Swervedriver, the iconic Oxford rockers who gave us alt-rock classics like ‘Raise’ and ‘Mezcal Head’, are back with a fresh vinyl release of ‘Doremi Faso Latido.’

After last year’s reissue of their nearly lost LP, ‘99th Dream,’ fans flooded Outer Battery Records with requests to finally press ‘Doremi Faso Latido’ on vinyl. Previously available only in a 3CD package, ‘Doremi Faso Latido’ brings together outtakes and demos from the ’99th Dream’ sessions, capturing a vital, rare slice of Swervedriver’s history. This special vinyl edition includes eleven tracks along with four digital-only cuts featuring alternate takes and live versions for a full dive into the band’s archives.

But that’s not all—Swervedriver also recorded a brand-new EP, collaborating with Ride’s Mark Gardener and Rick Beato to rediscover the freewheeling energy of their early Creation Records days. Guitarist and vocalist Adam Franklin reflects, “We haven’t really done an EP since our days with Creation. I have no idea why it was the done thing back then, but it was a cool way to present your music with no sort of commitment to direction. You could just go off on one on any song if you wanted, and that’s what we wanted to do again here. I’ve always consumed music via singles anyway and was always partial to a good B-side or three.”

“There’s something cool about curating just 15 minutes of sound”

‘Doremi Faso Latido’ is described as a collection of outtakes and demos from the 99th Dream-era. When you revisited these tracks, did any particular song or moment from the sessions evoke memories or emotions that surprised you? Did any of these tracks take on a new meaning over the years?

Adam Franklin: Everyone remembered ‘Canvey Island Baby’ with a smile. It has this kinda wistful spoken word vocal that I just couldn’t nail at the time – that’s probably why it didn’t make the cut for ’99th Dream’ because the musical interplay is fabulous. So I re-sang it, and it was interesting and fun re-entering the mind of this twenty-five-year-old lyric, especially as the words are all about memory, I guess.

<a href="https://swervedriver.bandcamp.com/album/doremi-faso-latido">Doremi Faso Latido by Swervedriver</a>

The opening track, ‘Butterfly,’ sets a particular tone for ‘Doremi Faso Latido.’ What made you choose this track to introduce the album? Can you walk us through the atmosphere in the studio when this track was first recorded?

‘Butterfly’ was the most fully formed and interesting of the outtakes, which is why it opens proceedings. I don’t think we knew at all what we were doing with this song and just had the barest of templates mapped out. It basically starts off like ‘Sci-Flyer’ mk II, then goes into these Simon & Garfunkel-like verses, and then for the whole of the middle section, we got Steve and Jez to simply hold down thirty-two bars or whatever in the key of A, so that we could work up a kind of guitar collage afterward and jam on that.

You’ve included live versions and alternate takes on this release. How do these versions compare to the originals in your eyes? Do they offer a glimpse into a different creative direction you were considering at the time?

What happened is that I was investigating all these reels of tape from the ’99th Dream’ sessions and was concurrently looking at a whole bunch of ‘Mezcal Head’ demos. Unfortunately, loads of the tapes have nothing written on them, and because we still hadn’t found the ‘Duel’ demo, I had taken some of the unmarked reels to the baking & digitization place, and that’s when we discovered these ten or so eight-track demos for the ’99th Dream’ songs that I certainly didn’t know existed.

So you’ve got four mics on the kit, one on each of the guitars, and then one mysteriously blank track where presumably the vocal was supposed to be. In some cases, there was a faint echo, like it was going through a PA in the room, but gremlins had got into the machine or something. So I ended up singing some of these songs again, and it’s a mix of old and new vocals-wise – Steve George and his wife Christine sang brand new vocals on ‘Cool Your Boots,’ which is a Jimmy tune that we never had vocals for, whereas ‘Carousel City,’ for example, has Beth Thompson (from ‘Medicine’) and me singing back in 1998.

The main glimpse is that it’s essentially the songs played live – my guitar on the left, Jim’s on the right, and then we moved some of the parts around and messed with their sound, so it sounds like there’s more guitars, but it’s still just two. We did overdub a harpsichord part on ‘Straight Thru Your Heart,’ which was a nod to Hendrix’s ‘Burning of the Midnight Lamp’ that we had talked about doing at the time but never got around to.

Vinyl has seen a resurgence in recent years, and you’ve chosen to release ‘Doremi Faso Latido’ in this format. What is it about vinyl that you think resonates with your music and your fans?

The warm crackle? And the fact that it’s bigger to hold in your hands and appreciate the artwork. It’s the sound and the listening that really matters, so you don’t need to look at artwork, but wouldn’t it be strange if there were no physical option to hold? My introduction to music as a kid was through vinyl seven-inch singles, so it’s still a thrill to make records.

‘Raise’ introduced Swervedriver to the world with its raw energy and innovative sound. Looking back, how do you think the landscape would have been different if you’d released ‘Raise’ today instead of in 1991?

Wait, are you asking how different the music landscape would be if Swervedriver had never existed? That’s gotta be the most sci-fi question ever! I suppose, thinking about it: no Swervedriver means no quarter of a million from A&M that McGee needs to save Creation Records, means Oasis don’t get signed. Boom! Rock history altered in one fell swoop. As to us releasing ‘Raise’ today, are we 25 or in our 50s?

‘Mezcal Head’ is often considered one of your defining works, with tracks like ‘Duel’ still being a fan favourite. What was the most challenging aspect of creating that album, and how did it shape the band’s evolution?

Well, the band had just imploded at the end of the ‘Raise’ tour when we lost the drummer and bass player, so ‘Mezcal Head’ felt a bit like having to prove ourselves again and at the same time felt like a new band – we had some great new songs, so all in all, it was a pretty potent combination.

Your latest EP features contributions from artists like Ride’s Mark Gardener and Rick Beato. How did these collaborations come about, and what did they bring to the table that was different from your past recordings?

We had a session at Mark’s studio in October 2022, which was more an excuse to have a get-together as we all hadn’t seen each other post-pandemic. We got the work done and then ate some great food. I enjoy doing vocals with Mark – he has all these special teas that can make you sound like Barry White!

Rick Beato invited us over to his place to record, so we thought we’d take him up on the offer, and we were the first band to record at his studio since he started his highly successful YouTube channel. I recorded with Rick’s Fender Jazzmaster, and Mikey used Rick’s daughter’s drum kit, and that was a really fun session.

In your words, EPs allowed you to “go off on one on any song.” Are there any particular tracks that take the band in an unexpected direction?

One of these songs sounded more like Pentangle or something when originally played on acoustic guitars – more Jansch & Redbourn than Franklin & Hartridge – but it’s still very much Swervedriver once the amps get switched on. One song goes a bit Bollywood for thirty seconds!

You mentioned that this is your first EP since the Creation days. How has your approach to creating an EP changed over the years, both in terms of songwriting and production?

There’s something cool about curating just 15 minutes of sound. It’s ultimately irrelevant whether a song is packaged for release as a single or on an album or EP these days, though, because people will end up playing the song they like best, the most, probably. Some of my favourite Swervedriver songs are tucked away on EPs – the likes of ‘Hands’ and ‘Flawed.’

Over the decades, Swervedriver has maintained a consistent core line-up. How have your relationships with each other evolved, and how does that impact the music you create together today compared to when you first started?

I’ve known Jimmy Hartridge since 1975 and have been playing in bands with him since 1985, and we’ve both known Mick from the early ’80s while Mikey’s been playing with us for a while now, so it’s very much a Wheatley/Milwaukee mash-up these days. It’s cool that the guitars have been the constant force, though.

Let’s end this interview with some of your favorite albums. Have you found something new lately you would like to recommend to our readers?

Here’s nineteen new songs and an old Stooges outtake:

Horsegirl – ‘Anti-Glory’
Beachwood Sparks – ‘Torn in Two’
Tara Clerkin Trio – ‘Marble Walls’
The Lovely Eggs – ‘Memory Man’
Kim Gordon – ‘Psychedelic Orgasm’
Little Barrie, Tommy Forest – ‘I.5.C.A’ (Tommy Forrest Mix)
Peel Dream Magazine – ‘Lie In the Gutter’
Fupper – ‘Hair Clouds’
Muireann Bradley – ‘Candyman’
Julia Jacklin – ‘I Was Neon’
Public Service Broadcasting, This Is The Kit – ‘The South Atlantic’
The Clientele – ‘I Dreamed of You, Maria’
Sukie Smith, Adam Franklin – ‘Into the Light’ (Adam Franklin Remix)
Sextile, Izzy Glaudini – ‘Crash’
Jessica Pratt – ‘The Last Year’
feeble little horse – ‘Sweet’
This Is The Kit – ‘This Is When The Sky Gets Big’
Fontaines DC – ‘Cello Song’
Weyes Blood – ‘Do You Need My Love’
The Stooges – ‘Hey Peter’ – Outtake from Early Abandoned ‘Raw Power’ Session