Stirring up the Soup Dragons
What’s a group founder to do when his bandmates up and quit in a huff? Pick up the pieces and carry on.
That’s what Sean Dickson did when Sushil Dade, Jim McCulloch and Paul Quinn exited the Soup Dragons. At the time, Dickson had begun work on the Glasgow rock band’s Raw TV/Mercury album, “Hydrophonic” (which was released last month).
“I wrote and recorded 35 songs,” Dickson said, “and I didn’t have any pressure because I recorded it in my own studio.
“There was a kind of blind vision to it. I mean, I went ahead and did it without giving it much thought till it was finished. Then I realized, ‘Hey, I did this all by myself.’ “
Despite the setbacks, “Hydrophonic” stretches pop’s boundaries. One of the album’s better tracks, “Rest In Peace,” goes from reggae to thrash-metal in five minutes. Elsewhere, Dickson experiments with dance-rock, funk and rap. He played nearly all the instruments and enlisted help from Bootsy Collins, Mickey Finn (T. Rex) and ex-Specials Lynval Golding and Neville Staples.
“The LP has the same ingredients as our last three LPs,” Dickson said, “but this time it’s just better executed.”
About the Author
Gerry Galipault Gerry Galipault debuted Pause & Play online in October 1997. Since then, it has become the definitive place for CD-release dates — with a worldwide audience.
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