Two years ago, during the second leg of the Mission Creep UK tour, I had the chance to sit down with Damian Lewis for a conversation about his music.
We spoke backstage at Epic Studios in Norwich after the gig, with a glass of the band’s signature “D Lew” drink in hand. It was the first time I had been able to arrange a proper interview in advance — a real sit-down conversation instead of the quick chats we had managed in the past between rehearsals, interviews, and sound checks.
At the time, Damian and the band were still in the middle of building what would become the next chapter of his musical journey. During our conversation he talked about his songwriting process, the collaborative way the band develops songs together, the evolution of the live shows, and — most intriguingly — the sound of the second record he was already working on.
He described it as having a different energy from Mission Creep —
more blues-rock driven, a little rougher, a little more indie and new-wave in places.
Two years later, as we now stand on the brink of that second album Sweet Chaos — with the first single “Sweet Chaos” having dropped a few weeks ago — it feels like the perfect time to revisit that conversation. Listening back to it now, you can already hear the seeds of what was coming next.
And, as always, Damian was generous, thoughtful, and wonderfully articulate — even after a 90-minute gig. I am happy to report he called me a very good journalist at the end of our interview. To be honest, I may be a good journalist. That said, first and foremost, I am a walking Damian Lewis encyclopedia and it certainly helps when you interview someone you know really well.
So here it is again: my backstage conversation with Damian Lewis about songwriting, live music, and the road from Mission Creep to Sweet Chaos.
Watch the interview here:
Phenomenal actor musician, I had no idea he was English. In homeland, you can’t even tell.
Thank you so much for reading! And yes I know many fans are surprised to find out that Damian is British – thanks to his perfect American accent!
I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this interview! His most natural, genuine and detailed about his music! Thank you! ❤️
Tsvete
I LOVE you, Tsvete! I will never forget the afternoon we watched the interview together in your hotel room in Cambridge – the day after I interviewed him. And you hugged me at the end of it. Hoping to share many such precious moments with you <3
Scrivo in italiano perché il mio inglese è pessimo. Grazie per l’intervista! Questo ragazzo è veramente eccezionale, è bellissimo, elegante, colto e garbato. Parla degli strumenti musicali con passione, amore e conoscenza… Un grande!! Mi sono innamorata di lui con Homeland che abbiamo iniziato a vedere in gennaio di quest’ anno. Dopo abbiamo visto Band of Brothers e ho capito quanto fosse bravo. Purtroppo in Italia Netflix, Hbo, Disney e Prime non offrono molto con lui e allora ho comprato Wolf Hall, Life, Keane, Colditz e la saga dei Forsyte e stanno arrivando un po’ alla volta. Domani inizierò Billions e vi farò sapere. Comunque Brody mi ha preso il cuore… Credo che la storia d’amore con Carrie sia tra le più struggenti che io abbia mai visto. Ogni giorno me ne riguardo qualche frase e li amo sempre più! Non vi voglio annoiare di più! Grazie per questo blog! Dall’Italia, da Padova, mille baci
I read your comments through Google Translate – thank you so much for your kind words and for reading us! Damian is an incredibly good actor. And Nick Brody is the reason this blog exists. It seems you got some of the best work he’s done in the last two decades and a half and you are in for a true treat. ENJOY! And don’t be a stranger, hope you keep visiting us and leave feedback. Also – I visited your beautiful city back in 2022 and loved it. Ciao!
Grazie!