Word gets around: Stereophonics to play Birmingham Genting Arena

Twenty years after their debut Word Gets Around, Stereophonics’ 10th studio album Scream Above The Sounds was released in October 27 and reached number two on the charts.

It followed Keep The Village Alive, which went straight to No.1 when it was released in 2015 and became their sixth chart-topper after Performance And Cocktails, Just Enough Education To Perform, You Gotta Go There To Come Back, Language. Sex. Violence. Other? (2005) and Pull The Pin.

Scream Above The Sounds was primarily recorded in the band’s HQ in west London with a further session at RAK Studios.

Created with the help of regular collaborator Jim Lowe, it was an album in which creative sonic touches added to the band’s emphasis on songwriting and melody.

As one of Britain’s best live bands Stereophonics have been touring and performing to sell-out crowds across the globe. Last summer alone they headlined Kendal Calling, Y Not Festival and Victorious Festival as well as taking to the stage at BBC Radio 2’s Live In Hyde Park.

Stereophonics comprise founding members Kelly Jones (vocals/guitar) and Richard Jones (bass) along with Adam Zindani (guitar) and Jamie Morrison (drums). Long-term keyboardist Tony Kirkham joins the band for live shows.

Kelly was thrilled to return with such a big hit, though he had previously considered quitting the music industry after the death of one of his heroes, Gord Downie, the lead singer of Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip.

“Without Gord I doubt I’d have come out with most of the songs I’ve written, especially the earlier ones.

“As a performer he was poetry and anarchy all wrapped up in one, and there aren’t many who can pull that off.

“In fact, I was talking about this just the other night with Jakki (Healey, Kelly’s wife) and remembered the time, in ‘97, when we played a club gig in Toronto - Gord walked backstage with a selection of his favourite books in a brown paper bag for me to read.

“He’d heard we liked his band and just wanted to say hello and share with me some of the stuff that had a big effect on him. That’s the kind of bloke he was.”

Another major influence on the band’s most recent record was the death of fans at French club The Bataclan, where terrorists opened fire on an innocent crowd.

“After what happened at the Bataclan, especially, I just thought, ‘Do I really want to be doing all this – spending my time travelling, being away from home?’

“What is more, Gord’s death left me wondering – here was a bloke with a huge musical legacy and so many achievements, yet what was it all for?

“Because, at the end of the day, he had a bunch of kids who’ve now been left without a dad.

“So I questioned whether it’s worth putting myself through all that, on top of dealing with the confusion and noise that bombards us all every day.

“But then I realised I can’t control the men with the guns and all the stuff that happens in the world, and I tried to tell myself that, yes, despite all the anxiety and the fear, hope and innocence do still exist.” Kelly has experienced hardship during his many years in Stereophonics, particularly following the death of the band’s original drummer, Stuart Cable.

Stuart was eulogised on Scream Above the Sounds and Kelly thinks of him regularly.

“He died in 2010, he was out of the band in 2003, we were all mates by 2004. Right up to that point we were all very close. We’d go out and see the rugby, have a few beers and all that. We were going to meet him the day before he died actually at my uncle’s funeral. When he died, he was like a brother to me and Richard, obviously.

“I lived seven doors from him, we did our first at 12 when he was about 15. We used to push our gear up and down the street on a trolley because we couldn’t drive. We did our first gig and they chucked us out because we were too young to drink. Richard joined the band a few years later after Stuart had been in a few glam bands. ‘King Catwalk’ – that was a good name for a band! Big hair, big noise. “For me, I thought about Stuart every day.”