home back to interviews	Overhearing Distant Sounds Ian Salmon - February 2001
	A long time ago, we started the ‘famous’ ‘Overhearing Distant Sounds’ series with Clive. Since then, we did seven of these ‘musical interviews’. And I’m sure that when we’ve ‘overheard’ all band members, we can easily start all over again, because there are so many songs to listen to and talk about. This time, we sat down with Ian, the smiling face of Arena. In a rather crowded kitchen at the Lucky, Rijssen (Holland) I pressed the play button... STING - MOON OVER BOURBON STREET The first song is from a very famous musician who is known for his singing and being a bass player at the same time. We never see or hear Ian sing, but what does he have to say about the former front man of The Police? Every time I hear Sting, I think ‘I should buy some Sting.’ I haven’t got any solo stuff of him in my collection. Particularly, I think, it’s Ten Summoners Tales... I’ve heard a couple of tracks from that album. I really must get that! And that’s obviously because it’s got that jazz standard chord sequences on it. It’s probably Marsalis on it. I would love to see him play live one day. Sting is one of those people who manage to play bass and sing at the same time. To really hold it down as a front man and a bass player isn’t easy. He used to play fretless bass in The Police... I like that. SHADOWLAND – MAD AS A HATTER Let’s bring back some memories for Ian. Maybe he does recognise this one. [Laughs] I should know it, but if I were asked to play it, I wouldn’t know it. It would start coming together. It’s like some distant memory. As you know, we’re talking about coming out again and dusting the cobwebs of these old songs. We all have good memories of doing these songs. I think it’s been too long now. I think we’re all out for it now. That album particularly [Ring Of Roses – eds.] is very strange because at the time when we just finished it, I thought ‘I’m not sure that we did what we wanted to do with it.’ So when I listen back to it...  I don’t have that often, because I like to move forward and I always seem to have some new stuff I’m working on. I never seem to have time to listen to the things I’ve done. I always have to choose what I listen to and occasionally it will be things I’ve done in the past. It’s amazing, but it’s the first Shadowland album I’ve recently dusted off... Ring Of Roses. It just has this sound to it... It’s a long time ago now, but I’ve gone through it, and I listened to Through The Looking Glass as well... Those were good times. IRON MAIDEN - RIME OF THE ANCIENT MARINER Let’s turn up the volume for some heavy rock. When Ian joined Arena he wanted to bring a more heavy sound, so let’s ask him what he thinks is heavy. This is quite embarrassing... I’ve got no idea who they are. They sound really like classic 70’s rock. The bit of the twin guitar coming in at the end of the fragment it reminds me of Thin Lizzy. Some of the earliest stuff I listened to... There was a bunch of bands around that time, they all passed me by including Van Halen to some extent. Later on I checked out a lot of Van Halen, which I really enjoyed, but at that time I was more into my Bowie phase or my U2 phase... RED HOT CHILLI PEPPERS - CALIFORNICATION Okay, he doesn’t know all bands from the past (like Iron Maiden), but what if we play him something from the present. The following band has got some real top ten hits at the moment. I don’t know the actual track, but it’s obviously the Chilli Peppers. I really like them. I really like the sort of funky sound. The combination of the drummer and the bass player, they’re brilliant... and mad as well! They got a really good balance in being mad and still very serious in what they do. I really enjoy them. There are a lot of albums on my ‘big hit’ list. I’ve got to get this and I’ve got to get that and... I’ve got one of their albums with me on this tour actually. QUEEN - WE WILL ROCK YOU In the interviews we did with both John and Clive, we discovered they’re rather huge Queen fans. How about Ian? Again, there’s not a lot of them in my collection. Every time I hear bits and pieces of Queen... John and Clive are huge Queen fans. It’s funny, because you hear a lot of people talking about ‘I really like Queen’, but the influence doesn’t come through as strong as some other bands do. It’s quite hard to really work out what Queen did. Well, they have a really identifiable singer, but it’s quite hard to work out what those details really were. Of course, Freddy Mercury’s voice... you realise how good he was when other bands play their songs. Although George Michael did a very good job. Brian May’s sound is great as well. They all have their individualism that made it work. I think there is something very English about them... whatever that may be. I’ve not heard shed loads of their songs, but I know some of the earliest stuff and I thought I must go out and get some of it. Well, there’s still time... U2 - SUNDAY BLOODY SUNDAY When we selected the songs for this Overhearing, we phoned Clive to give us some hints what to play for Ian. The first band he mentioned was U2. Personally, I prefer music that has been written and played from the heart. So obviously, U2 is one of my favourite bands as well. Especially when they play live, I think they’re great! Again some people who play with conviction. I quite went through a U2 phase myself. I saw them a couple of times. Again they have got an individual sound. They still play rock music, but it seems to come from their own character and to be played from the heart. Very creative people as well... What they’re doing now is different. Yeah... why do they need to do that? But at the same time it’s interesting how these people move on. You could have a certain amount of respect for people who try to move on and try something different. I don’t like what they do at the moment, but it’s good searching for something. ARENA - MOVIEDROME For the last tour this epic was chosen as the opening of the concert. Most of the fans are really surprised when this song fills the venue. What does this mean for the band? Are they nervous about it or what? Right now, this means something different to what it probably would mean in a couple of months’ time. To the moment it’s the big low nose. There is some sort of panic... there are loads of people expecting us to do our jobs. It’s a great feeling.  And it’s another album... when we finished it and it had been mastered and it came back... and I wasn’t sure if we achieved what we wanted with it. And yet I got back to it with a bit more distance. I wanted a more grunge-y sound... Probably a more individual sound. I mean, the other guys do have their individual character. The trouble with that is, and I’m aware of that, you’re not going to hear that individual character and you just trying to play and hope that someone else can do enough... Was I having enough respect for the music someone else wrote and wanted from me? But at the same time, when listening back to it, the great thing about this album is that the songs are real growers.  If they don’t grab you the first time and you listen to it a few times, then they just creep up on you. And they stay with you after a while! But at the same time when listening back to it, the great thing about this album is that the songs are real growers. If they don’t grab you the first time and you listen to it a few times and then they just creep up on you. And they stay with you after a while! PINK FLOYD - US AND THEM When you play in all sort of symphonic bands, does this mean you like to listen to it a lot? I wish he tuned his bass [laughs]. I don’t know what it is about Pink Floyd, somehow they’re not one of my favourite bands. I bought Dark Side Of The Moon and Wish You Were Here; I was really into them for a space of time and then didn’t really listen to them for another space of time after that. I think it was The Wall that put me off. I thought it was a really good album at that time. Shortly after, they were doing it live and I thought it was kind of depressing. I thought ‘Are we here for some Roger Waters kind of therapy?’ I also listened back to Wish You Were Here after some time... There is about twenty minutes of really good music and twenty minutes of kind of ‘padding’ for me. David Gilmour is really great... it’s not all of it I can’t hear, but it’s not something I tend to go back to and listen to. There are always sections that really annoy me! MADONNA - HOLIDAY The quality of the tracks so far is rather high. But what if we play him a real ‘summer pop song’? This is a song that keeps you warm for two minutes! Yeah, Madonna, well... people put it down a lot, but it’s just good pop music. Quite well written and it had a lot of effect on a lot of people. They used some real musicians, not all computers. I really got respect for her. She had a sort of vision to keep going forward with her songs and progress. I haven’t got any Madonna albums, but it’s not because I wouldn’t have one. Maybe I should get a collection of her Greatest Hits. It’s just chewing gum pop and I’m sure she knows that. MARILLION - GRENDEL Sorry, but we have to play this... because you (Arena) are playing (a part of) it again on this tour... Marillion... God... Yeah. That’s the problem again; when Marillion was coming in, I was into my Bowie/U2 period and they sort of passed me by. Again, they really progressed as well in what they’re doing. It’s the same thing as with Pink Floyd in a way. Not that I would say that I don’t like them, because they’re great. I enjoy their songs from time to time. It’s just one of those things with symphonic rock, there’s a lot of little bits that, unless you’re really into it, are often going to the bits you don’t like. Or a song that you like in the last section, but the bit leading up to it leaves you cold. And Marillion seems to have that quite a lot for me. There will be a section where I think ‘It’s gorgeous’ and another section where I think ‘Why? Why did you do that?’ By the way, the drumming on that song is wonderful [laughs]. The drumming is fantastic! STRANGERS ON A TRAIN - THE KEY We all know Ian has done a lot of work together with Clive. And when you think of the ‘Nolan projects’ you obviously think of Strangers On A Train. Some of the things we listened to, have something personal. And now, hearing Tracey’s voice reminds me of some good times. Recording with her and working with her... God... I haven’t seen her for ages now. Listening to it is a separate thing because you hear... which one is that? You can hear Clive’s very classical. I don’t think I would have listened to it if Clive and Tracey weren’t on there. You haven’t got any Britney Spears haven’t you? When people ask me ‘Who’s your big influence?’, I say: ‘Britney Spears!’ DIRTBOX [JOHN JOWITT SOLO ALBUM –EDS.] - STORY When John Jowitt was in Arena, he did this solo album, as you probably know. We play this song, just to drive the conversation into that direction. And it worked. Who are his favourite musicians and does he want them on his own solo album? If there would be one... I heard some other stuff of it. Completely different. I really like the sound of the fretless bass on this one. We talked about using it on Immortal?, but it doesn’t fit into the music of Arena, which is a shame. I always wanted to do it. It’s got that growly rock sound! Probably, I would use an even wider range of music on my own solo album. It would depend on the reason I was doing an album. If I was doing it for Verglas, and I don’t think it’s going to happen, then I would have to be aware of the audience it would attract. To some extent, you’re making an album the audience would like. It could have some out and out jazz-fusion tracks on it. I’m not sure I would produce an album that is purely instrumental. Not that I would copy Pat Metheny, but it would have some parallels. But it would also have some songs on it. And I mean some songs like the Chilli Peppers and some progressive rock influence as well. But it would also have that three-minute pop song on it. There would probably have bits of all of these on it. I would love to have Clive on it! The things he has done in the past... I want him on one track. He really fits onto other peoples’ albums. Talking about people playing from the heart, he has really got that! I like to have people on my album that are close to me. You don’t know how the big stars are when you work with them. So when you start with a project you want everybody to be happy with the things they do. And I’d like Jeff Beck to do a guitar solo and Pat Metheny to do another solo. And I’d like to have some horn players on it. But the list would be huge. You have to stop me dreaming like that... By: Bram Verwey and Marcel Kolenbrander