There’s no faking a life like rock’n’roll lifer Sami Yaffa’s. From the righteous sleaze of Hanoi Rocks to the streetwise snarl of the revived New York Dolls and beyond with Michael Monroe, he’s lived it.
Now he’s back, this time alongside singer-guitarist Rich Ragany (The Digressions) and The Loyalties’ drummer Simon Maxwell in the newly formed The Sideshows, burning brightly with the release of their self-titled debut album.
You exhibited some of your abstract paintings in Stockholm last year. What does art give you that rock’n’roll doesn’t?
Peace and quiet! It’s kinda the opposite. I rotate between rock’n’roll and painting. When I run out of ideas, I start painting, and when I get tired of that, I go back to music. They feed each other in a weird way.
How did The Sideshows come about?
Rich is an old friend of mine who I’ve known since my New York days. He then moved back to the UK and I heard he’d started making music. He started turning up to Michael Monroe gigs, and he told me he was still writing songs. I had just finished building my studio and I wanted to see what it sounded like, so I asked him if he wanted to do some demos. And the first two songs sounded fucking fantastic! We thought: “We have something here. Let’s make a whole album.” We banged it out in a week.
Your studio is in rural Spain. What kind of effect did that environment have on the making of the album?
I think rock’n’roll lives inside of us regardless of the surroundings. I’ve recorded in every major studio in the world, but what it boils down to is the less disturbances from friends and family you have, the better it is. You can zone in on the work and really enjoy the experience. And also not to having to think about the clock all the time helps.
How would you describe the soul of The Sideshows?
We’re suckers for good songwriting. We want to get the rock’n’roll spirit in there – we want it to be loud and we want it to be obnoxious, but at the same time we want it to be good. Rich kept sending me demos that he’d recorded in his bathroom – we thought of putting them out and calling them The Toilet Tapes. And speaking for myself, my spirit hasn’t gone anywhere. I try to listen to new music all the time, but because of modern technology it’s become a little too perfect. I like rock’n’roll to have a little bit of dirt and some drunkenness and the element of surprise.
Is there anyone that you’d still like to play with that you haven’t done yet?
There are a lot of brilliant musicians out there. I’m a huge Tom Waits fan, but I think he’s probably retired by now. And I love Nick Cave’s stuff. As you can see, I’m just naming old guys. But there is a band from Helsinki called Lovers Left Alive who are fucking great. They give me hope.
What’s next for The Sideshows? Will they be playing shows soon?
We’re planning live dates for the fall in the UK, Finland, Spain and Germany. We’re going to continue with this, and we’re already talking about the next record because this is so much fun. The reception we’ve had has been really great.
The Sideshows is out now via European Phonographic.
