Carla Bozulich - Geraldine Fibbers - Redeemed by music

I meet Carla Bozulich after her Rome show on January 20th. She's a bit tired and still carrying some of the nervous energy left over from the technical problems that held up the start of her set ("I had to tell myself: 'Now calm down, Carla, be still and quiet', like you would with a child," she recalls). And yet talking to her feels like catching up with an old friend. Maybe because there's nothing put-on about her, nothing that even remotely resembles a pose or an affectation. And this from someone who could rightfully claim the mantle of the "maudit".

What follows is a chat – in addition to the one we had by email – in which she tells me about her love for Italy and her "total" conception of music, and in which I try (in vain) to convince her to reform Geraldine Fibbers, getting in return a precious autographed vinyl copy of "Butch" with the most bizarre signature I've ever seen!

First of all, congratulations on the show. Your performances always have something magnetic about them…

Thanks, but it depends a lot on my mood, on how I'm feeling. What I do on stage is all "real", it reflects my state of mind in that moment, I live the songs in a direct relationship, without mediation. I swear, if I look like someone with a broken back, it's because the music has excited me to the point where I couldn't control myself. That's what really happens on stage, it's not a "show".

And the Italian audience seems to really appreciate that aspect. After all, singers as sincere and visceral as Patti Smith and PJ Harvey have always gone down very well over here…

Indeed, Italian audiences really let themselves get swept up and seem to appreciate this direct relationship with the artist, the fact that there's nothing artificial on that stage. Elsewhere – I'm thinking of France or England, for instance – there's often more detachment. Sometimes I get the impression there's more of a taste for staging things, a preference for artists who can invent and fake something distinctive. Yes, I have to say Italy has really become my second musical home…

Well, at least on OndaRock your records get excellent reviews, even in our year-end charts…

Really? That's fantastic… actually, I already knew your webzine.

And now I see there's something Italian in your band too…

Yeah, Francesco (Guerri, the cellist hired for the tour, ed.) is an extraordinary musician, and he also helps me translate everything!

Will you be touring with the same lineup for the American dates and on the next record?

It's hard to say. There are often problems keeping the same band together, so you end up with one lineup on record and another live. I'd like them to match, but that might force me to cut back a bit on my beloved strings on the next album, although in Canada, for example, we can count on the excellent Silver Mt. Zion…

Speaking of "bands". On your latest record, "Hello, Voyager", you decided to move from solo artist to leader of a group, under the monicker Evangelista. How did that choice come about? And what changes has it brought to your music?

I really wanted to go back to being in a band (after Ethyl Meatplow and Geraldine Fibbers, ed.). It's much more fun to record an album with other people who share your ideas and then go on tour all together. It's like being in a gang! When we're on tour we move through cities like a pack of stray dogs! When people see us coming, they hide, scream, cry or throw up… We really love people!

"Hello, Voyager" seems to give a bit more space to the song format. Tracks like "The Blue Room" and "Paper Kitten Claw" feel more "structured" compared to the tracks on "Evangelista". Has something changed in your songwriting process?

We wrote most of the songs the night before we recorded them. I really do things without dwelling too much on the process to follow. But on "Hello, Voyager" it's clear that Tara Barnes's influence seeped into my mental frequencies and threw me off balance. It was quite the flood… That, combined with the fact that I didn't sleep for the entire session (but no drugs!), helped make the album what it is.

“Evangelista”, your third solo album, was also your debut on Constellation. Your music seems so in tune with the Constellation ethos that many musicians orbiting the Canadian label (Silver Mt. Zion, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Black Ox Orkestar) wanted to play on “Evangelista”. How did this project come about?

“Evangelista” is an idea born during a sleepless night, while I was sleeping with two wonderful people. Then the sun came up. And they were so sweet... I felt every kind of emotion in that moment, as if my life were changing forever. It was a desperate need to communicate something beyond myself. I needed to say something about the power we have when we build a collective energy, about how it forms and how it ends.

When we see all the atrocities happening in the world, we refuse to give up, and we draw strength together, not through "god", but through our collective power... sound and love. We love music, and that's what we share. That's what we can use to protect one another, to live, learn and love. The Montreal crew are dear friends of mine, who encouraged me to develop this music. Thanks to their invitation, I was able to record the album at Hotel2Tango (the by-now legendary studio at the heart of Constellation in Montreal, ed.) and benefit from their beautiful sounds on "Evangelista".

“Evangelista” isn't just an album, it's a dramatic experience. I read that you described it as a kind of "exorcism". What did you mean by that?

Actually, I never said it was an exorcism. That's something that came out in the album's press release... I don't need an exorcism. If I have a lot of demons inside me, they're mine alone and I use them however I like. If there's someone out there who needs an exorcism, well... let them come watch one of our gigs! Music has a healing power, and I intend to "breathe life" through whoever is willing to accept it.

One of the strengths of your music is your magnificent voice. I read that you liked an adjective used to describe it, namely "haunted"... who haunts your voice?

I love all animals, and they seem to love me too... (Carla has an unbridled passion for cats, ed.)

Many consider Patti Smith your main point of reference. You yourself have said she's the bravest woman you've ever seen... Others compare you, with all due differences, to Diamanda Galas and PJ Harvey. Are you happy with these comparisons, or do they bother you?

I'm very proud to be mentioned in the same sentence as these women. They're all beautiful and strong. Actually, there would be many others too, but the list would never end, let's be honest... By the way, let's also talk about how fantastic Lydia Lunch is: she's the most sincere, shameless, tenacious and intelligent "monster" I know!

You've gone through some very dark moments in your life. I know it was a long time ago, but it seems to me your music always retains some shadowy areas. What draws you to darkness?

I like the fact that people are more "naked" in the dark. When we can't use our eyes, things become very surreal, and the idea of trust becomes much more important. You have to rely on yourself so you don't fall into a hole or trip over a kid's toy. For better or worse, I'm a kind of "magnet" for hearing people even when they're not speaking. And I listen to myself too, more than anyone should. It's like a tornado inside me, and it makes me furious. So I try to turn all of that into love, in an attempt to be a better person. Music is the only way to be completely "nonexistent".

I think the Geraldine Fibbers were a fantastic band. The punk approach and country melodies came together in a wonderful "incest" within their songs. How did you manage to fuse such distant elements?

We actually started out playing real country songs. George Jones, in particular, my favorite. We did some of his songs and some of the pieces I'd written while touring with my band at the time, the industrial-noise-dance outfit Ethyl Meatplow. Then when Ethyl Meatplow broke up and I no longer had the chance to scream and shout, I got really sad. So the music of Geraldine Fibbers started turning into this jarring blend of country music and harsher sounds.

Don't you think it's a shame that Geraldine Fibbers never achieved greater success? After all, they had everything it takes to break through, while still remaining a band decidedly averse to the logic of the music business...

No, I can't complain about the success we did have. Consider that in America a major label (Virgin, ed.) took an interest in us and gave us access to serious resources. We made videos, played big shows... We made good money, back then. If anything, maybe it's a shame we played so little in Europe, because it's true that even now very few people in Italy know them.

Have you ever thought about getting the band back together?

No, that chapter's closed now. It was a wonderful experience, one that ran its course over those five years. That's fine as it is.

I read in an interview that you describe yourself as "devoted to drones". Can you tell us something about that? How do drones influence your songwriting?

Drone is a constant in our lives. We're always surrounded by drones - even if you close your eyes at night somewhere very quiet, you'll still hear some kind of mmm. Whether it's traffic, electricity, or a cat purring. Or a guitar feedback at a terrifying volume… It's all so intoxicating!

What happens next? Do you have plans for another Evangelista album?

We're almost ready to record a new Evangelista album. We've written three new songs here in Italy over the last few days, and we're bringing them onstage during this tour. The band is in great shape right now. Tara Barnes and Dominic Cramp are from Oakland. Ches Smith is from Brooklyn. Francesco Guerri is a fabulous improviser from Bologna… and I live everywhere! There will be more travelling ahead. More friends and kisses and cats and sonic adventures. We've already achieved so much with the last record - now we need to grow a little more.

We'll be waiting for you at our shows - if you let us, we'll give you something special to carry home in your wonderful little dark hearts.

Ride the wave of great music

Add OndaRock to your favorite sources on Google Discover. Don't miss our reviews, milestones and latest news straight in your feed.

Follow on Google