The Understones always had the tag of a pop-punk band, is the band tied to a specific genre?
I never worried about genres or labels. We always regarded ourselves as a punk rock band, because for us that meant The Ramones, The Standells, The Sex Pistols... any good punk band, we liked. Any bad punk band, we regarded them as not being punk. It's a simple method of separating the wheat from the chaff...
How differant do you think it is being a teenager in the 2010s to 1960s/70s?
I think it is very difficult to be a teenager these days. The instant communication wouldnt have appealed to me in 1975, The consumerism, the cynical manipulation of teenagers on TV doesn't impress me either.
Would you give advice to teenage bands just starting out?
The last thing a teenage band should listen to is advice from someone who's 52, but if they did want some I would say to always be true to what you really want to sound like. Don't change your band to sound like what you think other people want to hear. It has to be done for you and your friends in the band. That's the other thing, try and get your friends in the band, even though they may not be great musicians.
What advice would you give to yourself in the past?
Put money on Nottingham Forest to win the European Cup in both 1979 and 1980, and then take the money and put it on Italy to win the World Cup in 1982. Apart from that, nothing.
Say an older fan comes to an Undertones gig for the first time in 20-30 years, what sort of experience do you think they'll have?
They will be amazed at how good we are... OK, maybe not, but they will hear fast rock and roll songs, with great tunes. They will be surrounded by a mixture of teenagers, thirty year olds and fifty year olds. Sounds like a good night out, I reckon.
How has touring changed, and any tips for how to survive a long tour?
We have never done long tours, and our tours these days are even shorter. The most we will be away for is about four days, unless we're somewhere like the USA. Unless you are wealthy enough to travel and stay in great comfort, the best advice is to organise short tours. But then that's not always practical.
How do you go about choosing your set lists? What can we expect from the 35 year discography?
I usually choose the set list, and at the moment we are playing the first LP in its entirety. Otherwise I always try and start and end with a single, keep Teenage Kicks to about six or seven songs before the end, and keep it bright and bouncy. We are trying to include some more songs from our third and fourth LP, but the bulk of the set is from the first two. It seems to work so far.
What still drives you after 35 years?
The opportunity to be in a band with your friends, and the chance to see other places. As I said, we're only away for a few days at a time, so there's no chance to get bored. I like travelling (within reason) and seeing towns and cities. Nothing beats a good museum at ten in the morning.
What's your favourite places to play, where would you like to play?
I like playing in small clubs, where you can get good eye contact with the audience. Having said that, I like playing in some of the European countries, like Italy and Spain. Usual reasons - weather, good food, but also meeting fans of the band who have been waiting for years to see us.
Do you still get chance to check out up-and-coming bands? Do you have a say which bands you choose to gig with?
I don't get the chance to see many bands, and I don't get involved in choosing the support bands. I do like a Derry band called The Wonder Villains, though.
What does the future hold for The Undertones?
We're doing some shows in the UK in December and we keep promising ourselves we'll get back in the studio to record new songs. Apart from that, who knows? A piano could fall out of the sky and crush us next time we walk down the street. I've seen it happen on TV shows.
