SPIEGEL:
Your new album “Intruder” has just hit the international charts.
Did you expect this success?
Numan:
No, this is the end of a losing streak.
In England I started in second place, in Germany at least 15.
SPIEGEL:
You started your career at the very top: "Are› Friends ‹electric?", Your debut single with Tubeway Army, was an instant number one hit in 1979.
Then "Cars" followed, another number one.
You were a star overnight.
Numan:
There was no improvement possible.
The success had surprised me, I never found myself extraordinarily talented.
Fame
was never important to me, it was always about the music.
SPIEGEL:
How did you cope with the crisis years that followed?
Numan:
Just kept working.
At the beginning I was full of passion and energy.
When the doldrums came, I lost confidence and took advice from the wrong people, managers, producers.
I just picked up their ideas and in the end I didn't sound like Gary Numan anymore.
In 1992 the record "Machine and Soul" was my creative low point.
Then I met Gemma, who is now the mother of my daughters.
It encouraged me to do my own thing again.
SPIEGEL:
Your wife was a Gary Numan fan club member.
Numan:
Right.
She often came to my concerts in the early 1990s and one day told me that her mother was seriously ill.
That was the first time we had a more in-depth conversation.
When her mother passed away, I condoled her.
After ending a longstanding relationship, I spontaneously invited Gemma to join me in the north of England for a gig.
That's when we fell in love.
SPIEGEL:
Were you never tempted to use alcohol or drugs during the difficult times?
Numan:
Never!
In addition to a musician, I was also an art pilot at air shows all over Europe, including Germany.
You have a lot of responsibility and live dangerously.
As an aviator, you have to be in top shape.
Alcohol and drugs are an absolute no-go, I would have got rid of my license immediately.
My drug was flying.
When the music career flopped, I took off with my flying career in the truest sense of the word.
Suddenly I was one of the best "display" art pilots in the country, and gained in self-respect and confidence.
SPIEGEL:
At a young age, parallel to your pop career, you were the owner of your own airline.
Numan:
With Numanair I flew passengers in two eight-seater planes over to Europe and back.
At first I had the ambition to expand, but then my interest shifted to historical aircraft.
I became an aerobatic pilot and gave up my little company.
SPIEGEL:
And later also aviation.
Numan:
On Gemma's initiative, I invested more time in music.
And we started a family, became parents.
So I quit flying after 13 years, it's too dangerous.
I didn't want to overstrain my luck and let reason prevail.
SPIEGEL:
Speaking of common sense: How do you deal with Corona?
Numan:
Our family is fully vaccinated, I take the virus seriously, unlike many Americans here who think they are immortal.
SPIEGEL:
On "Intruder" you also sing about a virus and a gloomy future.
Numan:
I wrote all of the songs from Mother Earth's point of view, most of them long before Corona.
The planet regards us as its children, but they are becoming more and more heartless and selfish.
The earth feels betrayed, is injured, devastated and has now reached a point where it can strike back against us "intruders".
We have a great talent for making everything our own and destroying it, keyword climate change!
Planet earth has now identified humans as a virus and is defending itself, the apocalypse threatens.
Bizarrely, the pandemic fits in perfectly.
SPIEGEL:
The number "The Gift" deals directly with Corona.
Numan:
I have the earth ask: »Do you like my present?
It should take your breath away!
Will this moment of truth affect the heartless? ”In my eyes, Corona is something of a weapon against humanity.
Maybe it would be best for the planet if we went away.
All.
Like the dinosaurs once did.
SPIEGEL:
You and your family live on a castle-like property in "La-La-Land," as you call Los Angeles.
Sounds like a carefree life, not at all dystopian.
A place of escape?
Numan:
We live in an area called Sherwood Forest in the San Fernando Valley behind LA. However, our castle is less idyllic on a busy road.
The reason for the house is totally childish: I've always been fascinated by Disneyland, my dream was to live in a Disney castle.
We have secret stairs and hidden rooms.
Really cool, also for the kids.
SPIEGEL:
You grew up in London; your father was a bus driver at Heathrow Airport.
Happy childhood?
Numan:
Yes, and the greatest parents you could ask for.
I experienced love and the feeling of being special.
When I was 15, Dad gave me a Gibson guitar.
This is how he sparked my interest in making music.
SPIEGEL:
»Warrior«, »Berserker«, now »Intruder«: Your album titles sound aggressive.
Did you travel wild as a teenager?
Numan:
I used to have problems a lot, for example with teachers, and certainly a short fuse - but I was never violent.
However, my tolerance level towards authorities is relatively low.
When I was 14, I was sent to see a psychiatrist.
My mum came with me.
I have a mild form of Asperger's Syndrome, a contact and communication disorder.
At the time it was suspected but not diagnosed.
They pumped me full of Valium to calm me down.
At some point I stopped going.
It was not until much later that I was diagnosed with Asperger's, also thanks to a tip from my wife, whose brother is also ill with it.
SPIEGEL:
You were also enthusiastic about the novels by Philip K. Dick.
The cult film “Blade Runner” is based on Dick's “Do androids dream of electric sheep?” - science fiction literature as escapism?
Numan:
In a way, yes.
I hardly had any friends, liked to be alone, read a lot, lived in my own world and got lost in distant worlds.
I also read books about aviation.
As a restless spirit, I longed for travel and adventure.
SPIEGEL:
And did you dream of becoming a pop star?
Numan:
At a career counseling session at school, I said, don't suggest I become a banker or an accountant.
Pilot or rock star was on my agenda.
The main thing is action.
For fun, when I was eight I formed a pseudo-band, The Monkees Junior.
The Monkees were very popular, and my birthday is on the same day as their drummer Micky Dolenz.
That made me a hero on my street
(laughs)
.
SPIEGEL:
You were influenced by David Bowie, Marc Bolan and Kraftwerk.
You are considered one of the
Synth pop pioneers.
Numan:
Total coincidence.
I actually come from punk and played guitar in the band Lasers.
But when I was recording the first album with Tubeway Army in 1978, I discovered this mysterious device in the studio, a mini Moog synthesizer, Model D. I started experimenting with it, pressed a button, and suddenly the room shook like one Volcanic eruption.
I was flashed!
Basically I'm a fan of guitar, bass and drums and not a tech freak like the guys from Kraftwerk.
For me, synth sound is more like a color in music, an ingredient.
Only once did I do without guitars completely later, on my solo album "The Pleasure Principle".
SPIEGEL:
How did that come about?
Numan:
A defiant reaction to the press and bad reviews at all.
My synth sound was bland, they wrote.
I thought I'll show you guys.
With »The Pleasure Principle« I made a pure synth album at the end of 1979 to prove that this sound can sound powerful and exciting.
In spite of it, I left the guitars out - and it worked.
SPIEGEL:
As early as 1979 you sang about love for robots in "Are 'Friends' electric?"
Today artificial intelligence is a reality ...
Numan:
... and unstoppable.
AI can bring benefits, but it scares me more because it can be misused for bad purposes.
A great danger when these machines are so advanced that they can make their own decisions, for example in war operations.
You can't expect emotions and empathy from machines.
This is going to be scary.
SPIEGEL:
As a passionate pilot, would space flight appeal to you?
Numan:
Sure.
Space exploration fascinates me.
But we should solve the problems down here first before we start anything up there.
Is it a good idea to explore Mars now?
Incidentally, I wouldn't be in the mood to live there.
Desert everywhere, barren.
SPIEGEL:
With the hit “Cars” a good 40 years ago you made a declaration of love for cars.
How is your environmental awareness?
Numan:
I live in an environmentally conscious way, but I'm not an »eco-warrior«.
I drive a hybrid sports car, but we don't have any solar power in the house yet.
And I still fly regularly from the USA to Europe, that's what my job demands.
As you can see, my references as an eco-man can be expanded.
I am aware that I can be accused of hypocrisy because of my texts.
Yes, I could be a lot "greener".
My wife calls me a "try-atarian," someone who tries to be a vegetarian.
I'm trying hard and still have to work on myself.
Let's put it this way: I have good news - but I am not a good ambassador.