INTERVIEW BRUNETTE
A: Alexandre – Icky Thump
M: Mathilde – Icky Thump
B: Brune
Papillons de Nuit – 3ÈME BUREAU / WAGRAM MUSIC
A Can you tell me about your old bands?
B So my old bands. I did different things, when I was in Lyon I did a rock cover band, we never did a concert (laughs) I also did ballroom dancing, that was another adventure, singing Hélène Ségara as well as other slightly better stuff for works councils, and evenings like that. Then, when I moved to Paris, I had my first band, Cordélia, which was a bit of rock with a gothic bent. I did it for four years as an amateur. Then, from 2006 onwards, I really concentrated on my own compositions, and stopped playing in bands, performing on my own with guitar and piano vocals, so no more bands.
A You were a music teacher in secondary school, and you sang in the metro, but in what order?
B First I was a teacher. For two years I was a teacher, then after class I’d go and sing in the metro, or during the school vacations. I managed, when I could go, I went. So first teacher, then subway.
A And did you get your students to sing some of your compositions?
B No, sometimes they’ve asked for me, but no. In fact, you quickly break the barrier afterwards between teacher and students. On the other hand, the last week I was a teacher, they all asked me for the “rupture song” that I sang to all my classes. (laughs) That was great fun.
A As a teacher, what songs did you teach your pupils?
B Well, you see, you do music history. Even if there isn’t really a program to follow, you do what you feel like doing. I’ve done different musical eras, but it’s very difficult in secondary school, because apart from David Guetta and the Black Eyed Peas, frankly they don’t know much. And getting them to listen to something else is complicated, but as far as songs go, I used to sing a bit more modern stuff like Placebo, which I accompanied on guitar, because it was catchier than singing Brassens. I guess they’d already done that in primary school, so I wasn’t going to add another layer. Now, I know there are teachers who only do that, but it’s a bit boring.
A And the flute?
B And I played the flute, but I soon gave it up, because when you’ve got thirty kids playing out of tune, you get out of there and… (laughs) And what’s more, I’d just started teaching them the flute, and on the train home in the evening, there was a guy playing the recorder, and every time I got home, you know, I couldn’t take it anymore. I’d get out of class, and there’d be this guy playing the flute on the train, and it was horrifying. (laughter)
A And by the way, how are the selections for the metro going?
B There are two people who really look after the musicians in the metro, auditioning people who want to go and sing. You need accreditation. Some people go without a card, but you get thrown out. So you audition, and you get your card if you sing well (laughs). Their main concern is whether or not you’re going to annoy people. And they allowed me to go and play at rock festivals.
Because some festivals welcome people from the metro, and that’s good, it allows you to play big stages.
A Do you get any cool stories out of it, anything you remember from the subway?
B The only funny thing was one day, Soan from Nouvelle Star kicked me out of my seat, a bit awkwardly, and I thought “who the hell is this guy? What does he want from me? And then I turn on my TV a few months later, and I see this guy, and I say to myself “but I know him, he looks familiar”. And in fact he’d worn make-up, so I didn’t recognize him right away, but it’s funny, because I opened for him again a few months later in Paris.
A And have you seen the Black Box Revelation video they shot in the subway?
B No
A Did you ever think of making a video, as a wink?
B I’d like to do a concert in the subway.
M Comme les Wampas
B Yes, they often do concerts, but we were supposed to do one in June. And the thing is, because of Bin Laden’s death, there were vigipirate plans and nothing happened. But maybe in the autumn, I’d like to, that would be great.
A Can you tell us about your album, Brune?
B I had all the songs, when I met Valentin, who is the producer of my album, and the guitarist on stage. And he came to see me one day, on stage, in a bar, where I was playing vocal guitar and vocal piano. And he said “I’d like to work on your songs”, and I said “if you’d like, but I don’t have any money to give you”. Because you have to pay people. But he started making arrangements, and I liked it, so we continued on all the songs I had, and then we presented them to record companies, because he had contacts. As a result, they came to see me in concert, and I signed. And this album I had the form, and he gave the substance to it all. No, I had the substance, and he gave it the form. I’ll get there. In other words, he put in the rock, electro and pop arrangements. I wouldn’t have thought of the electro arrangements. But I really like all the weird sounds.
A So the melancholy on the album is all your own doing?
B Yes, but I think the arrangements fit in well with my world, which is still very feminine.
A But why choose melancholy?
B Melancholy, because I’m a melancholy person, and when I came to Paris, I was leaving my parents, and life wasn’t easy, plus I had a job I didn’t like, because being a teacher wasn’t really my thing. And that’s bound to inspire you. And I found it more profound to sing about melancholy than happy things, because I find it hard to listen to very happy stuff.
A I can’t remember where I read this, but “melancholy is sadness’s pretty little sister.”
B Yes, that’s nicely put. But I wouldn’t say it’s sad, after all it’s not leaden melancholy, because it’s very dynamic.
A For example, “Rupture Song” isn’t necessarily very cheerful, but it’s catchy.
B Well, even on other titles, I wasn’t going to do anything maudlin.
A What do you think of Stromae’s music? Because the lyrics aren’t very happy.
B It’s true that it’s very hard, what he’s talking about in it, and managing to get people to dance to it, I like that, actually. But often disco stuff is about sad things. And it makes everyone dance.
A Like Enola Gay, from OMD, who talks about the Hiroshima bomb.
B It makes it easier to get things across. That’s how I feel.
A And if you were to make a second album, would it still be in the same vein?
B I’m actually writing and recording for a second album. But there will be fewer piano-voice songs, it will be more dynamic. And fewer songs, because right now I’ve got a song called “Cheveux Blanc”, and I realize that during the set, when we play it, there’s a gap. Yes, it’s too much of a song in the French tradition. There won’t be any like that. It’s going to be more dynamic, more guitar-driven, and more danceable.
Alexandre Fisselier – [email protected]
Mathilde François
ICKY THUMP
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