The British singer with the husky voice was born in 1956 in Kingston-upon-Thames, southwest of London.
Richard Butler
initially studied painting before turning to music at the end of the 1970s. With his brother Tim on bass, he formed the
Psychedelic Furs
in 1977, although their self-titled debut album wasn’t released until three years later. This was their first foray into the turbulent English music scene of the era.
Mixing abrasive guitars, melancholic saxophone, and most notably Richard’s raspy voice, the band’s sound was nothing if not original. A haunting melody about separation and a kind of despair linked to losing a loved one,
“Sister Morphine”
maps out the winding paths the singer continues to explore to this day—always leaving a sense of mystery lingering in the air…
Subsequent albums like “Talk Talk” (1981) and “Forever Now” (1982) undoubtedly cemented the band as a pillar of the
new wave
movement. From the apparent chaos of their inspiration, the Psychedelic Furs also managed—almost miraculously—to produce a handful of gems that achieved success. Without ever taking the easy road, songs like
“Love My Way”
and
“The Ghost In You”
became anthems of so-called alternative rock. Written in 1981,
“Pretty In Pink”
(the band’s best-known track) has had a remarkable destiny: five years after it was released, director
John Hughes
built his film of the same name around it. The Furs even recorded a softer-edged version for the movie, which features
Molly Ringwald
in the cast.
In an interview with “Rolling Stone”, Richard said:
“I always saw the Furs as an extension of what I wanted to express as a painter: chaos, beauty, and a certain sad irony. Music became my new canvas.”
In fact, for about twenty years now, he has picked up his brushes again and occasionally exhibits his work. As he likes to say, he now considers himself
“a painter who sings rather than a singer who paints,”
highlighting the shift in priorities in his life.
After several breakups and reunions, and two albums under the name
Love Spit Love
, Richard Butler brought the Psychedelic Furs back into focus with the album “Made For Rain” (2020), their first in almost thirty years. Speaking about these new songs in columns of the “NME”:
“It’s not a nostalgic album. It was important to me that it’s a record for now. The Furs aren’t a relic, the feelings are still alive.”
And it’s true that his voice retains the same evocative power, still sending shivers down the spine—sometimes from pure pleasure, sometimes from a kind of dread.
Some upcoming concerts:
19 June: Limelight –
Belfast
(Northern Ireland)
20 June: Academy –
Dublin
(Ireland)
2 November: Bataclan –
Paris
(France)
3 November: Melkweg –
Amsterdam
(Netherlands)
4 November: OM Seraing –
Liège
(Belgium)
All other dates here: thepsychedelicfurs.com/#shows
(MH with Stéphane Massart – Photo: © Etienne Tordoir)
Photo: Richard Butler of the Psychedelic Furs backstage at the Alive In June festival at Brielpoort, Deinze (Belgium) on 1 June 1984
