Shaun Ryder of Happy Mondays reflects on making a classic album, and some minor visa violations in Australia

In celebration of the thirty-fifth anniversary of Pills ‘n’ Thrills and Bellyaches, Manchester group Happy Mondays return to Australia with their influential blend of deep dance grooves, scratchy guitar riffs, and psychedelic soundscapes. The group’s lead singer Shaun Ryder sat down with Futuremag via an ever classic late night, long distance phone call.

Futuremag: You’ve recently done a run of shows across the UK and Ireland. How did they go?

Shaun: Really, really good. I’m not just saying it – we’re better than ever. Now we’re all compos mentis. And a lot wiser, older and mature.

Futuremag: I was going to ask about that – you’ve broken up and reunited on a number of occasions, now you’re on one of your longest streaks as a band. What’s changed?

Shaun: Well, the truth about that is it’s just been different band members. I mean, we got back together in 1998 – me, Bez, and Gaz Whelan (Drummer) have been the Happy Mondays since then, we’ve just had a few changes. Paul (Ryder) went in and out, then he died when he came back. Rowetta is no longer performing with us, now we got Firouzeh (Berry), who’s Bez’s wife. Basically, the three of us have been together since 1998, really. Never stopped.

Futuremag: Obviously Bez has been with you forever; you seem to have a friendship to be admired.

Shaun: Our sexless marriage as I describe it. We start filming celebrity Gogglebox again in about two or three days’ time. That’s just great because, you know, you get paid to watch television, get drunk, eat ice cream, and chocolate with your best mate, and shout at the telly. If I told the school careers person I want that job, she probably would’ve bent me over the desk to whack me with a cane for being cheeky. I can’t complain.

Futuremag: Pills N’ Thrills and Bellyaches has become quite influential after 35 years. Did you that feeling at the time it was going to be so?

Shaun: We sorta … I mean … purposely really needed, you know? A more popular album. If we wanted to keep making music, and keep being with Factory Records we needed to sell more. We’d sorta handed stuff to (Producer and DJ, Steve) Oakenfold in the past with Step On, and before that Hallelujah remix. The way that we made Pills ‘N’ Thrills was different. Basically, before it was, you know, bangin’, giving it all day, working things out; trying to get all the baselines, drums, guitars right. Whereas with Pills ‘N’ Thrills, when we got the studio at Capital in L.A, Oakie threw a load of beats at us. I mean we went there with just Step On, and Kinky Afro, and not much more.

The idea was to get Oakie to get some beats up and you know bass player put some baselines to it, guitarist put some guitar to it. That was a different way working, and a quicker way of working instead of me having a listen to hours and hours and hours of 20 guitars and baselines trying to work something out. Putting in a bassline to a beat is a lot easier. And I wrote the lyrics just fast.

Futuremag: The Happy Mondays has a reputation of being quite a mad story overall but that sounds like so much structure for you guys at the time?

Shaun: I mean the thing about the Mondays is we always played hard, but we fucking worked hard. You know we might’ve gotten stoned, but we spent fucking hours, and days, and weeks just jamming in our little rehearsal room. Plus, I was 18 I started that band, and Gaz was still at school, and the keyboard player was still at school while we’re going off to fucking Europe or whatever and doing a show. So, we fully, FULLY enjoyed fucking being in a band as young lads and being rock n roll. If you can’t enjoy yourself when you’re in your late teens or your twenties, when the fuck can you? We took total advantage of it.

Futuremag: You were a huge part of the rave scene in the UK. When you’ve been to Australia have you ever seen any of our raves? or doofs as we call them. 

Shaun: We’ve been going to Australia now since early nineties. I actually remember staying six months over than I should’ve done because I was out partying and I got a 12-month ban for that years ago, so I have been on a few party trips back in the day. All good especially in Perth.

Futuremag: We have a bit of a reputation being quiet but, some of the people are a little bit nuts over here.

Shaun: Like our band. When I get asked you, ‘what’s it like when you play in Australia?’ or ‘what’s it like when you play Amsterdam?’ My answer to that is it’s like playing in London or Manchester. Happy Monday’s fans are like one of their own. They’re all fucking special cases, just like the band. They’re all fucking special needs and just like the band, all special needs, so whatever country we play to a fucking audience that’s like us really.

Futuremag: As someone who was part of a great music scene back in the day, what would you say you really need to have a great music scene?

Shuan: Fucking great people with great ideas and original ideas. Especially Manchester and Liverpool, whatever it’s now or twenty years ago, or sixty years ago, or sixty years in the future. The north-west, there’s always a lot of talent; whether it’s Liverpool, Manchester, or fucking Leeds, or whatever, there’s lot of talent. Always will be.

Futuremag: With the wild life you have lived, do you feel lucky enough to still be making music, even after your baboon encounter?

Shaun: Oh, just yeah. I mean you know I like to say … I mean even me and Bez and old forty-year fucking sexless marriage, you know. It’s an honour to still be doing what we do, and enjoying it. I mean, we’ve got plans to go on to be older than the fucking Rolling Stones. I still enjoy making music. I do Black Grape, Mondays, and Mantra Of The Cosmas now. I’m loving it more than ever. I’m in the studio at the moment writing new songs for a new Mondays album. That’ll be out in the next year or something.