One of my favourite albums of 2008 was Ouilposaliva, by Angil + the Hiddntracks. I was fortunate enough to get an interview with the very talented Mickaël.
Though numerous sites said they would run it – they never did. So here it is in its entirety : conducted as it was towards the end of 2008.
What was the impetus that gave rise to Ouliposaliva? It seems very conceptual.
Blame it on saxophone!
I wanted Ouliposaliva to be built upon brass and woodwinds. Especially the way Francis of the Hiddentracks plays alto saxophone. I love his tempered, controlled notes. If you listen carefully, you can hear saliva running through the brass.
It reminds me of the story behind Miles Davis’ Lift to the Scaffold: at one point, a fragment of skin was detached from Miles’ lip and into the embouchure, but he just kept on playing, and this contributed to the unique feeling of the soundtrack. I think this is what I like: detached fragments of skin; accidents.
I told Francis about my project. He answered “well OK, but since the E key is a tough one for my instrument (and he knows I’ve written dozens of songs in E), this time I’d like you to not use it.” So much for the missing E chords. Then I adapted the idea to the letter E.
Can you tell us a little about the title ‘Ouliposaliva’?
You know about the ‘saliva’ part now… The ‘Oulipo’ was a French movement of writers in the 1960s who loved to use playful restrictions. Parts of their writings are shitty nonsense… there are some amazing pieces of works too. Especially Raymond Queneau’s novels.
Was it difficult to constrict your lyrics to not include the letter ‘e’?
I thought it would. It ended up being so stimulating! I never wrote that fast before; I wrote all 10 songs of the album in just a few months, it was a thrilling period. Restriction is actually the best remedy against the fear of the blank page: it is about trying to find all you can say within the limits you imposed to yourself.
Also, it makes your mind stretch and wriggle and worm its way out of what you mean, and would normally say employing Es. It is like opening a different window, one you never saw before. Am I making any sense?
I think so! ‘Trying to fit’ features the word ‘discipline’, but is incorrectly spelt in the lyric sheet. Isn’t that cheating?
Very well observed! Well, I am using the German word here, Disziplin. It is actually a reference to a theatre play that I translated into French a few years ago, untitled Re: Frankenstein. Dutch puppeteer Neville Tranter made it; it is absolutely brilliant.
There is one E left on purpose in the album booklet, though. Keep looking…
The artwork is really attractive, have you and the artist worked together before? There seems to be an artistic sympathy between you.
Guillaume Long and I are good friends, yes. He is a full member of the Hiddentracks. Sometimes he makes videoprojected live drawings on stage with us. He knows the songs very well – I’m not sure he realized, but I told him very personal things about the lyrics when he was working on the artwork.
Narrow Minds video
There is a very live feel to the record, which works to its favour – was this deliberate?
You bet! We recorded in a huge 3-floored place, formerly a shoelace plant, and used all the various sound textures we could get from all its different rooms in order to obtain exactly what we wanted, without using any post-production effect or plug-in. So the album does sound like it did on the spot, if you see what I mean.
Plus, we ended the recording with a collective session, which probably adds to the live feel of it. We all sat together with headphones on, placed one microphone in the middle of the room, played the already recorded parts of the album, and all the Hiddentracks sang, clapped, played percussion, etc…
Can you tell me a little about some of your musical influences and expand a little on the hip-hop / jazz inflections?
I ended up listening to free jazz and hip-hop through the likes of Swell, Stereolab, Yo la Tengo, early dEUS… these bands are where I come from, I learnt a lot from them. G Love’s first record made me want to find a double bass player to play with… Broadcast’s Ha Ha Sound aroused my musical curiosity so much.
I like jazz that’s not only about virtuosity. Francis got me acquainted with Gil Evans’ “Las Vegas Tango”, Coltrane’s A Love Supreme, Miles Davis’ In a Silent Way… also, while writing Ouliposaliva, I listened a lot to Tryggve Seim’s Different Rivers. Marvelous record.
It’s sort of the same with hip-hop, I like it when it is ‘demanding’. Why? and Quasimoto have been huge influences, so were Qwel, and Dark Leaf, and a breathtaking band called Kill the Vultures.
Has there been a noticeable difference between the way the album been received in the UK to France?
The biggest difference is that I get a lot of nice remarks about the lyrics in the UK. Few things were written about them in France, which is quite natural, I guess.
I really appreciate the fact that most writers, in France, Germany, the UK, and so on, point out the ‘restriction thing’ only as a method for writing good songs. I wouldn’t want it to look more important than it actually is. What matters really is the songs.
Any plans to tour the UK?
I do hope we’ll be able to come again in the UK… I hope the fantastic Chemikal Underground team will set out something – I’m not using the adjective only because I know they’ll read the interview!
Do the Hiddntracks accompany you when performing live?
It keeps changing all the time, and this is what I want. Danger is like a policy to us – one gig means one performance. Most of the times there are 5 of us (drums, double bass, a Farfisa keyboard, guitars, strings, and brass), and we like inviting one or two different Hiddentracks every time, depending on where we are playing. There are members from all over the place in France…
I also make some occasional solo appearances. I loop all instruments live, like a virtual band
Can you list me your top five albums of 2008?
My favourite album this year definitely was Portishead’s Three.
Vampire Weekend’s brilliant self-titled 1st LP;
The Radar Bros.’ very gracious Auditorium;
I’ve listened a lot to Françoise Breut’s À l’aveuglette lately;and I’m going crazy these days listening to El Perro del Mar’s albums, including From the Valley to the Stars.
Have there been any personal highpoints this year?
My son Paolo was born on November ’07, so this year was mostly about him. I’m not going any further, lest I sound cliché!..
Finally, can we expect a follow up to Ouliposaliva?
Yes. I hope we’ll record it next summer. This time, the prevailing idea should be ‘duets with women’. I am getting in touch with Stereolab’s Laetitia Sadier, Emma Pollock (formerly from the Delgados), Lisa Germano, Françoise Breut… we’ll see what comes out.
Meanwhile, we should be releasing a LP in 2009 with a new project called Jerri.