HI GAZ. How have the solo gigs been going so far?
They’ve been great. At the start I was flying by the seat of my pants a bit but it was very exciting and it felt great and I’ve been getting a great response. So it works. I’ve got new ideas for it, so the show will evolve and I’ll change things as I go to keep it fresh.
So the show will be like a well-oiled music machine by the time you get to Ireland then?
Indeed! (laughs) That’s the plan. I’m just building it all up on these dates so I can nail it for you guys. Those dates will be great. To come to Ireland at that time of year, it’ll be festive and I’ll get to share a few beers with the fans and stuff so it’ll be a good little trip and I’m really excited about it.
Have you enjoyed your other Irish gigs so far this year?
I did Marlay Park [in Dublin] with Paolo Nutini, which was great. That was a really fun show. I played a couple of other shows and did a pub in Limerick; that was an amazing night; such a great vibe and a real laugh with the crowd after. And the Black Box gig in Belfast was amazing. That was a real highlight.
Your final Irish date is part of the Other Voices festival in Dingle, Co Kerry. Is that an event you’d been aware of?
Yeah, I had been aware of it. They’ve had some great artists there, so I’m in illustrious company. Richard Hawley is there this year too. We could have a guitar-off. Or a quiff-off!
Have some of the Matador songs taken on a new lease of life on these dates?
Yeah, it’s been really interesting. I’ve been able to look at the songs in a different way. I’m playing 20/20 basically acoustic with a couple of little noises here and there and it’s getting an incredible response. It’s great for the confidence, to play a song like that with everything stripped back and to get great feedback.
Oscillate’s working great too. I did that for a session on 6 Music and it sounded really cool. So I do pretty much most of Matador and a few songs from my first album. And then if things are feeling good and the crowd are really up then I might throw in a few surprises and a few old numbers.
Do you get more nerves before solo gigs as opposed to band gigs?
No, I really enjoy that closeness and that intimacy. The first gig I did on my own was about four years ago in a tiny room in Oxford before the first album was released and it was kind of mad; 60 people in the room and me playing acoustic guitar and a bit of Wurlitzer and some drum machine stuff. Now I’m loving it.
Was Needle’s Eye an easy choice for the latest single from Matador?
Well there’s been a lot of renewed interest in the record because of the Mercury shortlisting and it feels good to highlight a song I love. I’m happy for people to hear it. It’s the sixth single from the album, which is kind of unheard of.
Were you happy to get nominated for the Mercury?
Yeah, it’s really special. It’s amazing to get that acknowledgement. I started out with this solo stuff by playing to 30 or 40 people in some rooms across the UK and it was tough, but I worked really hard and the people who worked with me worked hard and had so much belief in the music. So I guess in a way it feels great that it’s all been validated. I believed in the record anyway, so it hasn’t changed things, But it does feel great.
Are you a fan of any of the other albums on the shortlist?
I’ve heard bits of all of them. I’ve listened to the Ghostpoet record quite a bit and we’ve run into each other at festivals this year and we get on. So that record’s cool and so are the C Duncan and Aphex Twin ones. I’m pleased to be alongside them. It’ll be a really good night.
The first Supergrass album, I Should Coco, was Mercury-nominated in 1995. Does it feel like 20 years since those heady days or has the time flown?
Sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn’t. When I’m on stage and it’s a great show it feels the same as it did when I was 18. I’m a bit wiser now, and a bit chubbier, but it’s all good.
Gaz Coombes plays the Roisin Dubh in Galway on December 3, Whelan’s in Dublin on December 4, Cyprus Avenue in Cork on December 5 and Other Voices in Dingle on December 6. Matador is out now. The Mercury Prize album of the year winner will be announced tonight
