Photograph courtesy of Rankin
Gaz Coombes is in the best of moods. "Oh, the tour’s been going great!" he enthuses as he settles down with his first pint and gets ready to discuss his 13 favourite albums. "I played the Queen Elizabeth Hall the other week and I’ve got to say that it’s probably the best gig I’ve ever played."
Really? "Oh yeah," he continues. "Everything about it felt right and the audience was brilliant. But I’ve got to say that the whole tour has been fantastic."
It shouldn’t come as any surprise really. His second solo album, Matador, is quite probably the best thing that he’s committed to posterity. Which isn’t to take anything away from Supergrass, a band that outgrew its Britpop origins to deliver a series of albums that successfully coupled their youthful exuberance with a growing maturity. And there’s certainly no bitterness about his former group thanks to an amicable split. Indeed, throughout our conversation Coombes speaks warmly and fondly of Supergrass, fulsome in his praise of his former colleagues. But to listen to Matador is to glimpse into Coombes’ world as he grows older, wiser and more contemplative. Moreover, it finds Coombes painting from a musical palette that hadn’t previously coloured his back catalogue. Indeed, speaking with Coombes about his 13 favourite albums, it becomes apparent how much they’ve influenced Matador and while Coombes’ knack with melody remains intact, the delivery of the songs is in marked contrast to what went on before.
Reaching for another sip of his beer, Coombes gets ready to talk about those albums…
Matador is out now on Hot Fruit Recordings/Caroline International. Gaz Coombes begins a UK tour at The Cluny in Newcastle on April 30 and plays Field Day in London on June 7; head to his website for full details and tickets and click on his image below to begin scrolling through Gaz’s choices
