Although they never quite scaled the heights U2 attained, it's undeniable that fiery Welsh combo THE ALARM were mightily popular during the 1980s and left behind a legacy involving 13 Top 40 singles when they finally called time in 1991.
Or did they? After spells with Coloursound (also featuring ex-Cult guitarist Billy Duffy) and his ongoing Dead Men Walking project, leader MIKE PETERS began to think about his old band again.
An elaborate, Elvis Costello-style pseudonym as The Poppyfields brought the band back to the public's consciousness with the punky energy of hit single "45RPM" this spring and - hey presto - The Alarm are back with us. W&H asked Mike to fill in the past, present and future gaps and discovered why he's returned firing on all cylinders again.
Mike Peters is one of the friendliest people we've been fortunate enough to speak to over the past couple of years, and whatever you may feel about The Alarm's earlier legacy, he's undeniably a top bloke himself. Mike, set us up for the current spate of Alarm activity. Was it your involvement (with Pete Wylie, Glen Matlock and Kirk Brandon) in Dead Men Walking that set the wheels in motion?
"Not in itself," replies Mike.
"It was more because I was busy with both DMW and Coloursound with Billy (Duffy) that I think it refreshed my love of what I'd been doing before with The Alarm. All roads seemed to be leading back to it, especially as we spend time trading stories with DMW....that's been pretty cathartic in itself and expending all that has made me feel better, definitely. Sometimes you run away from what you love and you need to confront the reasons why. Does that make sense?"
Yeah, I do know where you're coming from there actually. But tell us some more about the DMW project. Were you friendly with Pete, Glen and Kirk previously?
"Well, it all started with the first reformed Alarm tour in 2000," Mike recalls.
"We asked Spear Of Destiny to open the shows, and they agreed, which was great. I was into Kirk's stuff for years, back to Theatre Of Hate and he came to see Coloursound play in London and we talked him into the idea of a new project there. I'd had this idea of forming a band around a core of singer/ songwriters and got Kirk interested."
"It was similar with Pete (Wylie)," he continues, " as he came to The Alarm's Liverpool gig and we commendeered him in the dressing room as well (laughs). Then Glen turned up to the next London show and we got him on board. It was exciting, but we were flying by the seat of our pants early on: the first DMW walking gig in Edinburgh involved all of 30 minutes rehearsal at Wylie's house! The original idea was just to do our own songs on our own acoustically, but we got into the idea of playing on each other's songs. It was great, still is."
OK, so obviously this helped to build confidence, but the fact that you released "45RPM" under the name The Poppyfields suggests you were still wary of committing again in public?
"Yeah, well it was initially to test the water with public opinion," says Mike openly.
"But saying that, we knew we were onto something with "45RPM." There was something about it from the beginning. The response we got from promo copies was really positive and we thought well, what have we got to lose if we release it as a single? Plus, we knew damn well there were people in "the biz" who wouldn't even have taken an Alarm record out of its' sleeve, so it was a way of circumventing that."
Mike says this with a fair bit of disgust, but the last laugh has been his as "45RPM" charted as high as number 28. Despite the psuedonym, this was no mean feat, considering to most people the idea of The Alarm as chart popsters again must have seemed like a very long shot at best. Did you really expect the single to do so well?
"No, I was surprised," admits Mike freely.
"I thought our fanbase might scrape it into the top 40, but The Alarm had become such an easy target and as The Poppyfields we got away with a load of exposure we probably wouldn't have had otherwise.I mean, people really bought into it, everyone was saying it was like the Pistols and The Clash and even the likes of Steve Lamacq and XFM were playing it to death."
Result. Talking of Punk's leading lights, though, the intro to the song reminds me of SLF'S "Alternative Ulster"..which had a B-side called "78 Revolutions.".And you have SLF drummer Steve Grantley in the new version of the band. Am I detecting something here?
"Hmm, yeah OK," laughs Mike. "Fair cop. Actually, when I was writing it, it seemed almost too simple, I was embarrassed about playing it to the band. Then Steve (Grantley) heard it when we were having a tea break one day and he thought it was great. I only had part of it at the time and he helped me with the rest. It does surely have elements of both SLF and The Clash, but then we owe both of those bands a debt of gratitude anyway. Without them there'd have been no Alarm."
Is it just me, or have you returned louder and angrier than ever? Is that just because of the way the world is or is it because you feel you have a point to prove?
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"Mmm, I dunno about angrier, so much, it's not directly either of those things," Mike considers.
"The new album ("In The Poppyfields" out on Snapper Music) is a loud record, though, certainly. I'm proud of what we did before, but because we now have Steve, Craig (Adams- bass, ex-Sisters Of Mercy) and James (Stevenson - guitar, ex- Gen X/ Chelsea) it's got an element of being a debut album again. It's great live because with the current set there's no time where we play back to back oldies. The singaongs live are the new songs. I'd say it's the sound of us being fired-up rather than being angry."
Fair enough, but an anger certainly manifests itself on one of the album's highpoints, "The Drunk & The Disorderly." What was the starting point for a song that to me sounds rather like a survivor's blues, albeit done Who-style?
"Well, I'd seen a number of my contemporaries taken down, " sighs Mike.
"I was very upset by what happened to Stuart Adamson (ex-Skids/ Big Country) who struggled so long and eventually hanged himself. The song sort of started there, though it's not all directly about Stuart. I suppose it's about blokes my age battling demons and looking at addictive problems in peoples' lives. I'm glad to say music has always been there for me, but it's not enough for some. Then when I read about Joe Strummer's death that really hit me too."
One of the other songs I find really effective on the new record is the title track that closes the album. It's got a quieter, more wistful quality which suits you. Is this a direction The Alarm might follow more in future?
"That's probably come more from the solo work I've done," replies Mike.
"It is a song that looks back and it again refers to me breaking up the original band in 1991 and that being me running away from that situation."
He takes a pause.
"So yeah, the song harks back to historical times with the band and writing the song was part of a healing process for me. But yeah, the softer side has always been there, even if it was maybe more in the background. It's taken me most of the 1990s to get to be comfortable with my past and it's been the annual "Gathering" gigs I've done in Wales where I'd have to commit to singing Alarm songs that gradually brought me back round. Eventually I realised it was taking me back to The Alarm. I'm fine with it now, I'm fine being Mike Peters of The Alarm."
Besides, with the internet you can now attract a new breed of fan. Are you getting a younger crowd coming through?
"Yeah and listening to your fans is the most important thing," says Mike, and you really cannot doubt his sincerity.
"I mean, the songs that made the album were out of 50 that were voted for by the fans. Plus touring songs before recording is still a cornerstone. Even back in 1985 when we did the "Absolute" tour that was billed as a try out for a new album and it really helped. We got into a situation where the album we made was supposed to be with (producer of U2'S "Rattle And Hum") Jimmy Iovine,but he ended up letting us down, but the plus side was I write "Spirit Of '76" (one of the band's biggest hits) from that and did something similar with "Eye Of The Hurricane" in 1987. Playing live helps you learn more about the songs you're writing."
Which presumably is what you have in mind in the near future?
"Yes, it's my intention to keep a balance with my different projects," Mike divulges.
"In September I'll be doing Dead Men Walking again and I've been talking to Billy Duffy again, so I'd say more Coloursound activity is mooted and obviously The Alarm. We've just stepped off a plane from the States and we're already talking about making a new album before the end of 2004."
That's positivity for you...
"Yeah, well we're lucky to be doing this and right now I wanna stay in this moment as long as I can," says Mike.
"It's pedal to the metal time. The Alarm are here to stay."
Defiant to the last. That's Mike Peters. Write him off at your peril, my children.
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