook.