Today on Radar, I recently spoke with David J, co-founder, co-songwriter, and bassist of Bauhaus and Love and Rockets, and one of the most influential figures in post-punk.
David formed Bauhaus in Northampton in 1978 with his brother Kevin Haskins, Daniel Ash, and Peter Murphy. “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” came out the following year and pretty much drew the map for everything goth that followed. When Bauhaus split, David, Daniel, and Kevin went on as Love and Rockets. Alongside the bands, he has built a long solo career, sixteen albums deep. He also wrote the memoir Who Killed Mister Moonlight? and has made theatre and visual art alongside his prolific musical career. We talk about all of it.
His new single, “Walking With The Angels,” came out of a session in Prague that fell apart. He was there to produce another artist, and the sessions were cancelled, but the orchestra was still booked. So he stayed up all night writing, then cut the vocal in one take the next day with two dozen players from the city’s Symphony and Philharmonic Orchestras. His friend, the actor Marc Warren, was in the room and shot the video in one take too.
The song closes his new album, Postcards From The Afterlife, out November 27 on Label 51 Recordings. It’s 14 songs that move from Cohen-style chanson and ’60s orchestral pop to the alternative rock he’s known for. David calls it a record about “the poignant persistence of connection, be it in life or in death,” and it’s a beautiful one.
David plays UK and EU dates from late November through mid-December, including Porto, Lisbon, London, Athens, and Berlin. More info and tickets at davidjhaskins.com.
Radar features discussions with artists and industry leaders who are creators and devotees of music and is produced by Dylan Hundley and The Vinyl District. Dylan Hundley is an artist and performer, and the co-creator and lead singer of Lulu Lewis and all things at Darling Black. She co-curates and hosts Salon Lulu which is a New York based multidisciplinary performance series. She is also a cast member of the iconic New York film Metropolitan.
