Gary Numan refuses to rely on his past hits to keep his career going.
For over 40 years, the musician has been a pioneer of electronic music and, speaking exclusively to Retro Pop ahead of the release of his 19th studio album ‘Intruder‘, Gary insists he’s had to “earn” his status.
“My feelings are that you are only as good as your next album,” he says. “I genuinely believe that. I f**king hate these people that have one hit and then 30 years later they’re still singing it. And they never bothered to do anything else.
“If you want to have a long career, you have to earn it. You have to keep doing something that’s worthwhile, and you must not rely on blind faith in your audience.
“I know a lot of people do, especially when it gets to the latter stages of their career – where I am now – people tend to go a bit bland and middle of the road, and just churn out things that they know people want.
“You can’t do that. Obviously, you can do that… But, for me, that’s not not an option at all, which is why I get so stressed about it. I’m only interested in what I can do that I’ve not done before. Or what I can do better than what I’ve done before.”
Gary’s new album follows 2017’s ‘Savage (Songs from a Broken World)’, about a “climate apocalypse [at] some nameless point in the future,” and he says ‘Intruder’ “gets a little bit closer to the subject” of climate change.
“I do believe it’s a genuine crisis. And I do believe we’re running out of time,” he insists. “So as an everyday citizen, I’m concerned about it…
“And because I write songs for a living, I just put the two together. So I’m writing about things that I’m bothered about, but I’m really not trying to use it as a stick to shame of people,” he insists.
Elsewhere in our interview, Gary opened up on his recording process, how his wife Gemma helps him select his best songs, and the track from intruder that made her “walk out the room” when she heard it.
In addition to releasing new music, Gary will hit the virtual stage on June 17 for a special livestream performance, featuring new tunes and songs from throughout his career.
‘Intruder’, out May 21, is available on CD, 2LP coloured vinyl, cassette.
