Music Avant-Garde—Brigitte Fontaine - French musician - Brief Article - Interview

Interview, Oct, 2001 by Kim Gordons

STILL KEKE AFTER ALL THESE YEARS

KIM GORDON: You've been putting out avant-garde French pop albums since 1970, and you've established quite a cult following. I hear that your eighth album is coming out in January. What's it called?

BRIGITTE FONTAINE: Keke Land [Virgin].

KG: Can you explain what keke is?

BF: Somebody is keke when he or she is funny or innocent or crazy or eccentric. Keke Land is the imaginary kingdom of all those people. Do you understand?

KG: Oh, yeah! [both laugh] Which other guest musicians are on your record besides us [Sonic Youth]?

BF: Archie Shepp plays one song. There's a very good guitar player called M, and he helped realize three of my tunes. There's also a group called Noir Desir. They are all famous in France.

KG: What's your favorite song on the album?

BF: I don't know, because I love many tunes on it. Maybe it can be "Rififi."

KG: Hmmm, I don't know what that means.

BF: It's old French slang that means a little war between gangsters.

KG: Oh, because all the songs are your favorites, you mean you fight over which one? [laughs]

BF: Yes.

KG: This is for the French issue of Interview magazine. It's sort of keke, so I'm going to ask you some questions about Paris. What would you like to do on your ideal day in Paris?

BF: I'd like to be sane.

KG: [laughs] What kind of music are you listening to right now?

BF: I'm listening to good French radio with beautiful music like Mozart and Schubert and Beethoven and good jazz. I usually don't like jazz.

KG: Your favorite French champagne?

BF: Ruinard.

KG: You come from a surrealist background. What's the most surreal' thing in Paris right now, like the most keke thing in Paris?

BF: Me.

Kim Gordon is the bassist for Sonic Youth. Left: Brigitte Fontaine.