CostelloNews.com

Steve Nieve has responded to these questions
on his site`s messageboard ( password is...`password`!)-

Was it unnerving to be so close to the audience? Did
it affect your concentration? What percentage of what
you're doing with the new songs is spur-of-the-moment
inspirational experimentation and how much is what you
already have fixed in your mind in terms of your ideas
about what your contributions to the arrangements
should be? Any other insights that you're willing to
share r.e. your give-and-take with Elvis during these
initial points of the composition? (So many questions
- sorry).

Steve`s response -

Being so close to the audience reminded me of the
early days, but playing all new material (well
almost), I didn't have time to think about it, or let
it bother me. My contributions to the arrangements are
a mixture of experimentation and parts neccessarilly
fixed in stone. I think that's the nature of the
element that the 'keyboards' take up in the overall
picture. Also I'm playing a lot of machines where the
output has an element of chance: moog filters and
modulators, the theremin for example. The drums and
bass, once a decision has been taken on the direction
of a song, have to stay within that decision. For the
guitar and keyboards, there are more choices. Still
E.C. is open to the initial decision about a song
being re-evaluated, and so everyone is equally
involved in creative choices. After the 'notes' of a
song are more or less decided on, there are countless
decisions, which bass guitar, which amplifier, which
snare drum etc etc. And on top of that, inspiration is
allowed in all quaters, not just from the band but
also the production team. The studio here is very
special, and the way we are set up inside very
unusual. Just one detail will explain: we have the
same sound system we used in the club set up in the
studio, there are no headphones in sight. If we need
to replace a line of vocal or overdub a guitar, or
piano, the direct sound on tape goes back down through
the monitor speakers to re-create the 'spill' of the
live band on all the mics, as the overdub is recorded.
So even the overdubs have the sound of everyone
playing on them, and match up with the original.
That's clever. The Sweet Tea studio belongs to Dennis
Herring, who is obviously a very talented chap, loves
records and we are all enjoying working with him. He
has created an environment that welcomes inspiration,
and avoids completely the feeling that most studios
give: the terrible feeling of the recording button
being pressed, and you suddenly find the song
difficult to play. I can honestly say I didn't have
that feeling once yet