Tim Wheeler, Mark Hamilton and Rick McMurray, the founding members of Ash, have looked back on their three-decade career, from meeting at school in Downpatrick, County Down, to topping the charts and surviving the chaos of touring. Their debut album, 1977, reached No 1 in 1996, and they are now releasing a 30th anniversary edition on 16 October, alongside a world tour that runs until December.
From school corridors to Japan
Wheeler recalls the band's first tour of Japan: "I was 18 and in the back of the van in Tokyo... As we drove towards the hotel we were swamped by fans, just like Beatlemania. That night Mark put his head through the hotel wall and a lampshade was smashed. We ended up paying £800 in damages at checkout."
Hamilton and Wheeler met at age 11, bonding over heavy metal and computer games. McMurray, a year above, joined after they met backstage at a school play. "Rick transformed what Mark and I had built into a decent-sounding band," Wheeler says.
The pressures of fame
After the release of Girl from Mars, the band played Glastonbury, Top of the Pops, and Reading festival. Wheeler describes feeling overwhelmed: "I was exhausted from all the touring and promotion, and felt like I was losing my mind... my dreams were coming true but the pressure was too huge."
The band's wild days included Hamilton breaking both feet jumping off a balcony, after which "he self-medicated with gin and buckets of ice after every show," Wheeler says. Their second album, Nu-Clear Sounds, underperformed, leading to a period of regrouping and growing up.
A 'weirdly functional family'
McMurray notes that the band's bond has endured: "We are extremely lucky that we started out so young – that we were school friends before our egos even started to form." He also mentions he got sober six years ago, while others still drink occasionally.
Hamilton reflects on his mental health struggles and the band's integrity, including resisting pressure to be marketed as a boyband in France. "We've never had any inner-band rivalries as we only care about Ash," he says. "Part of me is always motivated by the sense that we created this thing, and the thing has never been truly appreciated. So we'll keep going – kicking and screaming – until we've proved everyone wrong."
