Playin’ the Field Music

Field Music. The name might evoke images of trippin hippies with ukeleles wandering through a meadow, but it would take a serious stretch of the imagination to put this English quartet in that category. Instead, think rhythmic arrangements that wouldn’t occur to 99% of the population, perfect pop melodies, and insightful lyrics – all tied together by precision and clarity. The heart and soul of Field Music is brothers David and Peter Brewis, who are joined by the talented Kev Dosdale and Ian Black. They garnered critical acclaim with 2007’s Tones of Town, but then took a hiatus with no expiration date. So, enthusiasts ‘round the world celebrated with this February’s release of the double album Measure, which delivers over twenty more reasons to put these guys on repeat.

After three years of serious fanhood, this summer one of our intrepid staff saw Field Music in Manchester, England. “I’m glad to report that they did not disappoint; in fact, the show is definitely in my Top 5 Concerts That Were Worth The Really Long Plane Ride. That’s an elite club, my friends. So naturally, I was delighted to learn that they were coming Stateside this fall – and to Atlanta for the first time ever!”

In anticipation of this unprecedented event, we chatted with David Brewis about everything from style to Legos. We didn’t think it was possible, but David has further strengthened our convictions that Field Music is, in a word, brilliant…

UGAstyle: If you had (or have) an alter ego, what would his name be?
David Brewis: I think somewhere in the back of my mind, I imagine I’m a session bassist playing on Billy Joel records in the late 70s, so I’d have to have a name appropriate for that – maybe Jeff Trotsky. Yeah, that’d be perfect.

What is your favorite item of clothing, past or present?
DB: When I was 17 (- that sounds like a song) I bought a really close-fitting, second-hand, brown Yves Saint Laurent shirt that I loved. Eventually the seams started to split and it fell to pieces (I was a very skinny 17 year-old). I think I still have the pieces somewhere, just for nostalgia’s sake.

If you could collaborate with any artist today, who would it be?
DB: There are so many! I’d love to do some recording with The Fiery Furnaces – in terms of songwriting, arrangement and playing, they’re pretty awe-inspiring. In all honesty, I don’t know whether I’d be able to keep up.

One of my favorite tracks [from Measure] is “Let’s Write A Book”; I get hints of Talking Heads, David Bowie, and Devo. You’ve said that Led Zeppelin is a big influence, and even mentioned AC/DC. All of those bands are known for crazy antics and wild shows – can we expect any pyrotechnics on your U.S. tour?
DB: Oh dear – probably not! I love those bands but whatever influence we take from them, it’s probably not their behaviour either on- or off-stage. The ultimate aim for me onstage is to forget about the outside world as much as possible and feel like I’m actually creating (rather than just revisiting) music right there on the spot – it’s not easy but sometimes we get pretty close.

This round, you’ve got 2 guitars and a bassist. How has that affected live shows?
DB: We’re a lot less embarrassed these days! It makes such a difference having three people stood up onstage rather than just one. Probably everything’s a bit heavier but also with more dynamic variation.

When you want to blow off steam on the road, what do you do?
DB: If we have time, it’s nice to try out local beers – there are some great micro-breweries all round the States. We’re pretty boring generally – maybe we’ll watch a film or try and find some delicious food. In the US we tend to have very little free time – we spend a lot of time just driving.

What’s the craziest thing a fan has ever done?
DB: Mostly our fans are very polite – we tend to get a few people on every tour who are very keen to know what kind of guitar pedals we use. We have had someone make a video to one of our songs using a camera phone and lego, with actual lego depictions of us. That was pretty strange.

Sibling rivalry is a general fact of life; who beat up whom when you were kids?
DB: The general scenario was; Peter would psychologically torment me and I would explode in rage and frustration and hit him with something (my foot, a plastic helicopter, a waterpistol etc.). Then I’d be sent to my room and eventually, when I’d stopped crying and hitting things, we’d both have to apologise. It’s funny to think, because it’s so unlike us now – I don’t think of Peter as being manipulative in the slightest and I manage to maintain a veneer of calm almost all of the time.

What’s the story behind “Don’t Pass Me By“? Did someone have a eureka moment and say, “Hey, let’s put a Beatles song inside a different Beatles song”?
DB: We were asked to do it for a Mojo covermount CD where different artists were covering songs from the White Album. I think we were asked last, which is why we ended up with Ringo’s opus! It turned out to be a good thing – we didn’t feel we had to be reverential to the original! I was pondering what to do with it for a few days and had a bit of an idea; sat down with a guitar, only to discover that my new idea was actually Don’t Let Me Down. That tickled both of us, so we started figuring out ways to put lots of Beatles quotes in there – so there’s a bit of Michelle, a bit of Blackbird, a bit of Ob-la-di, some Strawberry Fields synth flutes, and on and on…

Sounds like your cuppa tea? Go check ‘em out with Efterklang and Buke and Gass this Monday (the 27th) at The Earl in Atlanta; $10, 21+. See you there!