Qualia is a quandary, a question mark and maybe, just maybe, his finest release in years. It's also a record best defined in the words of Andrew Weatherall himself: "Mr Brackstone, my psychic shepherd, when confronted by the facts would probably say it was cosmic synchronicity but then again he would because he's Jung at heart. Others may cite mere coincidence. These are the facts. I'll leave the metaphysical debate for another time...

It's all about the black notebooks as memorial device and "The Black Notebook" and "This Is Memorial Device". At the same time as reading Mr Modiano and Mr Keenan I was ensconced in the Woodleigh Research Facility investigating a method of composition sparked by a random event too prosaic for the telling; unless of course we go back to "The Red Book" and see the hand of Jah [the D.M.T molecule that steers human existence] at work.

After all it was him/her/non-binary that sent me the "shave your beard off" message. And the "don't buy any more drugs" one. Whatever your leanings the music on "Qualia" is the result of images, feelings and thought processes stirred up by Monsieur Modiano and Mister Keenan channelled through the medium of a sonic notebook - in itself the memoir of somebody else's life/fiction. My own black notebooks, like Jean's [Modiano's protagonist] stir the silt of memory and birth as many mysteries as memories. They also provided the track titles."

Qualia Tracklisting

1. Evidence The Enemy

2. Darktown Figures

3. Spreads A Haze (And A Glory)

4. Saturday International

5. Between Stations

6. Soft Estates

7. Selling The Shadow

8. Vorfreude 2

After 20-odd years of being in complete denial about ever reforming, Marijne and Paul found themselves in January 2016 finding the idea of going out on the road as a two-piece, (just like they did in the late ‘80s as The Merry Babes), really quite appealing. They wanted to play the classic Salad hits and some rare B-sides and odd-scurities, acoustically. What to call themselves? The Merry Babes again? The MBs? Salad Unplugged? Ah yes…let’s pun the hell out of this one…Salad Undressed….

Live, they are not fully acoustic though…fuzz guitar and an old fashioned Melodica are also employed. ‘Being Human’ is the first single since Salad released ‘Yeah Yeah’ in 1997. It is the first track from their upcoming album Good Love Bad Love. It is a poignant and reflective song. It deals with the idea of pulling together in this life. It also drives along like a freight train in the dead of a hot summer’s night.

Written the morning after the gig the night before, Marijne wakes to hear’s Paul strumming the guitar and singing the refrain “Being Human”. Marijne falls out of bed, almost tripping over the bedsheets to get in on the action. They trashed it out and 2 hours later the song is writ…

Salad Undressed are currently gigging as a two-piece and will be appearing on the Star Shaped Britpop Festival Tour with Sleeper and The Bluetones.

29th July – Institute Birmingham

5th August – Forum Kentish Town

12th August – ABC Glasgow

19th August – Ritz Manchester

Salad have also reformed now and are getting ready for their first shows in 19 years

27th September 2017 – Lexington, London Islington – Warm up for Indie Daze

7th October 2017 – Indie Daze Festival at London Kentish Town’s O2 Forum

8th December 2017 – York Fibbers