Q&A
BILLY HOWERDEL
A Perfect Circle’s guitarist returns to his earliest roots with his second solo record – and first album under his own name – as he draws inspiration from the British bands that first ignited his love for music.
Words: David West Portrait: Erica Weitz
Growing up in New Jersey, USA, Billy Howerdel discovered that his mother’s clock radio picked up a Long Island radio station that played all the groundbreaking music coming out of the UK. From loving Pink Floyd, he soon became entranced with everything from Elvis Costello to Siouxsie And The Banshees and Cocteau Twins. Now all these influences flow together on his latest solo album, What Normal Was, mixing APC’s art-rock with the synths and elegantly gloomy introspective vibes of 80s new wave. “That’s what this record is for me,” says Howerdel. “It’s a look back to that time, the most important time, when music hits you at that right moment, you come out of adolescence and the world opens up. At least, it did for me.”