Interview: FEMME

What does independence actually mean? We’ve almost certainly debated this before, although whether that was in the fly-by vocal sense in one of our many moans about life and nothing in particular, or indeed in a more fixed-sense via this-here blog. But, fuck it, we’ll ask it again. In today’s music marketing terms, we’re encountering rather flippant uses of certain buzz words on a regular basis adhering to their more-colloquial and derivative meaning. “Independent” is certainly one of them. “Organic” is the one that really fucks us off. “We want this rolled out in an organic way”. Uttering such bollocks not only delivers a sense of struggling to identify the correct word to allude to how you want to deliver something to the world in a way that’s palatable; but also that the utteror sees misleading people into believing something or someone is of a particular ilk or quality when we all bloody well know that they’re very much not those thing as a default starting point. Anyway, the word independent, in our world anyway, is chucked around in a similar manner. We asked Simon Aldrige this afternoon – nice chap from the BMI who came to visit us today, who not only gave us a year’s worth of branded note pads and paper, but also bought us food as well as giving us some solid advice on publishing – what this word meant to him. His response was not a million miles removed from what we have come to appreciate as the word’s meaning: independence is having the ability to choose. To determine one’s own fate, possibly inclusive of options from others but certainly free from intervention or compulsion to choose something according to someone else’s agenda – and believe us, folks, every motherfucker’s got an agenda. Us included. We are all too aware, in both professional and personal capacities (in fact it is only by having the ability to choose that we’re now able to distinguish the two), of how important this is to humanity; not least of all one’s self-esteem, but also directly correlated to the esteem in which we hold others. We originally encountered FEMME back in 2012 – we had just quit our job at our mother’s NHS practice as we had just received an offer from a much-larger music management company to start doing our shit under their roof, at great cost to our independence unbeknownst to us at that precise time (we were distracted by the money, you see) – and subsequently whacked then-Track Of The Day Sirens up for all and sundry to gawp at. We since have tried our utmost to keep up with the unfolding career via various Second Stabs and Best Of [insert year here] lists; and did an alright job of doing so. In furtherance to that, FEMME just as a person seems to embody sentiments that we feel are truly valuable. We don’t feel we are being sold her independence – we can just tell by the conduct and words that this is exactly what she is. And the music’s pretty fucking rad too. So, in-between various Uniqlo ads at Old Street tube station and other bits/bobs that would otherwise utilise FEMME‘s rather-striking person, she’s also found the time to put out her debut album – suitably titled Debutante, which is due for release in April and follows new single Light Me Up (out in March) which you can enrich yourselves by listening to it below – and therefore we felt it was time to ask some thudding questions. Observe.

Could you introduce yourselves for the hi-brow readership of the Killing Moon blog?

Poptart living in SE London, producing/performing pink, beat-driven music.

KM: We had a legit poptart the other day. Jam filled. Bloody lovely. Burned our tongue and everything. Nice to meet you. You have nice hair.

Favourite release of the last 12 months, and why?

Nao – February 15 EP. Because I think she’s one of the most exciting and innovative talents the UK has to offer right now. It’s a bold and confident sound with a nod to what’s gone before but with both eyes on the future – everything I look for in an artist.

KM: For ages, we thought everyone was talking about Ne-Yo. Nao. Ne-Yo. Actually, that’s a complete lie. Its just that we’re really tired and you’re not that easy to take the mickey-mouse out of. Allow us.

Favourite show of the last 12 months, and why?

I recently headlined Club NME at Koko and that was by far my favourite show that we’d ever played. As for my favourite show I’ve attended – I’m seeing Grimes at Brixton Academy in a few weeks time – I’m hoping that will top the list.

KM: We do a scarily-accurate impression of Grimes. Its actually very similar to another impression we do of FKA Twigs. Dance moves ain’t as spicy. Well done on your Club NME headline show. Here’s your Grimes. We cannot believe that’s her real voice. It is Elmo’s voice.

If you could moon anyone, or anything, who or what would it be?

I’ve never mooned anyone in my life but let’s start with those annoying “Woman pours baking soda on a bed, you’ll never guess what happens next” bullshit articles that pollute my online world.

KM: Our favourite one has been “A man walked into a McDonald’s. What happened next will leave you speechless”. It turned out (we’re a McDonald’s enthusiast you see) that he just ate a fucking burger. It didn’t leave us speechless. It left us full of anger and envy that we were simply watching someone else eat a delicious burger. AND we don’t even know if that shit is true or not. Here’s some aliens with their bums out.