Like kids in a candy store–or better yet, like young Brits on their first tour of the U.S.–the Futureheads are losing sleep over all the things to see out of the windows of their tour bus.
But when the music on your self-titled debut (due Oct. 26) is a mix of the Clash, XTC and Devo, and you’re opening for one of the biggest bands in rock today (Franz Ferdinand), and you play to 3,000 people a night who have never heard of you and you pick up fans like David Bowie–does sleep really matter?
RedEye caught up with the surprisingly chipper Futureheads singer/guitarist Ross Millard on the phone from Los Angeles days before the group continued their North American sightseeing tour up the West Coast and into Canada before heading east toward their stop in Chicago at the Riv.
Since the Futureheads are still virtually unknown in America, are people showing up to the shows early to see you?
We’ve been received really warmly, and we didn’t expect that kind of reception. We thought audiences in New York and L.A. would be like those in London where everyone stands with arms crossed waiting to be impressed.
Your band is named for a Flaming Lips album title (“Hit to Death in the Future Head”). What’s your connection to their music?
Their approach to arrangements is something we like to do, especially the stuff they’ve made in the last few years. It’s lush pop music with intelligence. We’re trying to do that and not be basic.
Your accents are pretty thick–will you have subtitles in your videos?
(Laughs) I mean, when we came to America, people thought we were from Scotland. We’re now renowned in England for talking quite fast. I haven’t had any complaints about not [understanding] the music yet.
I hear David Bowie and Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker are now fans of your music?
I don’t think Bowie even got to see us play [in New York]. He told [drummer] Paul [Thomson] from Franz that he was bummed he missed the show because he was putting his daughter to bed. I couldn’t believe that Jarvis Cocker was there. If someone told me five years ago that I’d be playing a show for 3,000 people in New York with Jarvis in the audience, I wouldn’t believe it. It was flattering to see him there.
I hear your hometown of Sunderland was one of the most bombed cities in England during World War II. Where do you think it ranks now as far as its citizens getting bombed?
(Laughs) I think it ranks quite high actually. There’s nothing in the town center but bars, where there are meat markets and lots of fights. It’s a grim place on the weekend. It’s geared toward people who work hard in a factory and then go out and get bombed. It’s quite a depressing town.
Anything you want to do in Chicago?
I’ve always wanted to play at the Metro. I have some live tapes of bands there and wish we were playing there. This whole tour has been a road trip–every place we’ve ever wanted to play in America, we get to visit. It’s difficult to get any sleep because we’re always looking at things.
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Edited by Cara DiPasquale (cdipasquale@tribune.com) and Kris Karnopp (kkarnopp@tribune.com)
