Andy Bell ‘Torsten: the Bareback Saint’

You may know Andy Bell from his past playing with huge 80s band Erasure, but now he’s back with ‘Torsten: the Bareback Saint’.

Tell us a bit about yourself. 

I’m quite shy, quite lazy, quite stubborn and I like dancing and singing!

Great, a succinct roundup. What have you been up to since Erasure?

Erasure is still going! We’ve just recorded a new album called ‘The Violet Flame’ and that’s coming out in September with a tour. And I’ve just released one solo record with a group called Shelter, two guys, that was called ‘iPop’. Very Euro gay pop. I’ve been working on ‘Torsten: the Bareback Saint’ which is a one-man show, as well.

So tell us about Torsten, what is it all about? 

It’s about one man, you don’t know whether he’s alive or dead, he could be a ghost. I met Barney Ashton the writer about 5 years ago at the Kerrang! awards and we were on the same table when Barney said ‘oh I have this idea for you.’ He said it was written with me in mind, and it’s 22 songs really about his experiences of polysexualism, neither gay nor straight, and his unrequited love and frustration with all kinds of sexual interludes.

What does the Bareback Saint refer to exactly?

I’m not sure really, I think it could be anything. It’s just a made-up character. Like a rousing title, to get people’s imaginations going.

Does it have anything to do with HIV/AIDS?

I don’t think so, not really. It could be to do with wanton lust and sexuality, but it’s not advocating unprotected sex in any way.

What sold it to you when you first saw it?

I thought it was very unusual for me, because even though I’ve been out gay with Erasure from the very beginning, at the same time our image is quite clean-cut. With Torsten it’s much more left-field: it’s a bit grainy and a bit gritty and I get to swear a lot!

• Torsten: the Bareback Saint is out now.