Wire has always been the band that turns convention on its head, and Colin Newman is at the heart of this renegade spirit. In this in-depth chat with Kyle Meredith, Newman takes us on a sprawling journey through Wire’s 40-year trajectory, focusing on pivotal albums like 154 and It’s Beginning to and Back Again (often abbreviated as IBTABA). For Newman, these records aren’t just relics of the post-punk golden age, but rather timeless works that resist categorization. What sets Wire apart? It’s not just their sound, though that is something: a mix of jagged guitar riffs, abstract lyrics, and the omnipresent specter of pop structures stretched and warped into something darker, stranger. More importantly, it’s the band’s refusal to fall into comfortable patterns.
Newman reflects on 154’s famously chaotic creation, where each band member’s artistic ambitions collided with the commercial realities of the music industry. It’s a record born out of internal tension and external disillusionment—touring with Roxy Music, dealing with EMI’s pressures for a “hit album”—and Newman doesn’t shy away from that reality. He calls 154 “flawed,” yet it’s clear that this very messiness is what gives the record its enduring appeal. It’s Wire’s version of The Beatles’ White Album, a fractured masterpiece that wears its scars with pride.
Then there’s IBTABA, a live-recorded, studio-deconstructed album that arrived at a transitional point in Wire’s history. It was the late ’80s, and Wire had already stopped and restarted once, but the music world had changed drastically since their debut. Newman describes IBTABA as a “healing” record, a strange blend of live energy and studio experimentation meant to reassert Wire’s place in a landscape that had moved on from punk to post-punk and beyond.
Throughout the conversation, Newman touches on his numerous other projects—immersion and Githead—both of which provide creative outlets that allow him to explore different sonic terrains, from electronic to more structured pop. But even with these side ventures, Wire remains central. They are, after all, a band that has continued to defy expectations and remains, as Newman puts it, “the most famous band you’ve never heard of.”
And despite the layers of introspection, there’s always a sense of forward motion with Newman. He’s not just rehashing the past; Wire’s new material is still crackling with the same experimental energy that defined them in the late ‘70s. That’s the essence of Wire: eternally ahead of the curve, eternally restless, eternally relevant.
It’s a rare gift to have a band like Wire still producing vital, challenging music after four decades, and an even rarer one to hear Newman reflect on it with such clarity and humor. For those willing to follow along on their 40-year quest, the journey promises to be as unpredictable and rewarding as ever.
Listen to the interview above and then check out the videos below.
