- Title: UNITED KINGDOM: 'THE DIVINE COMEDY' RELEASE THEIR LATEST ALBUM "REGENERATION"
- Date: 1st April 2001
- Summary: DIVINE COMEDY PERFORMING
- Embargoed: 16th April 2001 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: LONDON, UK
- Country: United Kingdom
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVADT5TCN9WNCKGNDU01VDN94K7F
- Story Text: Divine Comedy have abandoned their suits and cultivated eccentricity and opted to go "back to basics". The flamboyant showmanship which has defined all their previous albums and stage performances is nowhere to be seen... in its place is a sincere, solid style of song that is propelling "Regeneration"
to the top of the UK charts.
It's a new album and a whole new era for the Divine Comedy. The smart suits have been switched for the malnourished student look.... Northern Ireland songwriter Neil Hannon has had enough of pressing his dinner jacket before going on stage.
And in line with the transformation of image comes a switch in sound. The flamboyant, eccentric quirkiness that defined Hannon's work up to now has evaporated. In its place is a simple, solid style of songwriting that is receiving critical acclaim.
Not that the theatricality wasn't working. It definitely got an audience, but sticking to what is successful is not what Divine Comedy are about. Neil Hannon felt the band's style and image had come to its natural end. "We simply sort of got - we went as far down that road as we possibly could, you know? With Fin de Siecle we had over a hundred people playing on it, we had a massive theme, it just - we couldn't go any further. There was only one way we could go and that was back to basics really."
"Love What You Do" - Divine Comedy's new single - is certainly back to basics. Lyrics and melody return to a straightforward, sincere sound - it's a simple, inspiring ballad in praise of finding in life what moves you rather than what pays well. "We were in the studio thinking it's all quite slow, we need a more up-tempo song. We were sort of having a bit of a bad day and then it all started to click and started to come together, we were very happy, we were very high so to speak. And he went well you know you gotta love what you do don't you? Because I think he felt a bit guilty for actually enjoying himself so much, and I thought, yeah, you do!"
Watching Neil Hannon in concert it's clear that he adores what he does. Others may have dismissed the band as pretentious musicians mocking the rest of the world... but these new songs dispel this myth, revealing the talents of the band for what they are. Ironically, now that Hannon has reached a "happy" time in his life -coinciding with getting married - the new material is very melancholy, verbally battling with the increasing commercialisation and "dumbing down" of society.
And with this comes the onslaught of boy bands and teenage one-hit wonders. "I used to think that pop music, especially the sort of sugary pop that's around at the moment, was a kind of a necessary evil that had always been there. But it has become so prevalent and so all-consuming, especially in radio terms, that I've decided no, it's all crap and I'm not going to stand for it any longer. And we're going to wage a one-band war against manufactured pop because it's just not on... No!"
Their one band war has received lots of followers, helped by Radiohead and Travis producer Nigel Godrich who teams up with Divine Comedy on their new album, Regeneration.
Divine Comedy are currently touring the UK. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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