The Jesus & Mary Chain

Thirty years ago The Jesus & Mary Chain released the album Psychocandy. Now on the road celebrating that anniversary, KS caught up with frontman of the Scottish band Jim Reid about the tour, new material, and upcoming dates in Japan.

Is there a new studio album in the pipeline or any new material to look out for in the live performances?
We’re working on an album at the moment, but we won’t be ready to play any of it until next year.

As the tour is celebrating 30 years since Psychocandy, do you anticipate a majority of the audience looking for nostalgia? Or is the current tour attracting people new to the band?
The very fact that the record was released 30 years ago and the fact that the music has been something of a backdrop to some people’s lives, means that there is the inevitable element of nostalgia, but there is much more than this. All age groups have been represented when we’ve played this album. There are people out there who weren’t even born when Psychocandy was released. There are even teenagers in the audience at our shows, so there must be more going on than mere nostalgia.

You said in a 1987 interview that the aim of the band was to be “top ten all over the world.” What goals do The Jesus and Mary Chain have today?
Essentially, the Mary Chain in 2015 wants what the Mary Chain in 1985 wanted. We want to make music totally on our own terms. We do this now as we did it then. Our attitude has always been “this is what we do – take it or leave it.” We hope you’ll take it, but if you don’t, we can live with that.

Scottish alternative rock band formed 1983 • umeda AKASO, Osaka • Nov 24 • Alt. rock • 7pm • ¥8,800 • Tel: 06-7897-2450