dnews 13
does it rock? yea baby, yea!

**** Q U O T E****
"the delirious? sense of humour surfaces again when Martin shouts from his
tub 'Have you told him that we've sold out?' "
~ perhaps one of the more bizarre interviews the band have done!

**** Contents ****
It's OK Single Tracks
'Show Me Heaven'?
HMV Appearances - Feb 2000
Anatomy Of An Album
d:end?

**** It's OK Single Tracks *****
As ever, Spurious? is hot with the exclusives. At the d:gig in Sheffield,
eager fans found out the line-up on what are the most hotly awaited
Christian singles since, well, ever.

CD1
It's OK (and video)
Come Like You Promise
In Pursuit of Hapiness

CD2
It's OK
Jesus Blood
In Pursuit of Hapiness (video)

The CD1 version of It's OK will include a full length CD ROM video, whereas
CD2 will include the In Pursuit Of Happiness video that was shown with such
hilarious consequences on the May Mezzamorphis Tour. Jesus' Blood is a track
that appeared on the US version of Mezzamorphis, and is a semi-epic song
that has an unfortunately ghastly choir on it. Come Like You Promise is the
studio version that was re-recorded for the Listen:Louder US release (which
has just been released in the UK). You can wipe your chins now, people.

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**** 'Show Me Heaven' ****
On their recent tour, delirious? premiered a new song, is confirmed as being
titled 'Show Me Heaven'. Early reports indicate that this song is "heavier"
than d:'s previous tunes, yet still retains a Mezzamorphisy feel. Described
as "sort of a Bliss-Heaven mix" but is "better and heavier" than either, it
has the obligatory "cool solo by Stu G", and may indicate a post-Morphis
phase that will delight the ears of all delirious? fans.

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**** HMV Appearances ****
Because delirious? are just *that* world famous, they've been invited back
to HMVs all around the country to perform a few tunes and sign copies of
"It's OK" in the week of its release. The following dates were obtained by
every helpful d:fans at the Sheffield gig:

Sunday ~ 20 February 2000
Virgin Megastore, Manchester, 11 pm

Monday ~ 21 February 2000
HMV, Southampton, 4:30 pm

Tuesday ~ 22 February 2000
HMV, Nottingham, 4:30 pm

Wednesday ~ 23 February 2000
HMV, Birmingham, 4:30 pm

Thursday ~ 24 February 2000
Venue TBA - rely on Spurious? to keep you informed!

Friday ~ 25 February 2000
HMV, Guildford, 4:30 pm

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**** Anatomy Of An Album ****
What follows is an interview and article on delirious? from Cross Rythmns,
the UK's premier Christian Music Magazine. Used with kind permission.

It's a rainy windy April afternoon in 1998 as I make my way to New England
College on the outskirts of Littlehampton. In this empty run down former
education establishment, Delirious? have set up a studio home. This will be
the place where the bulk of the next Delirious? album will be fashioned.
The band are spread out into different rooms in the building. I'm given a
guided tour and taken to a huge hall with oak panelling which has been
utilised in order to give Stew Smith's drums a vast sound. Nearby in a tiny
broom cupboard of a room, keyboard player Tim Jupp is slaving over a
digital editing machine, the technology of which he admits he has only
recently mastered. He is doing something terribly complicated with Smith's
drumming, editing and creating loops, a man with his machine!

Doesn't he get lonely? He chuckles, "I would if it wasn't for days like
today when you turned up Mike and shared a little story with us and a
little meal at the Beefeater." He reflects, "Recording is a long process
and we've found that out this time. We wanted to move things on a lot and
that's not been a question of spending another week or two but spending
another month or two really to get things to the next level."

In another part of the college, the band have converted one room into a
recording studio. A huge mixing desk is the main feature, equipment spills
out across the room, I sit on a sofa and notice the now famous standard
lamp from the D:Tour "living room" is in this makeshift studio. Stu G
stands with his back to me facing the room's huge French windows that
reveal the dreary day outside. His body taut with concentration, he records
the incredible solo guitar parts to the moody "Blindfold". It's a memorable
moment and soon the band's manager Tony Patoto arrives and listens to the
results. Band and management pronounce themselves well chuffed with the
afternoon's work!

"Blindfold" continues the theme of "Summer Of Love" describing the feelings
of the band after Stew Smith's wife sadly had a miscarriage. Martin
describes it as "quite a tense track" and adds "Thankfully they've had a
little girl since but it felt such a dark time, it affected all of us so
much. It was just one of those times where it felt there was no light in
the sky and we were all kind of scrabbling around for answers. The song
really reflects the darkness and the tension and I remember talking to her
and getting the feeling that there was just no tomorrow it was like, take
this blindfold off of me I'm walking but 1 cannot see. There's no sort of
happy ending to the song apart from at the end it goes into this big sort
of glory thing and it's not meant to be a triumphalistic thing rather that
sometimes that's all we can sing. All we know to do is to keep on praising.
It is a big moment on the album."

Before Martin heads home to baby-sit his one year old daughter, I ask him
about preparing the songs with Stu Garrard. He explains, "We spend a week
to or two just on our own together with acoustics, just bashing out the
songs and getting the arrangements and middle eights. Then we demo them and
everyone has a cassette so they can think about it. Then we come in and
sort of bash it around and change it a bit and then it becomes the band's
sound at that stage."

In April 1998, Martin wouldn't be persuaded to reveal the album's title
saying he preferred to keep a little mystery. However he does reveal "The
theme to the album is a lot of the songs are talking about heaven and the
whole idea that yes we can experience lots of different things here. Joy
and pain especially as a Christian but it's all pointing towards one day
we're gonna meet Jesus and that's what I'm trying to point people to in the
songs a little bit."

Your average Rock 'n' roll band will normally record from the evening until
early morning but Delirious? have chosen a civilised schedule. The band
have always out family first so it's no surprise when Tim explains, " Most
of the work we do these days involves being away quite a lot and recording
is one of the things that we don't necessarily have to be away for. So
we've found this place near home which is great and we get in about quarter
to nine in the morning and knock off at six and go home like good boys for
our tea."

Tim and Stu G aren't going home for their teas tonight because later in a
Littlehampton restaurant, they take Pippa and I out for dinner and the
conversation continues. One of the things that is most impressive about
Delirious? is the way in which the guys seem to be constantly discussing
and dreaming like the family they are. Tim agrees, "I think one of the
reasons why the band and the core of it is really strong is because we just
have to continually talk about things. You can't let anything fester about
the issues that arise and when we go away all the girls sort of look after
each other."

His thoughts are interrupted by the arrival of food. Tim adopts the role of
cheery host and smiles, "Tuck in everyone."

Nearly a year later and the album is in the can, the first single is about
to be released and Delirious? are on the road. Ahead of the "Mezzamorphis"
all singing, all dancing full scale tour, the band are heading out with a
stripped down rock'n'roll show. Just set up and play like they used to. No
sofas, no videos, no fruit bowl, no Elvis the alien but instead a chance to
hear some new tunes and get excited about the next part of the journey.
Parked outside the Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool, on a cold Saturday
night in February, the gear that filled two articulated lorries on the D:
tour has slimmed down to a single artic. Inside the venue I am met by a
smiling similarly slimmed down Tim Jupp clearly proud that he's shed more
than three stones and looking good!

We decamp to the band's dressing room and chat idly of the things that have
happened over the previous few months including the band's five day trip to
play the Parachute Festival to a crowd of fifteen thousand in New Zealand.
The band actually spent four days on a plane and one day in NZ! However the
event had some good and bad experiences for Tim! "They gave us a proper
Maori greeting with the shouting, dancing and tongue waggling." The gig
itself went well and the band found themselves with two hours to spare
before they had to board a plane for the long trip home. So what's a band
to do? Hit the beach. Two hours of frolicking, swimming and fun ensued but
there were consequences. Tim remembers, "it was only later on the plane
that we all started burning up. Because of the lack of the ozone layer in
the southern hemisphere, the burn time in New Zealand is eight minutes and
we'd been in the sun for two hours!" Consequently, it was a well toasted
set of musicians who landed in London!!"

Martin Smith arrives and since this dressing room happens to have an en
suite bathroom, decides he'll take a bath. He and Tim joke that I ought to
interview him in the bath. I politely decline! In the course of the
conversation with Tim, the delirious? sense of humour surfaces again when
Martin shouts from his tub "Have you told him that we've sold out?" He's
joking but there is a strong possibility that there will be some people who
on hearing the new album will consider the band to have compromised.

Before Martin emerges from his ablutions, goateed guitarist Stu G,
resplendent with his new look black goatee beard, counters the idea of sell
out. "I don't know if anything has actually changed. I think that the
veneer might have changed a bit. There was a difference between The
"Cutting Edge" albums and then King of Fools which was basically the
difference of actually being full-time and being able to play music more
and working at your song writing. I think that's taken even a further step
with this next album and at the crux of this we're still writing songs from
the heart, which is a worship attitude and observation on life and all that
kind of thing. It's totally from a God perspective but I think our
ambitions and visions are slightly more focused and in wanting to take it
out into the general market place."

Taking their music into the mainstream has been part of the Delirious?
gameplan for a while. The release of the three singles from "King Of Fools"
was a beginning and taking it further seems to be a case of the band
practising what they're preaching. Stu explains, "I think we've been
encouraging a whole generation of young people to open up the doors and let
the music play whether that music is actually music or whether it's their
job of work that they do or wherever they find themselves. We believe
strongly that we should be having an effect on people around us and that
what we do is done with integrity and it would he hypocritical of us to not
do that ourselves if we're trying to tell other people to do it."

The release of "Mezamorphis" is a fresh step and listening to the album,
the band have clearly taken a significant musical step forward. Stu says,
"In terms of the actual songs, we want to communicate the truth and the
hope that we have in a way that is not confrontational or necessarily
obvious. I think if you look at the lyrics, there are some very explicit
lyrics on this album. We've taken our inspiration from people like C S
Lewis who wrote about the kingdom and about God and about the gospel in a
very understandable way, that even children can understand but it's not
apparent to the first look sometimes."

Even the title of the album itself seems to sum up the band's current place
in the scheme of things. Stu G elaborates, "It's a made-up word but there's
two songs on the album that it comes from. One's called the "Mezzanine
Floor" and there's a song called 'Metamorphis'. The song 'Heaven' already
touches on the theme of heaven being our final goal but there's a couple of
other things running through the album, one is the whole mezzanine floor
idea. Any architects will know that it's the place that's not the first
floor or the ground floor but it's the level in between. We feel that we're
in that place. We're on this journey and we've left A but we're not quite
at B. We're somewhere in the middle!"

Later I talk to Martin about an incident that happened earlier in the
band's journey and Craig Borlaise describes in the book "Purepop". A woman
was dramatically healed. Martin confesses, "I will always remember that for
the rest of my life. It was at Southampton Guildhall at one of the early
Cutting Edge meetings. I had a daydream and God gave me a word that
there'll he someone coming that night in a wheel chair and I didn't know
anymore than that. The evening went on and I completely forgot about it and
then something jarred my memory. I remember saying 'Is there anybody here
that's come in a wheel chair?' Someone shouted out and to cut a long story
short she ran into her dad's arms at the end of the evening without her
chair. I can remember there was a lot of tears and it was very emotional."

The moment has left a lasting impression on Martin and the band. "I think
those sort of incidents are actually what we still talk a lot about." He
confides, "We're in faith for that even now and I think that what will
happen is that it feels like sometimes there's a ceiling of anointing
because we're playing always to Christians. Generally there's a ceiling you
hit and you can't go any further but I know we all have got a lot of faith
for when it opens out into mixed crowds and half the people are coming
because they heard it on the radio. All that stuff's gonna start happening
again."

Martin continues to explain, "I suppose it's just what Jesus did really and
1 don't know whether that's actually going to happen during gigs or
whatever. I trust God that He'll do it when He wants to do it but it's
nothing to do with us but as a band we have not put a lid on ourselves at
all, we still feel as child-like in the whole thing as we always have done.
Anything could happen at any time. 1 think we are just getting more into
the whole show thing and presenting what we do in that sort of way and I
have no problems about that but at any time anything could happen."

The Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool comes alive to the strains of the
theme from the old sports programme "Grandstand". The crowd sing along, the
lights come up and the boys break into a furious song which is quickly
establishing itself as a live favourite, "Bliss". Earlier, Stu describes
how the song came about. "We were into recording the album and we were
writing a lot of kind of medium tempo songs which 1 think are very cool
but really felt like we needed some more up tempo numbers on the album. I
just happened to ask Martin if he had any lyrics just lyrics, no music. I
took them away and it was my intention to lock myself away in my bedroom
until we had a fast song! Bliss came out of that room in a weekend!
Lyrically it's just saying I'm not backing down, we're going for this
wholeheartedly but I'm not backing down in my faith and what we believe in."

Another highlight on the album is "Heaven", the song was originally
inspired by a trip to Belfast. Stu remembers, "We were actually travelling
down the Falls Road and with all the emotions and feelings that that
conjures up when you're actually there. We were actually having a
conversation about the omnipresence of God and how the devil isn't
omnipresent. I actually said, " It really feels like we've been down a road
where the devil's been, not in a judgmental way but just the kind of
feelings that are there. That started a whole conversation about heaven
being our home and how the stuff that we have to put up with here is only
temporary. The sound of that song is quite aggressive and quite emotional
in its attack."

At the other extreme, "It's Okay" is a bit of a musical departure for the
band. Stu says "It starts with just the acoustic guitar and Martin's voice
and that'll really hook it into some of the older stuff that we've done but
then we've got this colliery band sound," Stu jokes, "without Terry Wogan.
We did some recording for the song in Regent Hall, Oxford Street in the
Salvation Army place. We recorded some strings there and also some horns
for the track and we actually had some Salvation Army players on that so
that was a lot of fun." Lyrically, Martin describes the song, "It could be
about several people but it's really talking about someone that's really
going through it, almost suicidal that I was sitting with and trying to
help them through a few things. And you know the only phrase that you could
use sometimes is 'It's okay, we'll live to fight another day' and there's
some strong poetic language in there and we're pleased that's in there.
It's really a song of hope."

Back in the dressing room at the gig, everybody is crowded into one room.
Opening act Cathy Burton prepares to go stage and checks with the road
manager that everything is set. Stew Smith has just been given a crew cut.
I say my goodbyes and get ready to watch the gig. Tim Jupp suggests I let
the band give me a crew cut to "get rid of my Sue Renaldo hair!"
Hmmm...somehow, I don't think so!

This is an exciting period for Delirious? An excellent new album under
their belts, live dates and all sorts of world-wide possibilities. Martin
is enthusiastic "We're very happy with this album. I think we've done
extremely well and it's the best that we could possibly have done. We've
come out of the studio being totally happy with everything and that's a new
experience for all 5 of us you know. Su G adds "One of the greatest
compliments I've been paid in recent months is when I was playing some of
these songs to a guy who's not a Christian and he said 'wow, these are like
anthems'. As it went on he said 'this is like modern day hymns' and he was
saying 'there's an inspiration in the music, it's kind of the same sort of
inspiration you hear in the music of U2'. I thought that maybe we're
starting to see some of our dreams come about now. It's like we always want
create an environment where it's comfortable for people but where we can
talk about truth and talk about great positive things."

The prospect of mainstream success is something that the band have thought
deeply about. Martin explains, "I think that in our heads we're always
further on than where we actually are. I think that's part of who we are as
people. I think that's just in our make up. We're on "Top Of The Pops" in
our heads and whether it will ever happen, we're talking about what it's
going to be like when we do that or what it's like when we're in the
papers. I think we do always want to push the envelope but at the same time
be faithful to where we're at now."

Martin is under no illusions about the price of any fame that might come
his way. " I imagine it's a blessing and a curse. You have more demands on
you as a person but I think that at the same time, having that exposure and
platform also gives us room to do what we want to do and say what we want
to say. Unfortunately you can't have one without the other and to a measure
we understand that a little bit now. I think we're up for it. We want to
keep going."

Spurious? would like to extend extreme thanks, as ever, to Mike for allowing
us to use this. Mike Rimmer is a freelance journalist and the Assistant
Editor of Cross Rhythms Magazine. He can be contacted at
mrimmer@cmbc.u-net.com. To subscribe to Cross Rhythms magazine, contact Mike
at the above address or check out the website www.crossrhythms.co.uk

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**** d:end? ****
Well it's the end of another informative and information-packed dnews, but
with the exciting d:news coming out from d:land, it's just the start of the
Spurious? salivation. For a start, the entire Spurious? team will be off to
see delirious? rock the Shepherd's Bush Empire in only five days' time! Look
out for revamped gig reviews at *every* venue on the new tour, coming soon
to spurious.org !

[signed]

Adam, Adrian, Mike, Mike, Scooby

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