After revealing to us at the beginning last year that his new group, Insecure Men wasn’t just a covers band making lo-fi versions of songs like ‘Rainy Days and Mondays’ and ‘Streets of Philadelphia’, Saul Adamczewski has now released two new songs from a completed album that is a far cry from early Fat Whites tracks… Harvey Frost went behind the scenes for us at the video shoot for new single, ‘Teenage Toy’…
Insecure Men live ranges from a one-man band touring working men’s clubs to a 10-piece arena busting extravaganza featuring Sean Lennon… and everything in between. We had a chat with Saul to see what was what…
We spoke about this briefly in issue twelve but how did the idea of a new band come about? Was it to explore different genres and influences?
The idea of a new band really came about after I was kicked out the Fat Whites.. funnily enough. I’d been writing these songs for years and me and Ben were playing together in Warmduscher so it just made sense.
You seem to spend a fair bit of time travelling, considering a lot of your songs have an underlying Britishness, do you find it easier writing/recording away from home?
I don’t know if it’s easier. In London I tend to get a little lost. But I’ve been away a bit and writing a lot. So maybe it’s true.
How long have these songs been around? I really like the lyrics in this collection of songs, particularly the line, “in a pebble-dash wonderland”.
These songs have been floating around for ages. It wasn’t until I started playing them with Ben and Nathan that it became a thing. I’m glad I’ve got them out of my system.
Pebble dash wonderland is a line that Lias wrote about his Mum’s house. True story.
I’ve seen that you make illustrations etc… Did you read any comics or fanzines when you were growing up?
When I was a kid I used to buy punk fanzines like Maximum Rocknroll or the London equivalent… then I bought the NME. I love comics and always have. Especially Crumb.. who doesn’t love him?
Who are your favourite visual artists?
I’m a Georgia O’Keeffe man through and through. Also my friend Ben Edge from the band The Electric Pencils is an amazing painter. He’s my favourite right now!
How do you feel about the South London scene that has formed and the vast amount of new bands citing Fat White Family as an influence?
I’m not sure if they do cite Fat White Family. It’s a good scene. A little bloated and without any real good music. But it’s going somewhere.
Will we be able to catch Insecure Men live much? Do you plan on touring?
I’m playing Scala in March. I won’t tour much because it’s boring and makes music bad.
Behind the Scenes Videos and Photos by Harvey Frost
