‘We’re no pastiche band – we like the music we play’
Seventies-influenced rockers Cats In Space are back, with a new album and tour. MARTIN HUTCHINSON talks to guitarist and songwriter Greg Hart
OK, so the band name is slightly surreal – where did that come from?
Well, the short answer is that we wanted a name that was different as we were going into a field of hundreds. We kicked around a few ideas, but then my cat died, and the drummers’ cat died and we said that they were up in space looking down on us.
When listening to your music you can hear various influences – Queen, ELO and 10cc. Is that sound deliberate?
No, it’s not deliberate. The music is what I wanted to do. I grew up in the 70s and had older brothers, so I was brought up on glam rock, then Kiss, Thin Lizzy and the AOR sound of the 80s. When I came back to writing after some years there was so much AOR out there, and then we had bands like The Carpenters, 10cc, Pilot and ELO, and I decided that I was just gonna do stuff I like. When the Cats were starting out I mentioned this to Mick Wilson, who came from the same background [he was formerly with 10cc]. Basically, the music is just us being totally honest. We’re not a pastiche band though. We like the music we play and if other people like it too, that’s great, and by the time we “Cats-ify” it, it sounds like us.
Are you happy with the new album, Daytrip To Narnia?
I’m exceptionally pleased with the album. It took us a year to do – we recorded in four different studios. It was a massive slog, but a labour of love. It’s the best thing I’ve ever done as a songwriter. We really went for it with the album. Paul Manzi’s voice has a bit more “soul” to it and we’ve captured Jeff [Jeff Brown – the bassist] in a bottle.
Andy Scott from Sweet joined you on the track The Story Of Johnny Rocket. This is a seven-song concept. How did that come about?
We wrote the song Twilight and then we wrote Yesterday’s News. Both Mick and me thought they went together so we decided to expand upon the concept. I love conspiracies and we could in fact extend the whole thing into a two-hour musical – some of the tracks on our first two albums would fit in as well.
Are you looking forward to coming to Nottingham?
We always look forward to touring as we are a great band live and have really devoted fans. I love being in the studio too, but once you’re out on the road – you can’t beat it.
Which tracks will you play on tour?
We’re not sure yet... we have three albums’ worth of material, but we’ll probably do maybe five songs from the new one. Johnny Rocket will open the set with Thunder In The Night, and we’ll probably do Narnia, Silver And Gold and Hologram Man.
Tell us a little secret about the tour?
There will be a few twists and turns in the show and we’re thinking of doing an acoustic set in the later shows. And there’s something in the planning stage that I can’t talk about yet, but it’ll be something exceptionally good.
Cats In Space will be bringing their Tour Of Narnia to the Rescue Rooms, Nottingham, on Friday, March 15. Tickets are £20.35 (inc. booking fee) from the box office: 0115 828 3173 or www.rescuerooms.com