Hi Richie, thanks for joining us here today. Now you are about to ride the crest of a glam wave with your “New Times Like Old Times” record however, before we get into this soon to be modern day glam classic let's back track into your world so, when and where did rock n roll first grab you?
Richie Badger ; Pretty early on in the golden decade, the ‘70’s. Lots of people talk of the iconic performance by Ziggy on Top of the Pops in July '72, which was probably a bit early, being just three years old. For me, it was a year later, '73 with the other Mr Stardust, Alvin “Leather gloves with rings on, massive stick-on sideburns” Stardust! I remember his strange but alluring manner, holding his microphone sideways. Kind of a British lower budget, technicolour version of Elvis singing about “My Coo Ca Choo” and how he wanted you.
Corner Offie. Oh the glamour of '70s England!
Obviously, not as cool as Bowie but to a young impressionable mind it distracted me from my Etch a Sketch and drew me in to a world a colour, glamour, campness, and mystery. All I knew was terrace houses with yards and outside toilets and this was from beyond the rings of Saturn in my developing mind, totally cosmic!
OK from a drab landscape of outside loos and drab brickwork you were transported into the world of dreams that was and is glam much like all of us right here. OK Alvin tripped your trigger but what and who was next and what was your first record and did you buy it or did someone buy it for you?
R . B ; I pretty much soaked up all those glam rock bands at the time, Sweet, Slade, Suzi Quatro, and the like. We had family parties all the time back then and those artists always featured heavily. My older brother was a big Bowie fan then and he saw him play Sheffield City Hall in ’73. I can remember the record covers around the house and being mystified by “Aladdin Sane” and would just stare at it in wonder. My own obsession with Bowie was to come a bit later though.
R. B ; The band that I personally loved was Showaddywaddy! I bought a compilation on cassette and my parents took me to see them at Sheffield City Hall in ‘78. I even joined the fan club! I don’t know why I like them to be honest, I guess it was just fun. I think I liked those backing vocals, especially the low do-wop ones and of course the Crepes and Drapes!
Well, Showaddywaddy were everywhere at that time and “Hey Rock ‘n’ Roll” is a kinda glam classic so, in all not too far removed from the rest of the glam goodness. OK, so you wer a fully paid member of Showaddywaddy's fan club but at what point did your fandom turn into wanting you to move onto getting an instrument and get more involved?
R . B ; There's kind of two chapters to this, but initially it was in my teens, I had a mate at school who was selling his bass, and it was a real piece of crap, no name on it even! He'd stripped the frets off and made it into a fretless instrument, I use the word "instrument" but it was almost a kids toy model. I bought it off him for a tenner and it didn't half rattle! I was into Japan at the time who started off kind of Glam in the late '70's. And I loved Mick Karn's style and spent hours with my bass plugged into the Hi Fi and playing along but in a very bad way! A year or so later I got something a bit better and joined a Rock 'N' Roll covers band called “The 57's” after the Mott track, “ The Golden Age of Rock ‘N’ Roll” (not the Heinz varieties!). Spent the next few years playing along in various bands, stood at the back, dum dummin' away. In fact one of those bands, named The Wild Orchids, did have some success including supporting INXS once and playing live on Radio One during the '90's. The second chapter picks up many many years later after a long break from music.
R . B ; A group of friends I'd known for years were always saying we should form a glam rock band, and we used to have a laugh about it and what it would look and sound like. Eventually, we actually got together, I'd written our Christmas song , “Do You Remember Christmas?” and I recorded a rough demo of it. At that stage it sounded more like The Sisters of Mercy with low gothy vocals, hilarious but, lacking the Christmas spirit you might say. That was pretty much the springboard for developing our sound and myself taking on the role as frontman. I've kept the bass but have considered being completely unleashed ha ha ha!
Cool before we get into The Voltz and your great current record. Tell us a bit more about The Wild Orchids? Great name.... tell us the story there...
R . B ; Well, that started back in about ‘89, I followed up an ad in a music shop (like used to happen!) but the only thing I remember about the ad was it said strictly no spandex, which was cool with me! It was a guy called Geoff Barradale who was previously a singer from a pop duo called Vitamin Z who were signed to Phonogram / Geffen Records. They were meant to be another Tears for Fears type band, but it didn't work out for them. The other writer in the band was Mikey Bratby.
The Wild Orchids. Richie, Geoff Barradale, Ants and Mikey.
We gave it "Five Years" ("that's all we got") and called it quits after getting a one hundred thousand pounds advance and burning it all up in a posh studio in Brighton recording an album that never got released! We got three meals a day there and spending money which, we used for buying clothes from the cool shops of Brighton. It was good fun, but at the time, everyone was massively into Acid House and Dance Music and rock seemed to be out of sorts, at least in the U.K. Geoff went on to manage the Arctic Monkeys and obviously did pretty well those fellow “Sheffielders”. Anyway, The Wild Orchids strangely enough had three members of what is now The Voltz, me, Mikey Bratby on guitar and Ant Kerr on drums. There's some footage of us playing on Yorkshire TV that's out there somewhere, I'll see if I can find it. Got, it... I'm looking all moody and mardy at the back, probably ‘cuz I wanted to be a singer but didn't know how then.
Cool story and sounds like a blast! OK so let's get into the germ of The Voltz. You said you wanted to start a glam band ok, but can you tell us what was definitely in the mix and what was definitely out or was it more of an organic melting pot of all glam?
R . B ; We are fans of the full technicoloured spectrum of glam from the sophistication of Bowie and Roxy Music to the rough and “belch in your face” end with the likes of Slade and later Sweet and they were in that melting pot you mention for sure. I'd also discovered some cracking Junkshop Glam compilations from Cherry Red Records, "Velvet Tin mine" and "Boobs" and was blown away by the incredible glam sounds that were hardly, if ever heard on the radio. Amazing stuff from Hector, Bilbo Baggins, Brett Smiley, and Jet. It was so inspirational and some of my first songs were written on the back of wallowing in that world. The sweet spot of the early-mid-seventies is pure glittering-soaked gold, when pop music was smashing it. I guess it felt we could just do what we wanted to do, please ourselves. It was also a natural occurrence, not contrived which sounds strange given that Glam Rock surely is the musical definition of something affected and somewhat artificial but quite wonderful.
Right on. Yes all that junk shop was so great when it hit us thanks to those who put those together. OK now let's get into The Voltz. First off why that name ? Tell us where the thoughts came from....
R . B ; For the first year or two we went out under the name Hot Tramp, it had a bit of humour about it as well as the “Rebel Rebel” connection. We had to change it though, another band had it before us and there was confusion over a booking because of it once, not good. I always find when I'm trying to think of a band name I kinda go blank and think of lots of names when you don't need one. We had a “WhatsApp” group and brainstormed tons of names, some hilarious, some bloody awful. I came up with “The Voltz” as a word that, to me summed up power and it was punchy also it had a Z at the end which again is glammy and contrived. It was only after that I thought it's got the connotation of something "from the Vaults" too which also fits, that was a happy accident though. The big question is whether to add a "The" to the beginning of a name as there is always a bit of a pain when designing logos or other artwork. Maybe we will do what "The Sweet" did one day! Yes it ticks the boxes and hey if it's good for The Sweet it'd good for us!
Name sorted. O.k tell us about the Christmas song. Was that the first track to be given the full “Voltz” treatment yeah?
R . B ; Yeah, it was the first. Some hate 'em but I'm a sucker for a Christmas song, what do you do! I'd never written a song before but was watching TV one day and a guy had written a song especially for some event and I thought, that's really poor, I'm sure I could do better than that! I chose this seasonal ode mainly because I remember one Christmas, probably the first one I remember, staying at my Auntie and Uncles house with older cousins and it seemed magical. I remember one cousin had Slade pictures adorning his bedroom and he dressed in bovver clobber. I think it was ‘74 but could quite easily have been '73 when Slade and Wizzard were both competing for the number one spot. It's also about my brother and him looking after me and me, looking up to him and the family connection we all seem to have back then, lots of family parties and pushing that sofa (or settee) to the wall for dancing space! I'm really proud of the song and what we did with as a band, I wouldn't change a thing with that one.
Yes I hear ya I love Christmas too and don't have time for all " Christmas is too commercial etc.." it's a time to take stock and be with who you want to be with so yep totally get that.
Right next up was “Fire Up Indigo”. Tell us about this track and also the artwork which reminds me of Dick Dastardly and Mutley and the world of the “Wacky Races”. Tell us about this one
R . B ; Like all the best ones, this came together really quickly, at least from a writing point of view. I'd just got myself a new guitar, a Gretsch in gold sparkle and was feeling really quite glammy! I was thinking about that time that's the end of the day but not night were you're wondering what to do with the evening, perhaps watching the clock at work thinking about knocking off early etc. Who can you convince to go out and how can you persuade em? It's about getting someone fired up, turning up the music, offering to buy them a pint and all that stuff. I liked the idea of writing something quite superficial but that means a lot to us and is in the spirit of glam rock. Plus, we all need to go out and see live bands and support the small venues. I love this artwork and yes, absolutely Hanna Barbera cartoons is spot on Groover. I'd designed most of our previous covers and wanted something different that accentuated the fun element of the song, something to attract the eyes. I asked the talented Jon Kelly Green, a US based artists who is king at this style of work, real US Bubble-gum style graphics that make you smile. Check out his work on Instagram, it's a delight.
Right on. OK that's the background now let's get to the glorious slab of glam that is your first full length album, "New Times Like Old Times".
Now on the surface it is just the best title but was it meant to be just that or were there different levels of meaning for the title?
R . B ; I'd got a long list of potential album titles that I'd collected, thinking they were all good ideas. Strangely, once the tracks were assembled and the artwork was finished, none of them seemed right. The final title I felt, resonated with the overall feel and concept of time, our music is influenced by the past, but out now! I'd add, it considers how we live in the present yet look at the past constantly and think about how the future could be better if we could learn anything from back then. I see the title as being a sentiment that we can largely agree on that the "old times" often seen wonderful on reflection so let's have a bit more of that now and forget the hard times for a moment... turn up the glam and push the sofa to the wall!
Yes hindsight gives great insight I hear ya. Talking of the artwork let's get into that a little it does remind me of those ‘70s gender specific U.K. “Hallmark Cards”. Was that an influence and who did the artwork?
R . B ; Strangely, I came across this image looking at my older brother’s schoolbooks from the early 70’s and saw he had bound (or backed) his schoolbook using this, as we were ordered to do by those authoritarian teachers! It appeared to be wallpaper that was often used then but it had no artist signature or anything I could relate it too that would help me find its origin. I’ve scoured the internet but nothing.. I’d love to credit the artist so if anyone out there knows then give me a tap. It reminds me a little of those British comics from the 70’s too. Although clearly the scene is from well before then. Perhaps even more so though, those cards you were able collect that came with “Brooke Bond” tea bags. All good twentieth century madness that was ace! Again, like the album title, it just seemed the right fit.
Cool ok let's get into the record. First up is “Saturday”. Storming way to kick off the record. I hear a little snippet of Abba's best song in there and Bowie's do wops from “Absolute Beginners” but also a breathy Bolanesque vocal and a searing pre chorus. Love it. Tell us about this one
R . B ; I think we were starting to find our groove with this one. We’d recruited a drummer and keyboard player and recorded this all together in the attic! I think you can tell it’s kind of lo-fi but it’s a live take with a few overdubs. The song is a celebration of all things Saturday, particularly in the '70’s when you were a kid. Great TV from first thing in the morning, “TISWAS” then “World of Sport” from midday which might include Evel Knievel, defying death and then later some amazing British Wrestling. I remember the house being full of cigar smoke as my Dad watched the horse racing. You might go out in the evening, often the working man’s club for us to see a band or stay in with a “Mars” bar and watch more ace telly! TV was flippin’ great then, even with just three channels! “Saturday” is one of my favourites to play live and we usually kick off our shows with it, especially when they fall on a Saturday!
Yes Saturday was a special time for sure then well, most of it. OK next up is “Starlight”. Great track and a great groove. It reminds me of a updated Hello sound. Also, the lyrics seems quite cryptic...tell us about this one
R . B ; Oh well, you might well ask... It's kind of a lyrical collage of sorts. The underlying theme is my respect for people that protest, those that design their placards, organise themselves and march for what they believe in, in a communal way. It's not about one cause specifically, but an admiration of those folk and the respect they deserve. I wanted to frame it within a story of someone who joined a movement, but for less admirable reasons i.e. went along because they were enamoured by one of the other protesters had other intentions shall we say. “The Corner Pin” was a pub round the corner from where I grew up and seemed a good base for making plans over a pint and game of darts! Oh, and of course, it's set in the ‘70s and would make a great “Play For Today” episode, should it return!
Well, we all love the dumbness that glam can be but also there can be a message of sorts, and you got one right there. ”Play For Today” they showed some tremendous shows on there “Scum” being one which was harrowing but enjoyable.
OK next up “Glitter Bomb”. Yes, this has the most glitter band sound and also it is talking of runts on the school bus standing at the back....is this a ride back to a school journey of sorts?
R . B ; The second decent song I wrote... I was well chuffed with the riff and it and the rest of the song just came from nowhere, the God's of Glam smiling on me that day maybe! It's semi-autobiographical but with lots of observations and fantasy thrown in too. I saw a picture of the street where I lived in the ‘70's with a girl stood outside the Off Licence (liquor store) looking all Bovver and with that attitude of the time. It got me thinking about when you meet someone, especially when you are young and impressionable and they become the centre of your life and you have a massive crush on them, not necessarily romantically. You might get up to no good, give a bit of lip to the bus driver as you head to the back of the bus to muck about like a couple of runts! Sometimes it's short lived and you fall out or drift apart and move on, looking for the next one! I bought a print of the picture and now have it on my studio wall for inspiration.
Yes it took me back to the school days as it will many, great track! OK next up “Children Of The Stars”. To my ears there is an ‘80s sounding synth part here, tell us about this one.
R . B ; Another one with a message, I'll get a reputation if I'm not careful! This started out as an acoustic strum, as I was listening to a lot of Bolan at this time, and I think I had soaked up some of the more laid back vibe on his acoustic songs. There was a TV show from the '70's called “Children of the Stones” and I was re-watching that. I mixed them together with a bit of "stardusty" space pop, A hippy track but with an ‘80's synth line popped in! The sentiment is about listening and looking for common ground, if we don't then we might not attain the things that the human race is capable of creating so let's be cool...essentially be nice to bus drivers from now on!
Glam with a message? Well, some would say it already has one. OK next up is “American Eagle”. Now we have touched on Evil before but let's go into it a little further. I think he was a middle-aged man doing stunts much like big daddy a middle-aged man (at best) doing wrestling. Now to people these days those characters just wouldn't resonate but with the power of the ‘70s it turned no one’s into massive someone's and I think that's what's this song is about yeah?
THE VOLTZ. Mickey, Richie, Big Phil and Ants.
R . B ; This one is a Big Phil rocker, so I'll leave it to him tell ya..
Big Phil ; The once in a lifetime story of stars and stripes flying at the speed of sound straight into the nearest strategically placed ambulance. The guilty hope that a true-blue collar showman from the U S of A won't make it across the impossible canyon and will break every bone in his body. Broadcast live on TV! The imminent death of a shady rebel with a monetary cause on an impossibly heavy Laverda American Eagle 750. Failure is an option. The best option. Will he go? He will go....
And right there is the power of what the ‘70s meant to people....great. Ok the next one we have chatted about already and is my current fave on the record “Fire Up Indigo”. Great track anything else to add?
G.O.A.T AWARD WINNER 2024!
R . B ; So cool to hear you like it Dude, it seems to be a fave with lots of glam rockers. It's got a T-Rex inspired verse part for sure with the chunky guitar chops and big drums. I'm told the chorus is reminiscent of The Sweet which sounds fair enough. No deep message here... just get it on!
Yep right on killer track. OK next up is “Taste It”. This sounds like a track that's inspiring others to get involved with all that glam has to offer kind of your “Suffragette City” yeah?
R . B ; This is a personal one in a way, directed (indirectly!) to someone who I hoped would exploit their own potential to the full. Great expectations abound when you're young, either from others or your inner self and it can be a challenge to get that through, I remember! It's really words of encouragement to taste life, the bitter and the sweet, make mistakes, move on quickly but also to have a blast. I chose a picture I took of my son as he was walking along the street, and it seemed a great fit for the artwork. I guess it's got a New Wave sound to it so wondered what fans might think but it's popular, particularly live when we end the show with it. It's always a thrill to play. The whistling sections worked as I'd hoped, kind of a "Bridge over the River Kwai" Colonel Bogey style!- I get your “Suffragette City” reference though, not thought of that Droogie!
Next up “Calling On You”. I love how you get to emergency of the track not an easy task at all. So, this does excellent what it says on the (Party Seven) tin I guess yeah?
R . B ; We were releasing singles under the Turkish label Kafadan Kontak, and they asked if we wanted to record a Dead Boys cover version for a tribute album. All the best tracks had already been taken by other bands, so I stumbled across this lesser-known track. I wanted to give it a different treatment from the punk original and figured that with a Bovver feel, it might be a goer. Our drummer at the time (Jimi McCaffertey) was recording and mixing our songs and I think he did a cracking job on this one. It felt appropriate at the time as we were coming out of lockdown and I felt it would resonate with everyone, a calling to get your boots on and getting to stomp down the street again. Nice, cool work from Mikey on the guitar on this too, a real diamond shiner!
OK next up is “English Rain”. I love the hi hat work on the chorus that makes it sound like rain the background, great work, in fact each time you listen to any track on the album there are lots of little things that you missed before things popping out all over the place great stuff. So Swedish erotica and UK rain? Explain this one to us
R . B ; Ha ha, I don't really know where the Swedish Magazine line came from. It did seem appropriate in a way and it's an enjoyable line to sing and it scans so well with the previous line! In my mind, such a magazine would probably be aesthetically pleasing, not necessarily erotic though my dear chap but then again... I wanted to dedicate a song to the Horror genre, particularly those late night double bills we would be allowed to stay up and be scared out of our wits. Again, it's those legends that led us on, Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, Vincent Price et al. It's a fantasy piece, that centres around Dracula, The Prince of Darkness, terrifying but also irresistible and sexy. It's not gonna be good for you but you want it anyway. I had a great idea for a promo that involved Big Phil dressed as Dracula wondering the streets of Whitby in the present day during the annual goth festival they have, visiting the fair, eating candy floss and being sick on the Waltzer. I guess “English Rain” may be about literal rain but also is metaphorical and the sixteenth hi hat part works a treat.
You know when I heard the first couple of lines it did remind me of the Hammer Horror genre which we (including me) all love, glorious ‘70s memories right there. OK so the last track is “Do You Remember Christmas” which, we have chatted about before. So, let's get to the release of the record. Is it your own label? Was cd the first choice? Will there be a vinyl? Expand on how after the recording was done how did it manifest itself in the real world?
R . B ; We released on our Hot Tramp Records label which I also use for my solo releases under the “Shopkeeper” name, for releases I don't think fit the band's current character sound. I was getting pestered by some to get a physical release out, you know how many of us still like something to hold. So once we had ten tracks then it was game on and we pressed up a few limited-edition (CD) copies, now available on Bandcamp. It's had a super response and some nice reviews including a recent “Vive Le Rock” magazine. I'd honestly like to release a limited-edition vinyl run so if anyone out there wants to get involved let me know. We're now focussed on the next album, and I think it's likely we will get that one out on wax. I'm really keen to get the next batch of songs recorded, I think they are really something with strong glam flavour.
Another album on the way that sounds excellent but before the world gets on board with that let's get everyone involved with this record! OK Rich great to speak with you and continued best of luck with this and all you do. OK so do you have any parting words for your old fans and soon be new ones?
R . B ; One of the great things about all of this is connecting with others who have a passion for music, not unlike yourself Groover. We love to chat to our fans, particularly at gigs when it feels like a get together, a celebration of Glam, a bit of a knees up! Our fans have been brilliant and super supportive of the album release, and we thank them for it... it drives you on. I would say, we so love to unite with others who share our love of the tribal beat, the Bubble-gum melody, the big riff and all that glitters... VIVA VOLTZ⚡
COMPETITION TIME!
Want to win a T SHIRT (Modelled here by stick-man Ant Kerr) and a signed cd?
Thought so. Just answer the question below;
which Voltz single won the G.O.A.T (Greatest of all time) award for Glam Rock single of 2024?
When you have your answer just email it HERE and best of luck all you Voltzsters?
INTERVIEW CONDUCTED BY EMAIL AND MESSANGER 2025.
PHOTO'S BY THE VOLTZ AND THE SUITS VOLTZ! (GEDDIT?!)
