Scott Interview

Interview with Scott Robinson, 13 November 2006

What have you been doing since Five split in 2001?

Since the split on September 27th 5 years ago, I got married the very next day, the 28th, to Kerry. As some of you may know, I had a boy named Brennan two months before Five split. Brennan was at the wedding and all the boys came down too. We had a lovely country wedding. I done a stint on radio. I was on Essex Fm, which is a radio station where I live. I did that for about 6 months. That's where I met Chris Brooks who now works on Capital Fm in London. He's a good mate. I've been a family man with Brennan and Kerry and Kavan, my new baby son.. just being a good husband. Then I got a part in a show called "Boogie Nights 2" which I done for about a year and a half with David Essex and Sophie Lawrence. That was great. I done that for a long time and enjoyed every minute of it. I didn't know how much I'd enjoy it until I started doing it. After that, I got involved in getting singing lessons for people and doing a little bit of producing and some writing. Then 5 years were gone and Five reformed. That's 5 years in a nutshell.

How have you changed as a person in the past 5 years?

Well, basically I've turned from a boy into a man. While I was in Five I went from about 17 to 22. I didn't know much about life really and I had to grow up very quickly being in Five. After Five, I grew up even more. The split changed me. Obviously I am a much different person that if I'd stayed in the band. I don't know what the results would have been in me without it. I pride myself on not changing and not getting snobbish or, for want of a better phrase, up my own arse. I feel quite grounded but I think we all are. And I've always lived in the area I grew up in.

So yes, I'm a lot older, a lot more mature. I've got more to say for myself. I'm a little more opinionated, although I always was, but now even more so. I want to know a lot more what's going on with everything. I think having kids did that. I'm the only one in the band that's married and settled down and such. I think that changes you, makes you responsible and turns you into an adult quickly.

Has your musical style/taste changed in the past 5 years and how do you think it will affect Five's new music?

My musical tastes have maybe changed slightly. I've always liked bands like Green Day, Razorlite, Snow Patrol. But I'll never stop liking.. the boys take the piss out of me all the time... Richard Marx and the like. Singers singing beautiful songs. But my musical tastes have broadened themselves. I still don't like hard techno or drum and bass. I'm getting too old and it gives me a headache. I'd rather have a can of Stella then listen to drum and bass.

I don't know how my taste is going to change what Five does. You can't really know. What we wish to do and what we want to do this time is different. We haven't got a record company at the moment. We all want to write cool music and I wouldn't say, "I wanna be more 'Green Day' and J would say, "It's gotta be more hip-hop". We all want to influence the sound ever so slightly and make it, hopefully, into really unique sounding music which we're trying to do in the studio at the moment. Trying to bring something fresh and then go to the record companies afterwards. Then you can all go out and buy the records.

How would you like to see Five represent themselves to their fans and the press this time?

Pretty much like we did before. We were very honest last time and we'll be very honest again. Maybe we were slightly TOO honest last time and that set off a few too many people. So maybe we'll tone it down ever so slightly. We want our fans to know where they stand and I think they always did. They knew When to approach us and when not to, when we were in a bad mood and when we were in a great mood. I think that's the downfall of some other bands. The fans never know what's up. Other bands can always be hiding what's happening. The fans are thinking, "These boys are always happy, always full of smiles." But we're just blokes, we're people. And the fans have always known that about us. And that's how we want to be seen, certainly from the press point of view.

And we want people to judge us on our music this time around instead of keeping on calling us a 'boyband', so we must be crap. And saying we're just coming back because we wanna do the same thing again and that's not what we're gonna be doing. We want to make good music. We've all been in and around music since Five split. I mean, I've certainly been in the studio recording my own stuff and I've been recording other people. I just wanna show everyone what I can do. I'm sure it's the same for the other boys. We're gonna write good music and let the press judge us from that. If they think we wrote a good song, why not say it instead of slagging us off for being in a 'boyband'?

What is your role in the band now? What do you add both personally and musically?

Since the band reformed.. well, I've always been opinionated and I suppose I'm the most organized in the sense that I've got a family, a wife, "2.4 kids and a dog". So I've had to be organized since the band split and the other boys really haven't. You know, they can get up when they want to, do what they want to. So I kind of organize things for the band a little bit more. The management call me first, go over the schedule with me and I'll phone all the boys and speak to them. You know, "Whatcha think of this, whatcha think of that?" So I'm doing that and the boys are happy with it.

Vocally and band-wise, I'll do what I've always done. Some writing, some singing. I've always wanted to chip in more with the songs. And that's one thing I love about Five. There isn't a lead singer in this band. One song, I'll be the lead and the next, I'll only sing the chorus and harmony. Other bands got lead singers. I've never wanted to be in a band where there's just one lead singer and I'm a guy who stands in the back and just does harmonies. I have more to offer than that which is why I love being in Five. Because everyone at some point in this will have more than one chance to prove they have the ability to nail a song. Whether it be rapping with J and Abz, singing heavy or soft. Something I would like to say is that I know Abz sung a lot on our last album and people think that J can't sing, but he can. So watch out for that.

What do you hope Five can accomplish with this comeback?

I hope that people can see us as more than just with the stygma of being a boyband. See us as songwriters with good voices and a lot to add to the music world. I wouldn't be coming back just to be wasting my time.We want to be a success. And I think given the time and the right vibe in the studio, we can achieve a great album and go on wherever we want to go. We're not just doing this for a little while. We want to actually come back and be a proper band, hopefully for a long time. As long as the public want us. Do an album, do a second album or whatever it takes. We want to do it and make sure that we're up there writing really good songs, which we always really knew we could do.

The only real reason we quit was because we were so incredibly tired and over-worked. Everyone said it was arguments, and yeah there was a few - I won't lie about it, but it was only because we were so over-worked and we would just be pressured every day. But we prove it wrong by still being good friends now. So we refuse to work as hard as we were worked before. Slow and steady.. we're getting old now. (laughs) We'll get things done. We want to do everything we possibly can. Europe, America, Australia, obviously everywhere. Try and make people see the real us. We had a massive amount of success and we want to do even more than that. Sell even more albums. It will be a hard task, I mean, we sold a lot of albums. We are going to be slated this time. We don't know if our old audience will be back. It could be difficult for old fans to realize that we have grown-up and therefore our music has grown-up. We're not going to be singing your 'Got The Feeling's and 'Slam Dunk Da Funk's and stuff like that because that's when we were 17, 18, 19 years old. Now we're like 27, 28, 29 and.. (laughs) You grow up but the fans have grown up as well. Hopefully they will have gone on to listen to more mature music and we will have caught up with them. We'll be making the kind of music they listen to now.

You're a very intense family man. Will this affect the group and decisions you make?

I've always said very publicly, and the boys all know, that I am a big family man and I don't want to be away from my family all the time. And that's something me and the boys have spoken about already. I wouldn't be in this band if I could never get to see my kids. As long as the schedule is settled so I can be with my wife and my two boys and my family. It's not gonna work if I'm not happy. Because before, I was always the one who wanted to take Kerry with me or stay home with Brennan and the boys didn't have any girlfriends or any commitments really. But now, they all do what they want to do, whether it's socially or with a girlfriend. So everyone wants to have a life outside Five this time. Not just me. So we all sat down with management and said, listen.. we can't be worked like dogs. I mean, we really want to work hard but we want to have that time to chill out. If Kerry comes out with me on tour or if I'm going to be gone longer than I like, she can bring the boys out too. If David Beckham can do it, why can't I? The boys and managers are happy with that cause they know it's bollocks to me without them. I need to be happy with both sides: my life with my family and my job.

Is there anything you'd like to say about yourself to help people understand you better?

Just that I'm a normal lad from a normal background with the same friends that I've always had. I've been with Kerry for nearly 9 years, married more than 5. I like football. Arsenal are my everlove. I like puppies. I play football every Sunday now, five-a-side, and I love that. I'm getting better and better every week and I've scored a few goals. I play poker. Texas Hold'em. Some of the others didn't know I was playing poker a lot of the time I was off. TV tournaments and other tournaments in casinos and stuff. It was all getting to the stage where I was thinking of playing professionally. Love the game. I'm very good at it, I have to say. Blowing my own trumpet as always. I'll continue to play. When I'm with the band, I'll probably be able to play a little bit more and in different tournaments. Um.. I'm like a Southern Northerner.. I say what I like and I like what I bloody well say. Did I say I love Arsenal? I think I may of. I Love Kerry. I LOVE my kids. And I love music which is why I'm doing it.

What's it like being back with the boys again?

It is fun. It's something that I never in my wildest dreams thought would happen. I was the one who made the contact with the boys and said, why don't we give it a go? Next thing, I was being offered these different TV things that I could of done.. I'm not gonna talk about them... I had a few different offers on the table that I could of gone forward and done. They would have got me out there on the telly and doing bits and bobs. I thought, "Before I sign this contract, I wanna speak to the boys about getting together because thats what I truly love to do." I didn't think there was a chance in hell of it. But they come round my house one day to play pool, chill out and have a few Stellas with me. I mean me, J and Rich had a few Stellas. Sean drunk a few Coca Colas because he doesn't drink anymore. And Abz drunk wine. We had a good drink, we had a good chat. We spoke to Sean and he wasn't interested in doing it. Now the fans know that Five are going on without Sean. Sean is very happy doing his solo career and we wish him all the best. I speak to Sean all the time. I'm probably the closest to him, which will surprise people I think. I'm very very close to Sean. We see each other all the time. No hard feelings there.

I know we've got negative press, that we'll not be a success. We feel we'll be a success if we're given a fresh slate and a fair chance at it. The only way we feel we won't be successful is if people keep putting obstacles in our way just because we're a boyband that's come back. These people are saying that we're just jumping on the bandwagon of all the bands that are reforming. We don't care about that. All we care about is making a really really strong album and an amazing single.. which we could have already made last week, I have to say.. just really go for it, watch this space and see what happens. And thank you very much.