Mike Skinner (The Streets) interview.

Mike skinner, better known as "The streets" is a busy man, having just released an acclaimed album he's in the middle of a European tour as well as making short films as part of his "Beat Stevie" internet project. He took a moment to answer a few questions about life, the universe, and well, everything...

The album's had a little time to settle since it's release, are you pleased with the reaction to it so far?

Yeah, I haven't been taking that much notice actually, but when we perform live the new songs go down really well.

Certainly the new songs have a much more live feel to them than other albums.

Yeah I think so.

When you were making the music were you purposely trying to do this? What was influencing you at the time?

Musically I was kind of into the old type stuff really, like Motown or even the Beatles really, because it was all done with live instruments, it was all done using the old techniques. But in terms of everything else it was just kind of drama in general, I was just trying to get my points across and so that was all influenced much more by what I was reading and going through at the time.

I heard you were a big reader, were there any specific books that influenced you making this record? It's a very philosophical album that has a lot of ideas you don't normally associate with pop music, did that come from your reading material?

Yeah totally people like Bill Bryson and even Richard Dawkins (Outspoken British scientist, best known for his atheism and anti  organised religion views) has influenced this record, I do read a lot and it fits in to the ideas I was having at the time, but a lot of my time is spent just reducing things down to their basic form and presenting it in a kind of simple way.

In terms of ideas the album has some humanist moments and some anti religious moments on it, was that something that you were intentionally doing to "shock"your fans?

I don't try to be didactic in any way and I don't think I would even say I was a humanist, although I definitely think that some of my songs are humanist. But I think if you take philosophy to it's nth degree with like John N. Gray ( Scientist and philosopher who believes that humanity is naturally detroying itself) you end up with the idea that nothing has meaning almost... And that doesn't make good music. I try to put a bit of meaning in, you know!

I read that this record was a reaction to a darker more selfish take on your last album. A reaction to that excess, are you finished with that lifestyle?

I don't think I was ever totally in it really, and I don't think I'm totally out of it now. But all my albums are different pieces of work and I think that after the next album I've done, if you put them all together you'll have a good idea of who I am, but each album tends to follow quite an extremist view.

So would you say it's kind of autobiographical but pushed to the limit a little bit?

Totally, yeah

I noticed on the song "on the edge of a cliff" you have a very upbeat positive take on life, whereas on "way of the dodo" It seems very negative and there's no hope for us. Which viewpoint do you really believe yourself?

Well I'm really into John Gray, so to me there's organised religion and there's humanism, which does not necessarily have to be the opposite to religion, it subscribes to the view that we are progressing and the idea that we are progressing is a Christian idea. And most of the Pagan religions didn't believe that history had any meaning, one thing I try not to do in any of my songs is dictate in any way, they are really just like different viewpoints at different times of the day.

Do you think that when artists try and be political or philosophical they end up ramming their ideas down people's throats a bit?

I don't think they mean to, I think they just think that's what they have got to do and I think all storytellers are guilty of this and films can be really bad at that. I think it takes a certain amount of experience to realise that a story isn't a message, a story is about an argument, and once you realise that it's about presenting two opposing arguments then you don't tend to take one side so much, for instance on "the way of the Dodo", and I'm not sure if it came across so well, was supposed to be two sides to the argument, the chorus is the answer and the verse is the ordinary persons "tragic" standpoint. And they should get a kind of hope from the hopelessness of the situation.

In "alleged legends" you kind of attack organised religion a little bit, and say maybe that we should rely a little bit on our own in built sense of morality and ethics...

Yeah or even trust in your generations sense of ethics because what you feel is right is dictated by the moral Zeitgeist and that is sure to change, and so the idea that there is this book that can tell you what's right or wrong is kind of illogical, because what's right and wrong has changed over time.

Is it true that the next album will be your last as "the streets"?

Yeah I did a five album deal and it feels right. I feel like I've explored a lot of different avenues and I don't want to repeat myself too much.

Is it true that you are sick of the connotations that the name "the streets" has?

I was kind of misquoted, what I actually said was kind of sick of kebabs and chip shops and stuff. But that was more in reference to the music, both my own and other music was there at the time. It implied I was sick of "The streets" but I didn't really say anything of the kind, just that kind of subject matter. But I'm really excited about the next album and that's the point, every album should feel exciting cos I'm always doing something new.

Do you think you'll always do music?

Yeah I think I always will, but after the next album I'd like to try and make a film and see how that goes.

I think you'll be good at it, your video for "The escapist"was wicked!

Oh thanks!

You did that video straight to youtube and speaking of the internet, I remember just before original pirate material came out I was looking you up on the net and I found your blog which was very personal, you were talking about Gap hoodies and stuff, I noticed recently a lot of artists have jumped on this bandwagon, like Kanye West for example... Do you still think that the internet is a useful tool?

Yeah definitely, whilst from the internet there are certain elements that have made it much more difficult to be a musician, there are other wasy and means of finding your audience a lot more easily. I really enjoy writing and I have a very short attention span so for me, blogging suits me down to the ground because I get instant results. I don't have to concentrate for too long!

Finally, I know you're really pushed for time, but speaking of "The escapist" And it's a really fluffy question, but what is escapism for you?

Well I think it's quite cheesy really, but making music is the only thing that I do that really qualifies as escapism for me, I think forgetting you're alive is what escapism is all about and for me writing new music is the best way to that.

Other than that I like Italy.