Tears for Fears brings 1980s pop to Tucson's AVA

It’s been a baker’s dozen years since Brit pop duo Tears for Fears stood on a Tucson stage.

But on Thursday, July 20, they plan to make up for borrowed time when they slip into the AVA at Casino del Sol.

The concert comes days after the band joined fellow 1980s power pop duo Hall & Oates for a co-headline gig on July 17 at Gila River Arena in Glendale.

We caught up with Curt Smith, who formed Tears for Fears with Roland Orzabal in Bath, England, in 1981, to chat about the concert and the band’s plans to finally release a new studio album more than 13 years after the pair released “Everybody Loves a Happy Ending,” the band’s sixth career album.

“Happy Ending” celebrated Tears for Fears reunion after a nine-year break. The album took nearly four years before it was released.

The pair has been working on the follow-up since 2013, and Smith said they plan to release it in 2018.

“Funny you should ask. We’re actually in the process of putting the final touches to a new album that we plan to release early next year,” Smith said in the email interview. “This may mean that people will get to hear a track or two this year. Stay tuned, as they say.”

Here’s what else Smith had to say about the band and its Tucson show.

Are you still based in the U.S.? Is Roland still in the UK?

“Yes to both. I’ve lived in the U.S. for 28 years now, 10 in NYC and 18 in LA. Roland is still based outside of Bath in the UK.”

You guys are on the road with Hall & Oates this summer. How cool is that? What have been some of the highlights from that tour?

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“It’s been a lot of fun. The audiences we generate together tend to be larger than those for our solo tours, which means the shows are bigger visually. ... The set is a little shorter than our normal show due to the time constraints of two headlining acts, but I think we’ve managed to fit in most of the things people have come to expect from the show.”

And you also have done some pretty interesting headline gigs including on the lineup of the Killers fest in Hyde Park early this month. If I were in your living room watching video highlights of your summer of 2017, what would be the theme song?

“The Hyde Park show was pretty amazing, as was the show we performed before that in Tel Aviv. If I were to pick a theme song it would have to be ‘Mad World,’ but that’s more of a reflection of what is going on in the real world outside of touring.”

You’re coming to Tucson in July; are you nuts? It’s crazy hot here. What are some of the ways you guys adapt to the changing climes when you are on such far-flung tours?

“Sunscreen and run early or indoors. For me the main thing it effects is my running, but it’s not so drastic a change as I’m used to LA weather.”

What Tears for Fears songs are absolutely must-performs lest you face extraordinary fan backlash?

“Save A Prayer.”

What goes through your mind when you play the opening chords of “Everybody Wants to Rule the World?”

“That it’s amazing how a few musical notes can completely change the mood of thousands of people in just a couple of seconds. It reminds me how powerful and wonderful music can be.”

Do you still get a charge out of playing those hits 30 years down the road?

“When we’re in front of an audience, they become the engine that drive us, so yes — unless, of course, they’re a particularly bad audience.”