Osman can’t entirely explain it, but he’s been there when it happens and it’s the finest feeling in the world. “I’m an absolute sceptic about everything supernatural. But that’s what spells are,” he says. “That’s what magic is.” And I really did not need all that information about music and the music industry. Yes, it's key to the story, but a little goes a long way, no matter how much the author knows. I genuinely thought this was going to be science fiction when I bought it. I don't know why, perhaps being used to the Ruins of civilisation motif too much, or my sense that the people who I know have liked it probably wouldn't have liked it so much if it was even tangentially music biz related.

In a silly way, it’s because I’m so tall! A bass just suits me. It sounds ridiculous. But I always looked a bit silly with the guitar. It's always been like a big of ukulele. But one of the things is I think, I started playing because I wanted to be in a band. There was nothing more concrete. I wanted to play bass, I wanted to play in a band. And I didn’t know the bass-players. But also, I think I’m not…Guitarist tend to like performing. I wasn’t really that way. I’ve been intended to be a collaborator. One of the things I’ve always liked about basses is that it’s a bridge between rhythm and melody. It gets these things together. A lot of the players I really love – reggae people like Robbie Shakespeare, I like those people who just play things for five or six minutes. And it’s really weird! When I play the stuff that’s coming from Neal [Codling] and Richard [Oakes] plays, I’m always like: “It’s too complicated!”– but I suppose they look at me, while I’m a bit like collaborator.

The Ruins

Anderson grew up in Hayward’s Heath on the grubby fringes of the Home Counties. As a teenager he clashed with his eccentric taxi-driving father (who would parade around their council house dressed as Lawrence of Arabia, air-conducting his favourite composers) and adored his beautiful, artistic mother. He brilliantly evokes the seventies, the suffocating discomfort of a very English kind of poverty and the burning need for escape that it breeds. Anderson charts the shabby romance of creativity as he travelled the tube in search of inspiration, fuelled by Marmite and nicotine, and Suede’s rise from rehearsals in bedrooms, squats and pubs. And he catalogues the intense relationships that make and break bands as well as the devastating loss of his mother. I have a couple of niggles – I think it could have been shorter and sharper, delivering more punch (possibly more of a personal thing, as I generally prefer the precision of short novels). And while I understand it’s a book about men and their need for control, I would have liked a bit more from the women characters, especially Kimi (there’s a particular aspect of Kimi I love, but again I won’t spoil it).

A very dense novel covering quite a bit of themes: family, relationships, siblings, narcissism, the music industry in its magnificence but its dark side too and much more. I must admit the music bits were a bit of a blur for me, as I never studied music. But the story can be enjoyed regardless of one's music knowledge and obviously many of the artists are googleable :D It was slow going due to its depth and density. At times it was frustrating as I have a long list of books I need to read and tight deadlines. But it was not unsatisfactory, quite the contrary as in this day and age it's rather hard to find authors who really work to deliver a solid book to their readers. Ik was in limbo om een ster af te nemen voor de zin: 'What's the only good Radiohead album?', maar het boek is op geen enkele manier een teleurstelling. En er stonden genoeg Bowie- en andere muziekreferences om mijn hoofd gek te maken :)

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Both myself and Brett [Anderson] grew up in the same working-class-environment. Where no one really listened to what we have to say. And I think lots of people go through this process of feeling that they had these ides and most of them are brilliant but they don’t reach any further than themselves. And I think, that’s the first moment – when something you’ve written touches and moves them. Or even simpler – makes them dance. And that’s when the magic happens, for me. That’s why I’m fascinated by people who still make music without reaching out people. I don’t think I wouldn’t do it just for myself. The general public still often assume those in the public eye like musicians, actors etc, have ‘made it’, they’re successful, rich, happy, and everything is easy, but Osman’s book looks at the less glamorous side: the machinations, manipulations, failures, the waiting, the loneliness and isolation, and touches on the dangerous romanticisation of our celebrity ‘martyrs’.

The debut from Suede founding member and bassist Mat Osman is an altered state of a novel, mixing the crime of LA noir, the ambient cityscapes of JG Ballard and dark language games of Thomas Pynchon, all imbued with a sensitivity to the magical - and powerful - properties of making and listening to music." - George Chesterton, GQ And how did it feel when you started writing The Ruins having no experience other than songwriting ? Which is obviously a different thing. I remember, when you only started working on “Night Thoughts”, you said that you wanted to create a record that would flow. How much did this particular experience affect your approach to writing The Ruins ? The author includes those parts of the journal as part of the narrative, and the reader becomes more aware of Brandon's life. It's a complex, and multi layered existence and there's deception at the root of it. Unlikely hero Adam becomes entrenched in Brandon's world, posing as him and getting involved in some schemes that are quite hair-raising. Umbrage is not forgotten though, and there are readings from Adam's Book of Umbrage interwoven throughout the story. Osman met future Suede lead singer Brett Anderson in Haywards Heath, and they played together in early garage bands such as The Pigs and Suave And Elegant. Osman co-wrote some of Suede's songs, including "Lost in TV", "Europe Is Our Playground", " Attitude" and " Golden Gun". After Suede broke up in 2003, Osman provided music for television programmes, such as 8 Out of 10 Cats, The Marriage Ref and You Have Been Watching. [2] He returned to perform with Suede when the band reformed in 2010. [3]Your style always seemed to me a little bit like Jah Wobble with Peter Hook’s tonalities – what attracted you in music the most and made you choose this instrument ? After the release of “Dog Man Star” you used to tour extensively – in Asia, in Scandinavia among others! And finally presented “Coming Up” which was not as lyrical as your debut works. And starting the tendencies you continued exploring with “Head Music”– what defined the direction you’ve been moving to, at that point – as songwriters and musician who were exploring these particular spaces ? Dessau, Bruce (2 March 2013). "10 Questions for Suede's Brett Anderson & Mat Osman". The Arts Desk . Retrieved 17 August 2019. Fantastic debut novel. Magical, surreal, disturbing. Reminded me in places of early Iain Banks and DBC Pierre." - John Niven Even after over a decade of non-communication between us, people assumed Brandon and I had some kind of mental bond. It’s the identical twin thing. People expect a connection that – for me at least – has never really existed.

The main question then becomes, how far can you go in the craving of fame and, is it worth risking your life for a piece of music? After reading The Ruins I could argue that it is. As one of the characters points out, songs have that capacity ‘to be special in a way that real life never seems to turn out to be’. And yes, maybe they can indeed ‘mean as much as lovers and children and fortunes’. I also loved the subtle references to Suede lyrics (Suede is the author's band). My only point of criticism is that the word suede itself appears a few times in the book. Osman writes really well, but this reference felt as if he was undercutting his talent a bit. The Ruins is an intriguing and beautifully-written tale of two brothers, filled with music and danger. But at its heart this is a novel about being restless and lonely; about how the inability to create something transient leads to a silent despair and the desire to be someone else." - Mariana Enriquez, author of Things We Lost in the Fire This is how we are introduced to Adam. But in the second paragraph, it becomes clear that he is talking about a model land, village is too small a word for it. Umbrage, as his land is called, is Adams obsession, it has working traffic lights and cable cars, clouds provided by a dry ice machine, everything engineered in miniature, with Adam playing God, inflicting occasional disasters on his creation.

Things you did at that point sounds like the new beginning – in what way was it similar to the things you did at the beginning of your career, with debut Suede and in what way was it different ? No! I’m like: 800 000 into a novel. I’m always writing short stories…I get them down as the idea comes to my head. And I got terrible memory! I just write these things down…It’s important to me! I did some journalism. There’s Suede record I’ve been working on. I’ve been making some music with a friend of mine. One of the things that are great – you just get the sense of…When you're younger, you think about people the way older: “They can’t write anymore songs!”. And “What if this book is the only good idea I have in me ?”– and again, you just get to the point where: “What would you loose by trying ?”. Often, I spend 2-3 days working on something. Musically or writing. And at the end of it, you’re just: “It’s no good. It’s NO GOOD ENOUGH!”. I used to beat myself like that. Nowadays – it’s all good. Time is making music. Time is making art. It’s always: “What you would be doing ? Watching TV ?!”(laughs). It’s gonna be better, really. And it is what you’re doing! You’re exercising! You’re exercising your mental muscle all the time. I was a bit in limbo to deduct a star for the phrase, "What's the only good Radiohead album?", but the book wasn’t a let down in any way. There were enough Bowie and other music references near that horrible horrible sentence to have my head spin round and distract me :)