RS: I've got to ask you about one story that's floated around
over the years. Tell us about the run-in you had with the lead singer
of D:Ream, Peter Cunnah.
Keren: We'd be sitting there and he was saying some really, really
odd things to us, and I think he'd had a few drinks. Then it all got a
bit bitter and we'd just about had enough of him. He just turned
round and said 'come and talk to me when you've written a hit song.'
He'd had the one and we'd had quite a lot at that point. I think
Sarah just gave him a push off of his seat and I gave him a dead leg
on the way down really... Thanks for the memory, though I wouldn't
want you to think that we were violent girls. I haven't done anything
like that before or since in my life. But yes, he was a strange one
and it's amazing how many people seem to have heard about that.
RS: Let's chat some more about the 'Ram's history. Love, Truth
and Honesty is one of the finest sad songs ever.
Keren: Do you think so?
RS: Oh definitely yes. Do you ever think that people, because
of the bouncy PWL sound, that they don't realize the strength of the
lyrics?
Keren: People shouldn't assume because you're a girl making pop that
you don't have a brain.
If you listen to a lot of our early stuff we went through a phase,
particularly on the second album where we were writing songs about a
drug addict, the situation in Northern Ireland, and all that sort of
stuff. Afterwards, you listen to it and think, does it make it sort
of trivial because it's wrapped up in a pop song? I think there are
people who are really great at doing that sort of thing, but with the
sort of music we make, maybe we don't want to get too heavy.
I do think that we've developed from being quite embarrassed to talk
and sing about love in our early days and writing about more sort of
menial stuff that meant something to us in our lives then. Obviously
having had the turbulent love lives we've had since then, I think
we're quite open at writing about them. I do think you write about
your personal experiences and most of the songs on this album seem to
be very much sort of relationship songs.
RS: What's it like hearing your songs in movies, like Cruel
Summer in the Karate Kid and The Wild Life theme?
Keren: Cruel Summer was so exciting for us because we'd been out and
done a couple of promo trips, and nothing had really happened. Then
all of a sudden, we sit at home doing absolutely bugger all and then
we come out, we've got a huge hit just for the fact it's been in a
film. So yes, more of that please. There's nothing like sitting back
and doing no work and watching something happen.
RS: And then what about when Ace of Base covered it?
Keren: The same thing, more of that please. Let someone else do the work.
