Adrian interview
"It's bigger than worrying about being on stage. There's things more important than trying to play together again. Beth might get a bit nervous, I guess."
None of the gigs to raise money for victims of the tsunami disaster has been more surprising than Portishead's first gig for seven years. They play with Massive Attack and The Coral at Bristol Academy on February 19.
Guitarist Adrian Utley tells PS that Portishead are finally nearly ready.
Portishead's gig with Massive Attack at Bristol Academy on Feb 19 is sold out, but is webcast at crisisinasia.com.
"We're joining in on each other's sets," says Adrian Utley. "We tried to do a show together for the homeless in Bristol, but it's the first time we've been able to get organised properly.
"There won't be any new Portishead songs, as they're not ready. Sounds rubbish, doesn't it? I wish they were, I don't want to be playing old songs."
The $64,000 question - is the new Portishead album ready yet?
"No," says self-deprecating guitarist Adrian Utley. "It'll be sooner rather than later.
"I'm not going to say how the new songs sound. Sorry to be cagey, I don't want to pre-empt anything in case it changes. There's days when it feels like it's been eight years since the last record, we had no idea it was going to take this long."
Just why has it taken Portishead so long to finish a new album?
"After our tour in '98, we were shattered," says Adrian Utley. "We felt like we'd said all we had to say. We didn't want to do it any more.
"Having said that, all the way along we've never wanted to split up. There was never any feeling that we wanted to let it slip out of our hands and call it a day. We've kept on working on new songs, believe it or not."
Portishead admit they've had severe writer's block in trying to follow 1997's eponymous second album.
"Me and Geoff were in Australia for nine weeks," recalls Adrian Utley. "It was like wading through mud every day.
"We've done tracks that were good, but nothing that excited us. Then, last summer, the two of us worked on four songs and I suddenly felt, hang on, we're really buzzing here. And we've been buzzing ever since."
Are Portishead worried any new album will have to be extra special to make up for the eight-year wait?
"Oh, we've worried about that, we've worried about whether we've got any fans left, worried about everything you can think of," chuckles Adrian Utley.
"We've had some big money festival offers come in recently. We're not doing any more shows until the album is ready, but it's flattering they think we can still sell the tickets."
Portishead's Geoff Barrow and Adrian Utley have produced the new album by the notoriously prolific The Coral.
"I am moderately jealous of how quick they are," says guitarist Adrian. "We went to see them and they performed the album, in full, harmonies, the lot.
"I don't know how they do it. I'd go home at the weekend, knackered, they'd come back on Monday having written two new songs. I've already heard some demos for the album after this one."
How can Portishead justify taking eight years to make an album?
"I know we're privileged to be allowed to take so long," muses Adrian Utley. "I wake up every day feeling lucky, even when we've struggled for songs.
"But we've never done this for money or status. It was never an option to put out songs we knew were only OK. We'll only come back when we're happy, even if the outside world must be thinking right now, 'God, they're precious'."