Black is wonderful

After the huge success of the album “Wonderful life”, we’ve looked forward. Black proves us that he could continue to forge ahead.
Here he is, in coming back with “Comedy”, his second album, where the legendary melancholy of Colin Vearncombe (the composer/performer) is felt with more irony.
The intelligence of his texts is accompanied with music of great quality, and we find Black, with pleasure, more sure of himself and controlling perfectly his new status of international star.

When you become a reliable value of Box office, you have more ways at your disposal, does that enable to work better?
B: In every case, things become more difficult. Indeed, after the success of a first album, the record company knows that they earn a lot of money, so they demand that you mustn’t move away from the right way. They allow you to have the best musicians, the best studios. I must say that there were no budget restrictions about my first album.

In France, the album signed “Black” is appreciated as a quality and preciosity label by the beauty of the record sleeves and video-clips, what do you think about it?
B: People always said me that my music will please to French people because they like aestheticism. Besides, I find their musical style more intense and more plain than the English one. On the other hand, English people don’t appreciate melancholic songs, they often call me depressed.

Do you think that the fact to be appreciated, it’s a driving force for inspiration?
B: It’s true that the inspiration increases when we have success. I’m indeed less afraid to write my second album, without really to analyse why. Now i realise that the success helps tremendously and raises creativity. Lately i went for two weeks on holidays and i have already begun to write my third album. I think that it is rather good, at least you will listen to it.

Did you write your second album with a specific concept?
B: Non i don’t think so, because at first i don’t know which are the songs on the 16 that i wrote, these ones we’ll keep on the album. There are 10 on the album and 6 others, which stayed hidden.

In listening to “Comedy”, we felt that you are more invested yourself personally that in your first album, that you let yourself go to please yourself.
B: Yes indeed, and it’s maybe dangerous to please oneself because i hadn’t restraints, no inhibitions. I opted for a more "harsh" style that even my mother, who is my more faithful fan, she found too rude. In listening to it she said me "But what’s that?". I think that in the end, this album is warmer, more human, more close to my reality.

You, the unclassifiable musician, how do they appreciate your music in Great Britain, the country of the “pop” and of the "new wave" par excellence?
B: I have different problems with England because of their attitude towards me. A journalist said that i was boring and not at all exciting. The English don’t seem to understand me. As for me, i can’t give a special label to my music.

Talk about "The big one" which is the 1st single of the album.
B: I wrote it very rapidly. It’s a song dedicated to missing opportunities. It arrives sometimes that we let chances through because of many mistakes that we did, often unintentionally, the inspiration comes to me when i broke off with the woman i loved. With her we tried several times to restore our relationship. We lost time because we didn’t realize that it was impossible to warm up our love already cold. We failed several "rendezvous" and we finished to get lost definitely.

Your songs, are they all autobiographical or else is it the representations of your dreams, your fantasies?
B: Sometimes they are autobiographical and sometimes they are the fruits of my fantasies. It arrives that i talk about the people’s experiences that surround me.

Do you have a spontaneous writing or else do you work hard on your songs to refine them?
B: Indeed, i’m naturally lazy. And yet, it arrives that some songs are difficult to write, as “Now you’re gone”, i took five months to write it.

Are you satisfied with your last album?
B: I’m never pleased with myself. When I finished writing "Wonderful life" I was enough satisfied. And yet, with hindsight, I pointed out the mistakes that I did. I suppose that I will feel the same thing for “Comedy”. It must to say that i listen again to “Wonderful life” ‘cause i remembered a journalist’s criticism that said that my songs told always about memories. As for that, I replied to him that if i didn’t try hard to come back on the past, how would i arrive to control the future. We repeat often the same mistakes when we don’t come back again on them.

"Comedy" why this title?
B: It’s a funny title, isn’t it? No, in fact i thought of Liverpool in writing this album. Indeed, the bottom of my songs is like to the Liverpool’s mentality. I have a certain connivance with them. There, the serious subjects are taken with derision. It’s the Comedia del arte. Then in fact, it’s happened a lot of tragedies.

After several years of hell, how do you feel the success of "Wonderful life"?
B: It must say that i was convinced, deep down of me that the success will arrive. I didn’t know when, but i waited for it, even if i had sometimes periods of doubts.

Do you think that “Wonderful life” has gone well because it was better than the others records or because it was due to a combination of “magic” circumstances?
B: I don’t think that i did good music before to be famous. So it’s due to the evolution of my musical style. For me, nothing arrives by magic.

So talk about this evolution. How can you explain the contrast between “Wonderful life” which is more melancholic and “Comedy” which is more ironic?
B: I can’t really have changed my attitude between the two albums. I think that the irony is a characteristic of people who live at Liverpool. The irony, it’s the look that we give at life when we are surer of oneself or when all goes well. For “Wonderful life” I was anxious enough to know what people would think about it. While for “Comedy” I get worried less. If I’m ironic in my songs, it’s that I don’t really take myself seriously. "Comedy" it’s the reflection of someone who when he is happy, but even he has some anxieties in his head. On the other hand, when he is unhappy, he’s wallowing in misery. That is the big contradiction of human being.