Magazine: Shot by both sides

Out of all the recent band reunions, few were as unexpected as Magazine. They talk to Chris McCall about their reformation and why they won't be sending a Christmas card to Simple Minds anytime soon

Feature by Chris McCall | 19 Aug 2009

Out of all the numerous band reunions of recent years, few were as unexpected, or as widely welcomed, as Magazine.

The story of Magazine is typical of a band born out of the post-punk explosion of the late 1970s. They released a trio of moderately received albums which attracted little mainstream attention before splitting after barely three years together. Described as the band that “dragged British punk-rock into a new dimension of thinking,” their name and music lived on thanks to the numerous bands they inspired. Their legacy can still be heard today; Radiohead in particular owe Magazine a considerable debt of gratitude.

Formed in 1978 by ex-Buzzcock Howard Devotto as a way of making more experimental music away from the constraints of punk, Magazine’s debut single 'Shot by Both Sides' remains one of the stand-out tracks of that era. A defiant defence of non-conformism, it was a bold statement at a time of otherwise over-bearing political sentiments. “I was totally apolitical,” explains Devotto. “A socialist friend said to me, ‘you’ll end up getting shot by both sides.”

What was radical then is of course considered normal today. But despite the British public widely embracing Devotto’s apolitical stance, albeit for very different reasons, it still must have been a daunting exercise reforming a band which was, at best, a cult concern. “We were pretty confident that there would be quite a lot of interest,” says Devotto. “The thing that worried me was preparing myself, as it had been twenty years since I last performed. I’ll let you into a little known fact; I’m not actually as young as I once was.” Devotto was proved right; Magazine’s comeback tour in February was a sell-out, and received rave-reviews.

Dave Formula, Magazine’s enigmatic keyboard player, was delighted. “It's possibly a bit of a cliché, but the shows went far better than we could have possibly anticipated. The reception was thrilling really, from the press and more so the audience.”

Were they surprised at the reception? “I think the word is yes,” says Devotto. Formula adds: “We knew it was going to sound good, as it had sounded good in rehearsals, but until you actually walk out there and do it, you just don’t know.”

Many bands of Magazine’s generation have been frank about their motivations for reforming. Having received little attention or money first time round, they feel they deserve something, given their supposed influence. Devotto however is dismissive of this stance. “There were certain musicians who didn’t get what they deserved, and they act like that’s some sort of crime. I just don’t feel like that. I try to lump it, you know ‘like it or lump it’. I’ll lump it!”

Formula agrees. “There was certainly no hard and fast plan on my behalf to put the band back together. It was very circumstantial but in a positive way, no one thought 'oh I want to make a lot of money from this'.”

Over the years, Magazine songs have been covered by artists as diverse as Morrissey and Simple Minds. It must be flattering when that happens. “Definitely, without a doubt,” says Formula. “Not flattering, flattering is the wrong word, but it is reassuring when you find out people still cite you as an influence and record your songs.”

Being ‘influential’ does not pay the bills however. It would of course be easy to become bitter watching a band become successful when they are clearly aping something you created. In a review of one of their comeback shows, one critic was moved to comment "it’s a crime that Simple Minds became big, but Magazine didn’t." Formula pauses momentarily. “Crime is quite a serious word I think. At the time it was a little bit galling to see other bands that had clearly taken a lot of influence or benefit from being around us and having success. I'd be lying if I said that wasn't the case... I don't want to harp on about it, but I think, if anything, what got some of the members of Magazine was that Simple Minds called one of their albums Real Life and didn't actually credit Magazine.”

So why were they not successful? Formula explains: "I think a lot of people, particularly the press, misunderstood a lot of aspects of Magazine first time around. As well as being quite dark at times, especially with Howard's lyrics, there was a very strong pop element in a lot of the music, very catchy melodies and hooks, if you're allowed to say that! I think that's one of the things that's being re-examined.” Devotto adds cautiously: “Yes, but on the other hand if they had grasped too well what we were about I suspect we wouldn’t talking about this now. People were different back then, but now fortunately people do seem to know what we are about.”

It is fortunate indeed, as Magazine will return to Edinburgh this month to play as part of the Edge festival. It will be their first show in the city for thirty years. It’s likely, this time around, they will finally be embraced by both sides.