Interview: From laundromat to Morrissey
Written by: Sarah Holt
Los Angeles is a strange place. One minute you’re washing your smalls at the Laundromat, an hour later you’re interviewing Morrissey.
Local radio station Indie 103.1FM announced that the former Smiths icon was holding a rare TV conference ahead of his residency at the Hollywood Palladium.
A chance for Music Towers to infiltrate?
So, I sped down Sunset Boulevard; charmed the doorman, courtesy of my finest Leicester accent, and next thing I knew it was my turn to quiz Morrissey.
Morrissey had returned to Los Angeles for an unprecedented 10-day residency at the Hollywood Palladium. He would be the last artist to play there before the venue closes for much-needed renovations.
Dressed in a crisp, navy suit and Morrissey t-shirt, the man himself, backed by his band, showcased five songs – Let Me Kiss You, Stop Me If You Think You’ve Heard This One Before, and new compositions All You Need is Me, That’s How People Grow Old and One Day Goodbye Will be Farewell.
The trademark poise, exaggerated swishes and arched eyebrows were all in place, so was he still enjoying touring? Because, um, sometimes Mr Morrissey it’s hard to tell with you.
“Deliriously happy,” Morrissey dead-pans back.
“I don’t ever call this, being on stage, performing. To me it’s quite natural.
“Performance is fake and it’s difficult for me to think of this as a show. Off stage, maybe that’s when I’m performing.”
Hmmmm. Not an easy one this.
Morrissey, now in the midst of a 177-leg tour, left LA to relocate to Rome last year, but the city still holds him in its thrall and vice versa.
At his opening show that evening, the audience scream at the intro of every song – maybe even before the first bar of The Smiths’ Death of A Disco Dancer.
They chant his name and there are gifts too, a handmade manga comic, and flowers, of course.
What is it about Los Angeles that raises a smile from the Pope of Mope?
“I still love it here,” says Morrissey. “It’s crazy, it’s insane but other aspects are more (pause) gratifying.
“I find it visually beautiful, I like the brightness and it’s glamorous. That’s what I needed.
“I thought I would last a year here but then the years flipped by.
“I’ve stayed in Italy for a long time but everything I possess is still in this city.”
In a world away from the dark Manchester streets of the 1980s that spawned The Smiths, Morrissey and his music are idolised by LA’s huge Latino community.
At his show, they out-numbered us aging indie kids by 10-1 – at least. Just so as you know, a film on the subject, Is It Really So Strange, explores the bridge that Mozzer has unwittingly provided across two cultures, brilliantly.
On the subject of his fervent LA fanbase Morrissey coyly says: “Well I’ve heard they love me, but I don’t jump to conclusions.
“But I can’t answer why I have such a big Latino following here. They like singers who are impassioned, they like crooners.
“I’m outside the mainstream, and the mainstream never let me in. When you write and create it’s important to be yourself and that’s what I always try to do.”
Time is up, and with that, he gives me another scrutinizing stare with his blue eyes, turns on the heels of his Italian shoes and whisks away into the sunshine of Sunset Boulevard.
http://www.myspace.com/morrissey
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