Feuerrotes Haar trifft auf leuchtend blaue Augen. Dazu gesellt sich eine Stimme, die einen bereits nach den ersten Tönen in ihren Bann zieht. OWLLE kommt aus Frankreich und scheint mit ihrer Debütsingle "Ticky Ticky" den Nerv der Zeit getroffen zu haben. In einer herrlichen Mischung aus Dream Pop, elektronischen Beats und einem Hauch 80er kommt der Sound daher. Tanzbare Melancholie könnte man das auch nennen.
Ohnehin scheint bei der 28-jährigen gerade alles Schlag auf Schlag zu gehen. Das Majorlabel Sony hat sie unter Vertrag genommen. Auf der Liste der Personen mit denen sie zusammengearbeitet hat, stehen bereits jetzt bekannte Größen wie Produzent David Kosten (Bat for Lashes) The DO oder Depeche Mode. Außerdem verzauberte sie während der Paris Fashion Week das Modevolk auf der Show von H&M. Vor Kurzem gab sich OWLLE dann auch in Deutschland, auf dem Reeperbahn Festival, die Ehre. Im kommenden Frühjahr soll dann endlich das erste Album folgen.
Für Supreme Mag hat die Dame Rede und Antwort gestanden, was ihre Musik betrifft, ihren modischen Stil und wie es sich eigentlich so anfühlt, das erste eigene LP aufzunehmen:
Owlle you played at Reeperbahn Festival on September 28th. Was it your first gig in Germany?
Actually this was not exactly my first show in the market as I opened for „The Do“ in some cities across Germany a year and a half ago or so.
But you can say it was my first show proper though, as this time around I had my full set up, my keyboard player & my drummer with me - the full team! I felt a lot more confident this time too as during this initial tour with „The Do“. I had very little experience on stage and not half as many songs as I have now!
How do you like Germany and especially Hamburg / the Reeperbahn? Do you have a preferred city here?
I do like Germany! I did learn German in school so I can speak a bit (not much, but I'm no complete stranger to the language!), plus when I was a teen, my school had this exchange program with another one based in Berlin and I was lucky to make it there and really enjoyed it!
As for the Reeperbahn in Hamburg: Ha! that is quite the neighborhood when you're not prepared!
Very comparable to Pigalle in Paris which I don´t live far from.
I'm not saying that in a pejorative way at all. I quite like these two-faced areas, which feel entirely different during daytime and at night!
I 've read, that you named yourself after your favourite animals? Is there a special story behind it?
Not really, it's a very simply story. At first I mainly liked the sound it makes when you pronounce Owl. Then I feminized it with two "L" and a "E". Then everyone started asking if I had kind of an obsession for owls. Well, I don't but, yeah I'm a night-ish person. I mainly compose at night. Furthermore I love this bird and the whole mythology it carries too. I can be quite inhibited or, say, discreet, in my everyday life, having an alias is also a way to overcome this somehow.
Let's talk about your sound: You call it Dream-Pop. What would you say is the special thing about it? Can you describe your music in a few words to us?
I'm not too fond of categorizations, I write and I'm a singer before anything else. I like writing SONGS.
But when asked I say 'Dream Pop' for this is the most accurate term I could find to describe songs that are, at least to me, as much melancholic as they are danceable. It reflects what I am and how I think too though. I'm constantly day dreaming!
And, what would you say, influences you the most in your work? Where do you get your inspiration from?
Music from the 80's inspired me a lot, Madonna, Bronski beat and also electro music from the 90's. Later I've had a real revelation with the Trip Hop movement and artists like Tricky or Portishead. I love all these artists for their music but also their true sense of aesthetics. As for where I get inspiration from? Life, my life. What else?!
You've just been working with lots of well known artists and producers. What was it like? Was there anybody, you would say „Wow, this in an honor“ or who would it be you absolutely wanted to work with?
I must admit it's a big chance I'm given. My first experience in the studio was with british producer David Kosten, the fact he'd worked with Bat for Lashes that I adore made me so shy at first. It kinda seemed unreal to me, I was given this opportunity.
Same for the remix for Depeche Mode. They are a cult band to me!!! There's luck AND hard work behind these opportunities. ;)
Your first LP is planned to be released in the beginning of 2014. What was it like, recording your first album?
Recording your first album is so very special in all aspects: there's the inexperience, the huge excitement, impatience, discovery, mistakes, terror sometimes (who's going to care?) but most of all, joy. And fun too! I've lived with some of my songs for a while now, and when it came to record the album, I was a bit scared that it wouldn't sound cohesive that it would somehow be a puzzle, one not making sense. So I focused myself on writing more good songs & tried coming up with as singular, personal a sound, and a personal tale on all counts…
I sound a bit solemn now, don't i?
But right now I'm super excited these songs of mine are going to live their lives out there. It actually feels like jumping off a cliff..adrenaline level to the roof!
Supreme Mag focuses on fashion: You have a pretty great, eyecatching style. How important is fashion for you as an artist?
Fashion and contemporary art have a real impact on me. It inspires me a lot. I consider it like important pieces of the puzzle when you make music. Im a big fan of Mc Queen. It's majestic and very strong. And Margiela for his sobriety and elegance. There is also this super talented Belgian designer – Jean-Paul Lespagnard - who I collaborate with a lot lately. I love his sense of theatricality and also the craziness he puts in his collections. You can feel there’s show going on just by watching at his clothes! He’s very inspiring.
How would you describe your own Style? Is there anything that makes it special and different in your eyes?
I feel free to wear what I want. I don't think I´ve got a definite style, but my influences are very classic and sometimes very punk.
Two extremes I'm very fond of. I hate total looks or people showing off with the latest trendy brands all over. Not my trip. I like things sophisticated no matter how.
Last question: What are your plans for the next time? Any gigs we shouldn't miss?
Next step is to prepare for the Album release, shoot a new video. I´m really focused on all the visuals right now.
There'll definitely be a tour too around the Album, hope it'll bring me to Germany - and beyond! - again!
2014 I'm coming !
Thank you for the interview and we wish you the best for the upcoming release of your LP. / Danke an Owlle, die sich die Zeit für dieses Intervie genommen hat. Mit uns hast du definitiv schon 5 weitere Fans gewonnen!
