Gary Numan’s wife doesn’t hold back when the singer runs his latest musical ideas by her.
The Tubeway Army star returns with his 19th studio album ‘Intruder’ on Friday, May 21 and, speaking exclusively to Retro Pop, he admits to using Gemma – who was a superfan long before marrying the musician – as a sounding board when he’s creating new tunes.
Reflecting on the process of writing and recording an album, he says: “It’s just this huge journey; lots of people talk about it being a bit like a roller coaster, and that’s exactly what it is. You’re up and you’re down. But you have these extraordinary moments where everything works.
“It makes you excited and you when you want to ring up your wife and say, ‘You’ve got to come and listen to this. This is this is brilliant. I’m really happy with it.’,” he explains, joking, “I never say anything’s brilliant outside of me and my wife by the way…”
However, Gary admits Gemma’s judgement isn’t always on point, revealing she was less than impressed with his recent single Saints & Liars.
“She’s not the best judge actually! There’s a song two albums ago called Here in the Black, I don’t think she likes that one much,” he reveals. “On this new album, there’s a song called Saints & Liars, which I really liked. It was the second single.
“I got Gemma in to listen to it and she went, ‘Nah. Bit jerky,’ and walked back out again. I was like, ‘Thanks very much. Very inspiring’,” he laughs.
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 his new LP “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.”
The Are ‘Friends’ Electric? hitmaker goes on to insist: “I have very poor credentials when it comes to being eco friendly. I’ve got an electric car… but I’ve got three others that aren’t. I mean, I’m a bit of a f**king hypocrite, really.”
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.
