Prior to his long-awaited November 2008 UK tour, Nash the Slash kindly took part in an interview with UK webmistress Shirleyann Davies. Read on for what Nash has to say about fans, fame, fate and the future.

Webmistress: Mr the Slash, I and many other Nash fans never thought we’d see the day when you returned to Britain for a tour! What prompted your return to these shores – and is there anything you are particularly looking forward to?

Nash: I'm looking forward to seeing all the old fans and the many new ones who have been eagerly waiting to hear my violin scream like a banshee. 

Webmistress: During your time here did you enjoy the British music scene and what bands impressed you then? Now, in 2008, are there any British bands that have caught your eye? What is your impression of the music scene in general now?

Nash: British bands have always been my favourites. The Who, Roxy Music, Gary Numan, Radiohead, Gorillaz. Experimental, determined, excellence of execution. These artists march to a different drummer. I have no interest in pop bands like Oasis. To my ears, they are just the 'flavour of the weak'. Amy Winehouse? A talented lunch-bucket.

Webmistress: It has been over 25 years since you have been here, in what way, both musically and within yourself, do you think you have changed?

Nash: I haven't changed that much, I just have newer toys to play with. Even when I do film or TV music, it is always the other party coming to me. I don't compromise. They come to me because they like the kind of noise I make.

Webmistress: I know that you learned music from a very young age, but what prompted you to make the final plunge and decide that you wanted to be a musician for a living? Bearing in mind that music can be a tough game to be in and many budding musicians fall by the wayside, what qualities do you think you have which makes you a successful professional musician? What do you think you would have done if you hadn’t become a musician?

Nash: It wasn't really a plunge; I was already in the pool so to speak. My music is not pop; it is not created with a commercial intent. However, my music is saleable, and I have created my own niche market. My fans 'get it' and they like what they hear.

My unique stage appearance was created by accident and I simply marketed it. I have no agent or manager. I've been an independent artist with my own label for over 30 years. I can't imagine doing anything else. 

Webmistress: Many British fans will remember the Smash Hits Flexi-Disc of ‘Swing Shift’ with great fondness. What is the story behind you doing this?

Nash: Flexi-discs were all the rage in 1980, and the artists would do different mixes of songs for the purpose of the flexi-disc. I like the flexi version so much that it's the mix I use live.

Webmistress: Do you feel there are any tracks that you will definitely have to include in your set list for the British audience? Are there any tracks that you play in Canada, which you wouldn’t play here?

Nash: Along with 'Swing-Shift', the fans will also hear 'Children of the Night', Dead Man's Curve and Baba O'Riley. I do the same material in Canada.

Webmistress: Earlier this year, you released a compilation DVD of four silent movies, 'The Not-So-Silent-Film-Collection', which feature your unique soundtracks as well as creating the soundtrack for Channel 4’s ‘True CSI’ programme. Is this something you are going to move further into in the future?

Nash: This coming winter I will be doing the music for Season 2 of True CSI. It will be a six month project. I have had offers to do other films and TV shows but none are as interesting or rewarding as True CSI. I still intend to perform live when I feel like it.

Webmistress: What are your plans for the future? Has Nash got a Master Plan? (Run for election as British Prime Minister – please!)

Nash: There is no master plan. Things just happen. As for political office, there is no honour or honesty in that world.
 

Shirleyann Davies, 1st October 2008.