For staunch fans of his music in the early 1990s, Halstead's transformation might seem like treason. Slowdive, after all, were a fiercely alternative group of teenagers from Reading, and the only people in their school, to Halstead's knowledge, to know who the Smiths were. Thrown out of home at 16 by his father, he lived in a small flat behind a snooker hall and worked in a burger bar, finding escape in bands like My Bloody Valentine and Sonic Youth. After signing with Alan McGee, Slowdive's three EPs and three albums became underground classics, although the band were mocked mercilessly for being middle-class mopers, staring at their distortion pedals rather than engaging with the audience. Nicky Wire from the Manic Street Preachers famously said he hated Slowdive "more than Hitler", but only in recent years has shoegazing undergone a revival, and has Halstead's reputation been salvaged.

Halstead blames timing. "The criticism of bands like us was class-led, weirdly, perhaps because of what else was happening in music at the time. Grunge came about a few years after we started, which was blue-collar, and then the Mancunian thing with the Stone Roses, Happy Mondays was obviously working class." He shakes his head, tiny dots of Guinness sparkling in his moustache. "We went to a comprehensive! Middle-class bands in America were never knocked - it didn't happen to the Lemonheads or Dinosaur Jnr, bands I also loved. [The Guardian]

Continue reading "Neil Halstead - March 2009 Tour Dates"

by BrooklynVegan Mike

"There isn't any artistic integrity in just getting the band back together
and playing the old songs."

Neil Halstead, as a co-founder of Slowdive, was one of the architects of shoegazer, a genre that has seen a revival as of late with the reformation of My Bloody Valentine and Swervedriver. In 1995, most of Slowdive morphed into Mojave 3 and has since been making beautiful countrified dream-pop. Halstead also mellows things out more on his solo records. His sophomore release Oh! Mighty Engine dropped last week on Jack Johnson's label Brushfire Records. He is also currently on tour with Jack. (yeah, we know).

This Sunday he opens the third day of the All Points West festival in Jersey City - the same day Jack closes. You can also catch Neil one day earlier at the Surf Lodge in Montauk. We caught up with Neil after he opened the second day of the Osheaga Festival in Montreal on Monday. We discussed tour mate Jack Johnson, a Slowdive reunion, and the re-emergence of shoegazer.

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You've played a lot of festivals in your twenty year career. How does it feel to open a festival?

Neil: It's a dubious honor, isn't it? [laughs]. I would trade in the honor for a few more people. But the people were really nice. Very sweet. We enjoyed it.

You've been opening for Jack Johnson on his tour. How has that been?...

Continue reading "an interview w/ Neil Halstead (Slowdive, Mojave 3) +++++++++++++++++ 2008 Tour Dates (All Points West)"