Hamell On Trial (Ed Hamill) in conversation with
TONY CLAYTON-LEA.
What's on your rider?Black coffee and an amp.
What would be on your fantasy rider?Black coffee, an amp, stamps, a cellphone with minutes to call my son, clean underwear with cool graphics, new clean socks with cool graphics, Wi-Fi, a four-star hotel key, barbecue, energy drinks, guitar strings and a lady of the evening.
What's your pre-gig ritual/ routine?Change strings, play guitar for a couple of hours, take notes.
How do you get to the gig?Car mostly, subway, train and plane, rarely taxi.
What's the best gig you've been to?Iggy Pop at Reading/ Leeds, 2001. The Replacements at the Channel in Boston, 1986. Bill Hicks in Austin, Texas, 1993. Kimya Dawson in Austin, Texas, 2011. Grinderman, NYC, 2010. The Who in Syracuse, NY, 1968. These six gigs completely blew me away, they changed the way I viewed performer/audience interaction, and definitely informed the way I play.
Who is the most famous person to have shown up at one of your gigs?I don't pay too much attention to that stuff. Henry Rollins? Ani DiFranco? Kimya Dawson? Bam Margera?
What's the most you've ever paid for a gig ticket?Paid $700 for two tickets to see The Rolling Stones. A bad investment, I might add.
Groupies. Would you?My marriage just ended. I was faithful for 20 years. Yeah, maybe, but bear in mind that the sexiest part of a woman is her brain.
Have you a special stage wardrobe?Sometimes I dig dressing up. More often than not these days. Not in that bullshit "I'm trying to look like Green Day" way, more like a Nick Cave sartorial splendour kinda way.
Do you like to meet and greet fans after the gig?Absolutely.
Any useful stage tips?The greats all found a distinctive style: be informed by others but find your own thing.
What's the worst thing ever thrown at you?A left jab.
If you could be in any other band, which one?Miles Davis in 1968.
Who's invited to your aftershow party?Kate Moss. But she hasn't shown yet.
Hamell On Trial play Cork on Wednesday and Dublin on Thursday
