Wendy James

by James Ellis, August 27th, 2004

Wendy James was the frontwoman with late-1980s punk popsters
Transvision Vamp. After such hits as I Want Your Love and Baby I
Don't Care, the band imploded before the release of their third
album. An Elvis Costello-penned solo debut failed to make a big
impact and she dropped from the music scene. Now she's back with a
new project, Racine, and lives in New York.




How do you get to live in New York?
You have to apply for a work permit as an artist of exceptional
merit.
Did you have to take in a load of Transvision Vamp albums?
No, I didn't. You just have to go in and prove that you have a body
of work behind you with some success around the world. Then you have
to have a genuine sponsor who will verify that it is in their
interests to have you here.

What have you been up to for the last ten years?
Honing the craft of songwriting and learning all the instruments.

How are your drumming skills?
They're programmed but I feel as though I have enough rhythm to pull
it off. I play keyboards, bass, guitar, singing and then do all the
arrangements and production. It sounds like an easy sentence to say
but it takes a lot of time. You can imagine, I've not played guitar
for years and years like some people, so it takes me slightly longer
to record things than it does others. I make mistakes so you start
again.

Did you not think to hire a bunch of kick-ass musicians?
No. I wouldn't have been able to get them to do what I wanted to do.
I could hear it all in my head.

Are you a control freak?
Well, if that's what it needs to be called, then yes. It was really
important the album played like I heard it. I didn't want to go
through all that: 'Can you play it a bit like this or a bit like
that. Language does not communicate what you're trying to say it
terms of rhythm and feel. 'A bit like this,' is a really shit
instruction. Of course, now I am forming a band but they have a
template of an album. I am still going to play guitar. It's a lot of
hard work - I never realised just how much. But if you do it all
yourself, then you can look at the artwork, the biography, the
website, the T-shirt then you get the satisfaction of knowing it's
been done right.

I do not need to punch out the groupies. How awful would that be?
How many hours do you work a day?
Most of them. There is a gallery round the corner from me that has a
huge archive of material and I spend hours in there coming up with
design ideas. I believe in osmosis - you don't have to read a book
cover to cover but the images stay. You never forget anything -
sometimes you just can't recall it.

Will being on the road be different?
Part of the magic of being on the road is you abdicate
responsibility for a while. It's all a bit of a fairy tale. In TV
the others had a good time - I tended to be hard at it.

You were in bed early every night?
No, but as the lead singer they tend to nab you for offshoots of
promotion. Everyone else gets to f**k around in the Grand Canyon.
I'd have to fly on and greet everyone in the next town. At least
that's what it was like in a pop band when you are gunning for
Billboard success. They work you into the ground and when you are in
a nut home they count their pennies and say: 'We had a good time,'
and 'adios'.

Are you into an American health regime?
No, but I have just started hard-core boxing training. I spend five
days a week getting up at 5.30 in the morning to be trained by a pro
boxer. It's on 14th street and it's not a poncy membership thing.
It's got a proper ring, a few punch bags and is largely populated by
bouncers from the nearby clubs who go to work off steam. I took it
on as I've smoked for so many years. I run round in my old sneakers
and my trainer, Nelson, keeps jabbing at my face and calling me a
chump. That's a good way to focus your energy [mimics a few one-
twos].

You seem to be getting quite animated.
Don't worry, I won't punch you.

How about groupies on tour?
Shut up. I do not need to punch out the groupies. How awful would
that be?

60 SECONDS EXTRA!: Does it feel weird to be back?
No. It feels more natural now. Transvision Vamp, despite many people
thinking it was just Wendy James, was a real gang. We were all in it
together. It was a whole teenage ebullience thing. You believe in it
because you believe in all your teenage reasons to be able to
believe in anything. I now know how much hard toil and sweat I've
put into it. I kept at it until I was satisfied. The short answer is
there's a good reason to talk to journalists now. It's not for a
peripheral reason, like 'I feel like doing an interview because I've
not been talked about for a while.'

60 SECONDS EXTRA!: How is it working here?
Dreamy. Very good. I wake up in the morning glad I'm alive. Fatigue
made me leave London. I'd walked down Portabello Road for 15 years
and I was fed up with doing the same thing. I wanted to wake up and
have a different vista. Some people move to Camden, I decided to
move to New York. I always had that feeling when I came
here: 'Wouldn't it be great to live in New York.' Then I thought to
myself: 'If you think it would be so great, just do it.'

60 SECONDS EXTRA!: What did you do?
I sold off some books, some records and clothes and came here with
two suitcases and an air ticket. I distilled my whole life into two
suitcases - which is very refreshing. Then I phoned a friend, asked
if I could crash, he gave me four weeks and I found somewhere two
days before my time was up.

60 SECONDS EXTRA!: Is having all this control a kick against the TV
days?
We were a young band and no young band ever does have full control.
We didn't even know half the things we should have control over. I
just love what I'm doing so much now that I don't want anything to
be done in the wrong way. I will have to employ people or at least
delegate certain tasks, otherwise I won't be able to do anything.

60 SECONDS EXTRA!: When are you back on the road?
October. That's ages away. Providing they are good musicians it
shouldn't be a problem. All they have to do is look good and play it
right. It's easy, isn't it? There's no way round it. I said I'll gig
in October and I'll gig in October.

60 SECONDS EXTRA!: So will you now be working yourself into the
ground and end up in a nut home?
I hope I'm much better at saying no to things now. We'll see. If I
am worked to the ground, it's a good thing. The alternative is that
no one's there.

60 SECONDS EXTRA!: Are people harking back to TV a lot?
A little bit but mainly to ask what I've been up to. People seem
genuinely interested in the music. There seems to be an electroclash
moment in the UK at the moment and coincidentally people are saying
this sounds similar.