32, Woomble has come a long way since the early days of little more coy. “I don’t like to analyse them too much. A
Idlewild, once variously categorised as punk or heavy metal, lot of it is inspired and influenced by writers and poets, but
but who gradually mellowed to the point that they were it’s not specific.” But the title track, Before The Ruin, Roddy,
booked to play an acoustic set at the Cambridge Folk Festival. with lines like ‘When all these things have gone/They’ve
“It’s not something that was ever considered, it was just a gone in love and they’ve gone in wonder/And cracks
natural change. I never woke up and thought right, now I’m appear in rocks/As the cabin shakes in thunder…’ That’s
going to do folk music. I just started listening to different about the environment, right? “Erm…no, not really, it’s
things and grew to love folk music.” about…landscape. Some of the songs are about the sea as
a metaphor for life. They are influenced by the writer George
In 2006 McCusker produced Woomble’s first solo album
Mackay Brown, who’s a big inspiration.”
My Secret Is My Silence on Kate Rusby’s Pure label. It
surprised a lot of people – not least Woomble himself Phil Selway’s involvement in the album is
– and effectively established his parallel career as rock particularly fascinating. A fan of Kate Rusby,
star turned folk hero. “Yes, I’m proud of that album the Radiohead man met McCusker at a
and I’m delighted by the way it was received,” he couple of Rusby gigs, struck up email contact
says. “I wasn’t expecting anybody to take any notice and they started hanging out. McCusker
of it, but it got some great reviews. It was just so remembers with pride the night Selway
different. Kate Rusby’s dad gave me a box of 50 came to see the John McCusker Band playing
CDs to go out and sell at gigs, which wasn’t at Nettlebed Folk Club in Oxfordshire. “He
the way I was used to doing things, but joined the folk club and everything. At the
is maybe the way it should be. There end of the night he was helping to put the
may be people in the folk world who chairs away!” When Selway decided to make
think I’m an imposter and are very a solo album of his own songs, he asked
suspicious about me, but I haven’t McCusker to produce it and put a band
come across them. As far as I’m together. “It hasn’t come out yet but it’s
concerned the folk scene has a great album. He has a gorgeous voice,
been very open-minded and not that different to Thom Yorke’s voice.
welcoming.” I don’t know when it’s coming out, it’s
difficult with all the Radiohead projects
Ask him about the songs on
– he’s deadly serious about it and
Before The Ruin and he’s a
doesn’t want it to be the Radiohead
DMW
i
l
l
a
n
d
e
r
s
d

G
a
v
i
D
Properganda 0 9
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41