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Malajube tone down their act
Fourth album
Quebec
05/05/2011 -
RFI Musique: Does La Caverne mark a radical turning point in your style?
Julien Mineau: Although the album is very different from Labyrinthes, I think it’s just a natural continuation of our work. Sometimes, you feel full of joy and want to dance; at others, you want to impress or take yourself somewhere else and be more creative. It might not seem obvious, but La Caverne represents much more creative work that the previous album. It’s not that easy to write shorter songs with a more pop feel. It’s still Malajube, but with some sides that we hadn’t explored before, like disco, and polished eighties pop, but updated.
Are you trying to make your music more "accessible" than it used to be?
We started off with that idea, but we know that what we’ve come up with isn’t really suitable for commercial radio either. Let’s just say we didn’t go that way! (laughter) But I try to make music that will be listened to outside Plateau-Mont-Royal (trendy Montreal neighbourhood, ed’s note). Since I moved outside town, I’ve been thinking a lot about the tensions between Montrealers and those living in the Quebec regions. People in Montreal who like indie rock love to badmouth the commercial radio stations that people in the regions listen to. I don’t think that’s right! La Caverne is aimed at them more than ever before.
When does the composition of the songs date from?
From the release of Labyrinthes in February 2009, maybe a bit earlier. I always find the four months from the end of the mixing to the album’s release really long. It’s also the period when I like the album the least because I’ve spent several intense months listening to each track over and over. So I often use that time to compose, mainly because I need to do something else. In fact, as soon as an album is finished, I don’t listen to it any more. We all work really hard, but then it’s over. I might get down to listening to it later. It’s the album I’m most proud of; I think we play our best on it.
Do you really think the album is brighter than your previous ones?
It’s more musically bright than Labyrinthes, but not completely joyful. You might say that it goes less in the direction of nothingness.
What about the lyrics? You’ve gone back to some of the major themes of your previous albums.
Misleading appearances have always inspired me, or at least ever since Trompe l’œil (album dating from 2006, ed’s note). I’m interested in the way that people decide on an image of you and how easy it is to control. It may not be a joyous theme, but when you compare it to euthanasia or depression, which I’ve already sung about, you might say that it’s brighter than before!
In Le blizzard, you sing: "For selling your soul to Satan / The blizzard will come and get you," and further on: "For selling your soul to your manager…" Hey, I’m not talking about my managers here (laughter). But I do think we sell our souls more than we would do if we didn’t have to earn a living. I’m really talking to the young artists I come across who sign up with record labels and get had. It’s a bit of a message to them, to tell them that the end of the world is coming in any case! There’s no need to do that.
Are you in a hurry to get back in the studio?
It was pretty long between the end of the mix and the release, so I had the time to compose a lot of stuff. I’m in a completely different place right now, I’ve had enough of pop. I’m doing techno (laughter). In fact, I started using MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface, which enables musical instruments and software to communicate and synchronise, ed’s note) and I had a load of fun with it one afternoon. I’ve also got a lot of music that I don’t want to add vocals to, and that would be perfect for films. I enjoyed doing the soundtrack for The Trotsky (film released in 2009, ed’s note). Jacob Tierney is the only film director who does business with us. We did a big rock track for the end of his next film, due out at the end of the year. I really like creating film tracks. In fact, I’d rather do that than sell riffs for computer company ads (the group recently sold the rights of Montréal – 40 °C to the American computer giant, Dell, ed’s note). It’s honest, it pays really well, but I prefer creating!
Chienne folle
Translation : Anne-Marie Harper
