Avec Le Soleil Sortant De Sa Bouche | website | facebook | soundcloud |
By: Gareth Watkin
Earlier this year, Montreal’s kraut-funk quartet Avec Le Soleil released Zubberdust!. Given that they feature musicians that have also played in Panopticon Eyelids, Pas Chic Chic, Red Mass, Set Fire to Flames and Fly Pan Am we wanted to find out more about them so we sent Gareth Watkin to find out.
(((o))): When did Avec Le Soleil first become a musical project to be shown to the general public? what brought everything together?
JS: We started playing live around 3-4 years ago. It took us some time to find everyone that would make what Le soleil is (that’s when we were 7). But because of logistics and just the impossibility to have a band with members playing in so many different groups not to mention solo projects, we had to rework the band to a 4 piece, which took a good year. It was a good challenge to figure out how to be a smaller band but still sound big.
(((o))): Who or what has been a strong influence on the band and its sound?
JS: Personnaly, I’m very influenced by orchestrated pop, avant-garde / electroacoustic / electronic, power violence and all the different kind of rythmic based music one can find out there, “humanly” or electronically produced from funk to afrobeat to indian ragas to crazy latino jams, disco, house/techno, hip hop, no and new wave or minimal electronics…
(((o))): This will be Avec Le Soleil’s first time playing in the UK. What could our UK citizens expect from your live shows?
JS: Well… hopefully a very intense and engaging show. The presentation is very classic, but there’s lots of dancing going on, over loud music 🙂
(((o))): What (if anything) helped influence the recording process for Zubberdust!?
Seb: The small budget we had to make it happen.
JS: For the recording process itself, a lot comes from Radwan.nRegarding my personnal input, I would say recordings from the 60’s (for the orchestration and it’s placement and ideas in mixing), punk recordings and again elecoacoustic music. My only concern regarding the sound of the instruments were in relation to dynamics, so that when we needed to be loud, it would sound the part. But with Radwan’s history there was no real worry, it was just something to keep in mind. Considering the limitations in funds and time in the studio, I think we did a pretty good job at representing what we do.
(((o))): What have been the highlights thus far from touring as Avec Le Soleil?
Seb: For me I think playing Le Guess who was very fun, it was nice to hangout with familiar faces in a totally different environment.
JS: Meeting people, seeing friends abroad, playing great shows (notably the night after the Paris attacks and Constellation’s night at Le guess who). And of course, (re)discovering local food and drinks (full english breakfeast, British and Belgium beer, Chocomel, tarte au marwall, sandwiches in France, original budweiser, welsch “pie” and genièvre come to mind).
(((o))): It seems much of your work, from Zubberdust! to your days in Fly Pan Am, have all fallen under an experimental rock category. What fuels the desire to create something so different to everything else currently going on?
Seb: I was not in Fly Pan Am personally but I think we all have the drive to avoid being confined within an era or a particular style or sound. We all listen to quite a wide range of music and I think it might reflect on how we approach our music. The idea of making a record that is going to age as well as possible. I think if you’re going to make music or anything actually you should push yourself even if it can make you a bit neurotic in the process.
JS: In the FPA’s days, we really did try to push the limits as far as we could and so yes, I guess FPA was an experimental band. Regarding Le soleil, I think it’s just the wish to not repeat what everyone else is doing really (and even then, we’re far from being unique, we do, unfortunately, sound like other bands from time to time (FPA to start with, but others have pointed out Magma, Brain Ticket, Talking Heads…). But yeah, all we’re trying to do is interesting pop / rock music. Just really trying to take into account all the rich history of music that already exists and not repeat it word for word. And I must stress that I / we don’t consider Le soleil to be experimental. Espacially when taking into account what has been done or what is being done by others right now… So if we sound different, it really just comes from the fact that we try to expand our horizons by being inspired by all that we can and writing music that won’t sound like everyone else’s, keeping it interesting, surprising by mixing the different influences we have while working on the form of the piece. Form is the big thing… that might be what comes out as experimental. The structure being different, it’s hard to figure out what’s next to come or where we’re going, which is exactly what I love. I find it so exciting… I love it when music or movies or whatever take me for a ride…
(((o))): Do you worry whether or not a certain experimental element or motif in a song will be understood by each and every listener? What precautions/risks are taken?
Seb: Honestly I think when we discuss concepts for the new material we are working on we are not too concerned about peoples thought… Maybe we are concerned a bit afterward when everything is ready to be shipped, It would be lying to say we don’t care about how people receive it but it doesn’t factor in the choices we make.
JS: I find that we do worry about it at times. Only because we made a choice of writing “pop” music, not out of fear of alienating people. There’s no censorship per se. The idea has always been that we would try to write “catchy” music that one could hopefully dance to which in turn would allow us to push the use of orchestration, electronics and play on structure as far as we want.
If I take Zubberdust! as an exemple, I find that this recording can be accepted by anyone. It might be surprising at first, perhaps puzzling, but I don’t think there’s anything on there that would cause any problems to anyone after a few listen. Not when we consider some Beatles, Beach Boys or Floyd records. I mean, even in those years, things way more experimental were being made but I’m naming these 3 because of their level of popularity. And of course, they’re not the only ones of that area that pushed the enveloppe while still being very well received by their fans.
(((o))): Over the years, you’ve worked in a vast number of bands and collaborated with many people. Who or what has been the most interesting person or project you’ve worked with thus far?
JS: This might be a boring answer or just seem self centered but I would have to say Fly Pan Am. We were young, very interested in music of all kind and very severe towards one another while working. Very demanding. We would spend nights talking about music, philosophy, arts, politics… We still do actually… those years were very formative and although my work has somewhat changed (espacially as a solo “artist”), I consider it an extension of what we were doing at the time. And I think that, to some degree, we all do. Of course, new influences and experiences come to me all the time wether they are artisitc or philosophical / political / spiritual (espacially the idea of emptiness found particularly in tibetant buddhism which I follow). Of course, I also do have all time favorite artists or records that have been very important to me but I’ve always thought that I wouldn’t be where I am now, musically, without FPA (and to some extent, my spiritual practice). I certainly wouldn’t think about music and art the same way, that’s for sure.
(((o))): Will there be any plans for future material from Avec Le Soleil?
Seb: Yes we should record the next album this spring
JS: Of course! Our second record is pretty much ready to be recorded. It should be out by next fall. It will be very close to Zubberdust! In spirit but I think superior in it’s writing / composition and orchestration.
(((o))): Are there any collaborative projects coming up in the future that we could hear some news about?
JS: Well, yes and no. I mean, there are projects of collaborations but nothing solid as of now. They’re still at the state of wishes and hope so I won’t talk about them. But if they manifest, they will be grand 🙂
(((o))): What about the future excites or scares you the most?
Seb: Scared of not being as satisfied or more satisfied with the next record as we were when we finished the first one
JS: For myself, musically, I’m scared of becoming boring. Or worst, not realize that I suck while everyone else knows… that has always been of fear for me… Or not being able to come up with somthing better than what I have just released… until I have an idea and then usually, I become estatic and obsess about new compositions… On a more personnal level, I’m excited to be getting older, somewhat wiser, to have a beautiful family, beautiful friends but I’m also worried about the state of the world and the level of hate that seems to exist. It brakes my heart to know that we still haven’t found a way to cohabit with our enviroment or even just with ourselves as a collectivity and / or individually.
