• facebook
  • twitter
  • rss

ZZ TOP's BILLY GIBBONS Reveals His Unlikely Love For British Synth-Pop Band DEPECHE MODE

September 30, 2021

In an exclusive 16-page cover feature for issue 28 of Rock Candy magazine legendary ZZ TOP guitarist and vocalist Billy Gibbons reveals the most surprising of influences on the "Little ol' band from Texas — DEPECHE MODE.

"One of the best things about our blues-based rock and boogie band, ZZ TOP, connecting with what was happening in the U.K. was an unexpected alliance with the leaders of the electronic music scene, DEPECHE MODE," Gibbons explained to Rock Candy's Dave Ling. "That mutual appreciation was a well-guarded secret for the longest time."

It's hard to imagine ZZ TOP and DEPECHE MODE having anything in common, but Gibbons insists that the two bands really did bond, and that DEPECHE MODE's music had at least a subliminal influence on ZZ TOP's music.

"Our fans would have thought it completely absurd that we hung out with a band so different from ourselves," acknowledges Gibbons. "But we did. The way DEPECHE MODE used those sounds and the band's writing style was just so infectious. It was great to see something so different become so popular around the planet."

In an in-depth interview conducted shortly before the untimely death of longstanding ZZ TOP bassist Dusty Hill, Gibbons discusses a wide range of topics including catching COVID-19, his favorite ZZ TOP recordings, the runaway success of "Eliminator", and his current solo album, "Hardware", proving once again that he is one of the most fascinating and colorful characters in rock.

Read this and many other fascinating stories in issue 28 of Rock Candy.

Rock Candy is a 100-page, full-color bi-monthly rock magazine, created in the U.K. It covers the sights, sounds and smells from the greatest era in hard rock music, the '70s and '80s. Put together by respected U.K. rock journalists Derek Oliver, Howard Johnson and Malcolm Dome — all frontline writers for the legendary Kerrang! magazine in the golden era — Rock Candy is available in print format with a free digital download version for anyone who buys the mag online at www.rockcandymag.com.

Find more on Zz top
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).