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Artist Interviews
Q&A: Housse De Racket
By CMU Editorial | Published on Friday 6 August 2010
With a sound described as “soul-fused electro funkpop”, and fans in the form of Kanye West, Alex Metric, Metronomy and The Rapture, French duo Housse De Racket released their debut album ‘Forty Love’, a concept album about two tennis superstars, in France at the end of last year. The album finally got a UK release last month, and the duo are all set to play the Lexington in London on 12 Aug. Ahead of their gig, we spoke to the Housse boys to find out more.
Q1 How did you start out making music?
We met in music school when we were young teenagers. Victor had a Pearl Jam t-shirt and Pierre loved it. That was the first step, we call that stage the “grunge” one. A few years later, we decided to make our first band that wanted to be a disco machine: ten people with horns, backing singers, percussions etc. That was the second step, we call it the “funky” one. Having realised that we were not Earth Wind & Fire, we started a new band with just the two of us: Housse De Racket.
Q2 What inspired your latest album?
Our last album was a concept album, a rock opera about two tennis superstars, winners on court but losers in love. So we took inspiration from the great concept albums of the 70’s like ‘Melody Nelson’ & ‘L’Homme À Tête De Chou’ by Serge Gainsbourg or ‘Ziggy Stardust’ by David Bowie. But more generally, we’re inspired by any track with epic chord progression.
Q3 What process do you go through in creating a track?
There are two possibilities. Either one of us brings an idea of song and we finish the track together if we both like it (we operate in a full democracy) or we’re jamming together and take the good ideas out of it. Sometimes, we swap instruments. Interesting things happen when you don’t play your proper instrument. You’re a beginner again and it (sometimes) brings magic…
Q4 Which artists influence your work?
We’re huge fans of Prince and Stevie Wonder. They’re genius songwriters and amazing producers using technology of their time (synths, drum machine, sequencer etc). We’re also very impressed by the British scene of the last years like Foals, Late Of The Pier or Metronomy.
Q5 What would you say to someone experiencing your music for the first time?
Be nice, we’re French.
Q6 What are your ambitions for your latest album, and for the future?
Our ambition for now or for the future would be to write music that you couldn’t put a date on. Something timeless. We’re finishing our second LP right now, and we hope it’s going this way!
MORE>> www.myspace.com/houssederacket
