Album de la Semaine : Duchess Says - Sciences Nouvelles

Duchess Says
Sciences Nouvelles

Interview de Duchess Says, par Jonny Dovercourt de Wavelenght

So you guys have been away for a few years. What has Duchess Says been doing on your time off?
A-C: We built a music studio because we wanted to be able to record our next album, so that’s what we did. We just finished recording our last album.

What’s the new album called?
A-C: Sciences Nouvelles.

Is there a theme to the record?
A-C: Yeah, science a bit.
Simon Besre (drums): Psychological science, and space science, sound science, liturgical science…

Do you guys read a lot of science or watch a lot of science TV shows?
S: Yes [laughs]. We have basic cable right now so we only watch Discovery Channel and TLC!
A-C: For my part, it is more aesthetic. It’s more about taking the aesthetic of science with our church, the Church of Budgerigars, and mixing it together.

Can you tell me about the tenets of the Church of Budgerigars?
A-C: All the members are inspired by the Duchess, or the Spiritual Budgie, in their everyday life. I mean, if you were a painter, it’d inspire you. For my part, when I wake up everyday thinking of the Budgie, it inspires me in the composition, or just in my life, when I get dressed or go to work. 

When did you find the Budgie? How did the Budgie come into your life?
A-C: It’s a long story, but the first time we saw the Budgie, it was on an old paper from my grandmother, it was called the Church of Budgerigars. At the beginning, I just looked at it and I found something strange, but I didn’t go far in it, and finally two years later, I just started to dig more and started to read the papers, and I realized it’s a really crazy thing, so we all talked about it together and we decided to make it live again. 

So… the Duchess is a budgie?
A-C: Yeah.

Do you own budgies yourselves?
A-C: Yeah I used to, but they’re all dead now. 

Oh. Did they talk?
A-C: Not really. They were singing military songs. [laughs]

So, what’s the plan to release the album into the world?
A-C: The plan now, we’re looking for a record label. We’re talking to people but, we haven’t decided yet which company we’re going to go with. 

Okay, well I hope you choose well! Do you feel like there are a lot of barriers to breaking into the rest of Canada as a francophone band?
A-C: As long as we are popular, not really. We don’t care, I mean we’re in this band since, how many years? Like 12 years, and its never been a problem, never never. I mean, I don’t think people care so much about that. It could be the language, we don’t even have to talk and I think people can understand. We just made a song about that, that is called “Talk in Shapes.” No more talking, no more languages! Just talk in shapes with movements and whatever.
J’aime ça!
[all laugh]

So 12 years is a long time for a band to stay together, all the old 2003 dance-punk bands broke up. How did you guys stay together for so long? What’s the secret?
A-C: I think we’re doing music for the good reasons. We’re not doing it for the industry, to be on the hype, and we have to make an album in one year absolutely. For us, it’s a way of living. It’s really deep and I think we are all together in this. The important thing is to do music, and to do albums that we like. So, I think everything feels really authentic and that’s why I think we can live for 12 years and just have fun together. 

So, what’s going to happen at The Garrison next Saturday?
A-C: I think it’s a good thing that the show happened yesterday because like I told you, it makes me think maybe I’m going to push a lot on this show. The visual maybe, or just get something in my head, I don’t know. It just lit something in my head and I’m really motivated, so I can tell that it’s going to be something special.

Line Up :

Simon Besre
Philippe Clément
Annie-Claude Deschênes
Ismael Tremblay

Label :

Slovenly Recordings

Tracklist :

01 – Inertia, Pt. I
02 – Inertia, Pt. II
03 – I Repeat Myself
04 – Negative Thoughts
05 – Poubelle
06 – Travaillez
07 – Talk in Shapes
08 – I’m an Idea
09 – Pink Coffin
10 – The Family Physicians