Editors

For others, inspiration comes from troubles deep within their mind. Some thrive off beauty, others from dreams, while some opt for extra supplements to enhance their creative capabilities. For UK rockers Editors, it was the picturesque Scottish town of Crear that provided the inspiration for their fifth album, In Dream.

“In Dream was a lot different from other albums, because we didn’t ever really set out to make the record,” explains guitarist Justin Lockey. “We initially went to Scotland to write some songs and we took some minimal recording equipment with us. That turned into just making the record, so we made it by accident in a way.”

Crear, an isolated artists’ retreat in the Western Highlands of Scotland, is more than 12 kilometres from the nearest town.

“It was good to go from the really nice studio in Nashville, where we made the last record, to working on our own in the middle of nowhere in Scotland with next to no equipment,” says Lockey. “It worked out well with the character of the record, I think.”

While In Dream may mark Editors’ fifth full-length, it is only the second album for Lockey and Elliott Williams, who were recruited by original members Tom Smith, Russell Leetch and Ed Lay after previous guitarist Chris Urbanowicz left in 2012. Instead of simply replacing Urbanowicz, the band decided to expand to a five-piece, bringing on Williams to help with keys, synths, backing vocals and guitar.

“I think the initial reasoning behind it, and what I was told when I joined, was, ‘We don’t want to replace Chris,’ and I said, ‘Good, because I don’t want to play like Chris,’” Lockey says. “I think they always wanted to have an extra pair of hands onstage as well, in terms of keys and stuff, so we got Elliott too. I think it’s more about evolving the band and the sound instead of trying to emulate and continue in the way that they were previously.”

In Dream sees Editors move in a different direction to their previous record, The Weight Of Your Love ­–one more in line with the electronic influence of their 2005 debut, The Back Room. Smith has explained the record is grounded in the belief that music can be “both pop and experimental” – a notion that is clearly evident in the brooding first salvo ‘No Harm’ right through to the seven-and-a-half-minute final track, ‘Marching Orders’.

In a first for Editors, and perhaps as a way to extend their stay in Scotland, the band chose to produce the album themselves, before sending it off to Alan Moulder in London for mixing. For the visual side of things, Rahi Rezvani was given free reign for all videos and artworks.

“Rahi is a total genius wizard – we all love what he does,” says Lockey. “When it came to doing the record, we thought it would be wise to leave him completely free to do what he wants artistically. Instead of going for a different director on each track and a different guy for the artwork, we just got him to do the whole thing. So far, three videos and an album artwork later, he’s still totally killing it.”

Following the release of In Dream, Editors are heading out on a European tour for the remainder of 2015 – although being on the road isn’t anything new for them, given their prolific touring schedule over the past few years. The Brits have played a bunch of festivals in their time, including a couple of headline slots – one of which offered an initiation by fire for Lockey and Williams.

“The first proper show I played with Editors was to like 60,000 people,” explains Lockey. “Going from just hanging out and making left-field records to standing in front of 60,000 Belgians, all going crazy, all wanting to know where the previous guitarist was – I count that as one of the weirdest experiences of my life. There was a sudden moment of realisation when the lights went up and I couldn’t see the edge of the crowd. I remember thinking, ‘Oh shit, this is pretty big – maybe I should up my game a little, or just not fuck up’. So that was a good hour-and-a-half of me trying my best not to fuck up.”

Those hoping to see the band on Australian shores will have to wait a little while yet, with no plans confirmed for the near future. If and when Editors do head down, Lockey may have to draw on the experience of his other bandmates when it comes to surviving the harsh Australian environment.

“I’ve never been – I have a fear of animals that want to kill you and you as a nation hold the most animals that want to kill you out of anywhere in the world,” he laughs. “If you get to the sea you get eaten by sharks; if you go past the beach you’re gonna get eaten by a spider or snake. So you can only really stand on the beach to be safe, but I’m sure there’s something on the beach that will kill you as well – probably the extreme heat. Aside from all of the things that want to kill you, I’m totally keen to go.”

[Editors photo by Rahi Rezvani]