Last month I had the chance to do an interview with one of my favourite musicians of all time: Stereolab’s Laetitia Sadier. Stereolab has been on hiatus since 2010 which has afforded Laetitia the opportunity to collaborate with different musicians in recent years and now "Something Shines" the new Laetitia Sadier solo album has just been released. Stereolab have been called one of the most influential alternative bands of the last 20 years and Laetitia's voice and music style has been an inspiration to so many artists. It’s an honour to have done this interview with such a gifted artist. Here is what she told us :

First, thank you so much for accepting this interview. It has been two years since we heard the last Laetitia Sadier solo album 'Silencio'. How are you and how is 2014 going for you so far?

Thank you for asking! 2014 is wrapping itself up slowly but surely, and I am busy promoting and talking about my latest release of the ‘Something Shines’ album. It is the year where I started my singing tutoring school, I traveled touring with my Trio around certain places in Europe, I worked and finalised my album, and wondered a great deal what's to be done to reverse the negative effects of capitalism!

Your new solo album 'Something Shines' was released via Drag City on September 23rd. The first single is 'Then I Will Love You Again'. In which ways is it different from the first two albums? Can you share more details about the new album?

Something Shines was made over a longer period of time as the other two which were made very quickly and in a state of urgency. I would say it has a more experimental quality. I wanted it to mature, to let time do its thing so to give the music time to give off its own elements of fermentation, which is a process of transformation I find fascinating…

You will also be releasing another album with the Little Tornados. The debut album 'We Are Divine' will be out in early October. Who are the members of Little Tornados and how did the idea come up for this project?

Little Tornados is David Thayer's project. They are his songs and ideas, to which I have collaborated to some extend, mostly with bass lines, backing vocals, general ideas, and most importantly we co- wrote the manifesto and had it translated in many languages… If you'd like it I will forward you a copy of it. It says it all!

Now let us take you on a time travel and let's go back to the early days. The mid 70s.... Which bands were your family members' favourites and which artists were you listening to as a kid growing up?

We listened to Pierre Henry's messe pour le temps present, as well as Jean-Michel Jarres Equinox, till we got to the US for two years at the end of the 70's where disco was an inevitable social phenomenon as well as Pink Floyd's Hey Teachers! Live those kids alone!!

You contributed vocals to McCarthy's second and third albums in the late 80s and formed Stereolab with Tim Gane in 1990. Where did your singing style come from?
Did any of your favourite bands and vocalists as a teenager influence your singing style?

I admired a singer called Carmel, and hope that she did influence my singing on some level. I listened to early France Gall and thought there was an unaffected quality which touched me, and thought, this is how one ought to sing, with sincerity, purity and innocence. That is what sounds good to my ears. I get repelled by too much technique. When I discovered Brigitte Fontaine it was like finding my Mother! So I adopted her.

Not only did Laetitia Sadier play keyboards, percussion, guitar and trombone in Stereolab, but she also collaborated with many musicians during her career. 'Monade' with Pram's Rosie Cuckston is the most known of these collaborations. She also added backing vocals to Blur's Top 20 hit 'To The End' in 1994. Some other collaborations include Luna, The High Llamas, Common, Momotte, Mouse on Mars, Atlas Sound, Tyler-the Creator, Lisbonne and most recently the Brazilian band Mombojo's 'Alexandre' 2014 album. Which one of these collaborations was the most unforgettable and challenging for you? Are there any new collaborations on the way for 2015 and 2016?

I loved collaborating with Momotte, in 2006 or so. It was like finding my family in France, which I had given up on even looking for. This group of people, both men and women, just turned me on in a big big way and still do to this day; they are in a band called Aquaserge and determined to be themselves and not give into the egotistic bullshit that still prevails in France -and elsewhere alas..-. They make some of the most idiosyncratic music in France today, are very talented as musicians, beautiful, strong minded and unwavering in their artistic and political approach. I really admire their stance. I have also collaborated with Giorgio Tuma, an italian composer, spiritual son of Battisti, who writes some of the most beautiful music written today. I am so honored to have sung three of his songs thus far, and I hope some more... I'll be working on Adrian Younge's songs soon. Adrian lives in LA, is a big fan of analog audio, we are in the process of co-writing some musical tracks. Another Brazilian artistic called Momo I collaborated with this year, in Portuguese language which was a 1st for me, very beautiful and intense song which will be on his album out in October... I would like to collaborate with Beck, as each time I see him play -for years and years..- I feel that this man is a brother of mine and we should do music together…

As you have mentioned in the beginning of the interview you have a new vocal tutoring school project. Please tell us a bit about that.

I give vocal training to students, who all have different needs and ideals. It is interesting to have to tailor my teaching according to the person. As it turns out I have had to give classes via skype which works quite well! I am still in the process of developing the method, because there isn't just one way of getting there. My method is built around the idea of freeing the voice which in turn means liberating the self. It is a very rich, long, and fascinating journey, and learning will never cease.

Here is a funny question : ) Stereolab has been an influence on many great artists. The unique sound you created and your singing style is pure gold. You've been on the music scene for around 25 years now with your different projects and you are the member of one of the most special bands in the music world, but if you were to create your all time dream band, who would you choose to be the members of this 'Heroic Army'?

I'd have Julien Gasc, Emma Mario - whom I've worked with for years and would still chose them again and again-, I 'd have Jan and Andi from Mouse On Mars as I admire their ability to create from the now, from life force itself, I'd have Beck from some string arrangements, Peaches for more life and pure talent, Lucie Antunes on drums -current drummer of genius band Moodoïd-, Audrey Ginestet on bass for the incredible sexy groove, the guitarist from Bikini Kill, cause she's really good and driving in her playing, Marie Merlet who can play everything, and for the laughs....

Let's return to the new album 'Something Shines'. There are songs like 'The Scene Of The Lie' and 'Life Is Winning'. What are the lyrical themes on the new album? There was a song called 'Auscultation to the Nation' on your last album Silencio. ''......Rating agencies/ Financial markets/ And the G20/ But who are these people?/ And why on earth do we care about their opinion?.....'' Can we expect similar songs on the new album too?

Yes, there are similar themes on the new album, forever asking questions .. We are more and more aware of the flaws of the system that govern us, we can see the horror of it very clearly now and feel the effects of it directly in our lives but still either have no clue as to what to do or are asking what can successfully be done to defeat the deathly forces of capitalism. That is how I identify it and that is how I position my self and thoughts on this record, in order to open the debate on what's to be done to surrender to the life force -as it is winning, no matter what!-.

You played live at Albert Hall in Manchester and at Roundhouse London, England in May. You also have upcoming gigs in November in Spain, Portugal, France, Switzerland, Germany, Croatia and Belgium. Will there be more dates next year? What other surprises/projects can the fans expect from you in 2015?

November will be the big one and UK dates to follow in December... I would like to be surprised and come and play in Turkey, and perhaps go a bit beyond Istanbul which I love visiting but I am curious about some other parts of your country. I saw the Winter Sleep movie that won the Palme D'Or at the Cannes festival this year, and was very impressed by the power of this film, both in the themes it approached and the beauty of the scenery...

Last question. The most important question for me in this interview. There was a teen girl called Laetitia Sadier in the early 80s who was ready and excited to share her musical ideas with the world and would influence many new artists with her projects in the following years. If you met or saw that young girl today, what would you think of her and what would you like to tell her as today's Laetitia Sadier?

I would tell her "GO girl GO!!! Have trust in yourself, follow your path and go all the way!" I know it sounds a big cliché, but it was tricky to navigate the -music - world as a young woman; somehow you are made to pay, pay for what I still don’t know, but men want women to pay... Which is difficult when you are still working out how you are going to do things and present them to the world, it can be very discouraging and perhaps even annihilating for some. Now I say to all those young women, do not hesitate! "Rise woman rise!!!"

Any last words for Punk Globe readers?

I think that will be all for today, hope to meet those Punk Globe readers at some point in time...

* We believe the unique and special work of Laetitia Sadier and Stereolab are rare pieces of magic in the alternative music scene and there is so much more for future generations to enjoy and discover. Punk Globe would like to thank Laetitia Sadier once again for this great interview.

Drag City – Laetitia Sadier Page : www.dragcity.com/artists/laetitia-saider
Laetitia Sadier Twitter : https://twitter.com/SadierLae
Laetitia Sadier Facebook : www.facebook.com/laetitia.sadier.5
Laetitia Sadier Myspace : https://myspace.com/laetitiasadier
Stereolab Official Page : http://www.stereolab.co.uk

A special thanks to Bibbe Hansen for helping me shaping this interview.
OZGUR COKYUCE
(PUNK GLOBE – OCTOBER 2014)