Answer:

Tell me how the differing experiences and approaches you and Mercan Dede have affected the creation of Dust.

A lovely lack of having to make a "follow-up album". Both Mercan and I are suckers for making seminal music imbued with Love. Words and music are like prayers. Working is like Praise, and hard work a oven where good bread is baked - there's no staying like the dough maaan.

Why did you decide to record Dust in Montreal as opposed to Turkey, especially considering Mercan's presence on the album and theTurkish musicians who accompany some of the songs (not to mention the fact that you live there)?

We recorded also in Istanbul! As well as Montreal. Practically speaking the technical advantages of working in the west mean that fewer mistakes can be made. In any case being Turkish is not about the geography, it's state of mind, and as I've said a few times lately, I'm more Turkish than Mercan in many ways as he is more western. It could be said that I bought the Turkish essence to the album to Montreal crew and studio colleagues and Mercan took the "professionalism" of the west to Istanbul to make sure that the recording was done as good as possible. A nice and unique segue if you think about it, love.

Why the remake of "My Last Two Weeks" and the epilogue for "Subway"?

[It was] at Mercan's insistence after hearing the playback of the Live: Just For Love album just after we had put our heads together and decided to do the later studio album. Mercan very kindly flipped on the whole album particularly "Two Weeks" and "Subway". The gist of it was that he felt that any one of my songs could be reinterpreted and many ways as they have in his words (or thereabouts) a classic and rare brilliance. (If you'll excuse the French) For my part I had to be convinced and only made the call to include them once Mercan had proved his point, and a happy boy I am too at that.

You made a comment during the second House of Blues Los Angeles show about how you're "losing money anyway" - do you think you're doing everything the way you want to at this point in your career, in terms of making and marketing your music, or is an artist of even your stature still crippled by The Industry and its mechanisms, formalities and money-grubbing? What sort of grassroots stuff would you rather do to promote your work, instead of going through the same old routines?

I will never stop touring if I can help it, because performance is as important as composing/recording.

Marketing is EVERYTHING. I haven't had that luxury. Though this will not affect my output.

GREAT MANAGEMENT is VERY important. I think I may have cracked that one. We'll see. My ethic is: "Me make music, you sell. Me not retail seller, me fly higher than all fast cars and invisible birds. Me no prophet, just messenger. You please tell the nice people at the nice radio stations that there is some never-before-heard type music very nice (top top nice) performer called Peter Murphy who your listener would like to hear, and tell them that you sure about that. You tell nice people who release my nice music to trust in nice music of Peter and not worry too much about instant zillion records. Nice Peter music can sell zillions if you just concentrate a bit" etc….

Artiste's should never manger or produce themselves alone.

Where does this album stand in the Peter Murphy canon? What does it say about you at this point in your life and career? And my instinct is to believe you're already thinking of what's next - that your brain hasn't gone on hold just because you have a tour and promotions and whatnot - so what *is* next?

Only God knows, and I've got a few top top nice things brewing now. Including a definitive PM DVD, lots of Dust touring (I am determined (metaphorically speaking) to nail this album to people's heads), perhaps a touch of Broadway theatrics, and more... Only God knows.

The secret of movement is never to stop.

Peter Murphy can always be found at www.petermurphy.org.