Composed in a house hanging from a cliff on the Alabaster Coast with the musician Philippe Eveno, “Fleurs bleues/noces noirs”, eighth solo album byHelena Noguerra, tells the story of an elusive pirate who is unlucky in love. A rock and gothic musical tale, strange and opaque like a good Burton film, which we enjoyed discovering and dissecting. On the occasion of the release of the disc, the singer agreed to answer our “playlist” questionnaire. The opportunity to talk regarding sorority, love and romance. Interview.
SHE. What do you think is your best song?
Helena Noguerra Ohlala… It’s a difficult question. I’m going to quote a title from my latest album: “Quelle aubaine, quel aubépine”. I’m proud of it, because it’s the first time I’ve played the guitar myself on a track. Basically, I wanted to have these parts played by my musicians in the studio. But when they saw me strum a few notes, they thought it was beautiful.
SHE. What is the song in your repertoire that you had the hardest time writing?
H.N. I don’t know, I don’t have any memories… In fact, the hardest song to write is the one I still haven’t managed to do. I have long dreamed of composing a title for my son (Tanel Derard, born in 1991, editor’s note), a song that would sound like “Your Heritage” by Benjamin Biolay, but I can’t do it. I’m afraid of being immodest, of revealing a little too much.
SHE. Let’s talk regarding other people’s songs now. Is there a song that instantly puts you in a good mood?
H.N. Sure ! All songs from the movie “Mary Poppins”. I think my favorite is “Chim Chim Chimney” (she sings, editor’s note). I can listen to it in the morning when I wake up!
SHE. Is there, conversely, a title that immediately makes you cry?
H.N. “Si Maman Si” by France Gall. I don’t know why she has such an effect on me, maybe I should identify myself… This idea of a failed relationship between a daughter and her mother, it upsets me. I often listen to this song, especially when I have to play a sad scene in the theater or on film sets.
SHE. What is the album you have listened to the most in your life?
H.N. The soundtrack of the “Demoiselles de Rochefort”, composed by Michel Legrand. I listen to it all the time. When we were children, with my sister (singer Lio, editor’s note), we had fun reproducing scenes from the film, we did little shows. The feature film tells the story of two sisters, themselves played by real sisters (Catherine Deneuve and Françoise Dorléac, editor’s note), so inevitably, we identified.
SHE. The song that bothers you?
H.N. “Hard Hard to be a baby” by Jordy. When a song seems cynical to me or made to reach the public at any cost, it makes me uncomfortable. I find songs born of necessity beautiful. I don’t think music exists to allow crooked people to buy swimming pools.
SHE. What do you think of K-Pop groups, which are often set up from scratch to enrich producers?
H.N. Again, it makes me uncomfortable, it’s not my world. When I watch the clip of a K-Pop group, I feel like I see young subordinates. Young people who, in order to earn a living, reach glory or acquire a little bit of self-confidence, have agreed to become the puppets of a producer. It strikes me as a new form of slavery, it’s terrifying. Why do we, our listeners, let ourselves be seduced by this musical gloubi-boulga? I do not want to answer. Maybe because I’m afraid of the answer.
SHE. The song that best symbolizes your adolescence?
H.N. Like that, right away, I would say “Cruel Summer” by Bananarama. It was a group of young women who had their hair combed, it was great. I also loved Klaus Nomi’s songs. Klaus Nomi, for today’s young people, that doesn’t mean anything… He was a very made-up man, very dressed up, who did a kind of lyrical pop, he sang “Ha ha haaa haaa” (she makes vocalizations, note).
SHE. The song that best speaks of love?
H.N. All the pieces composed by Serge Rezvani for his wife… This gentleman, who must be 95 today, wrote titles that we know very well since many of them were sung by Jeanne Moreau. “Le Tourbillon”, “J’ai la mémoire qui flanche”, it’s him… In fact, I like his songs because they are optimistic. As long as people say that love is beautiful, it has a chance of becoming so.
SHE. Your song “guilty pleasure”?
H.N. I have no guilt. I think any form of expression is beautiful. I even like singers who sing out of tune. Afterwards, perhaps this will surprise you, but I love Chantal Goya. I liked his sixties yéyé period and I also liked his children’s songs. “This morning, a rabbit killed a hunter” (she sings, editor’s note).
SHE. The song you would have liked to write?
H.N. Like that, the first that comes to mind is “My Song of you” by Laurent Voulzy. Like Voulzy, I have a little blue flower side. I have a girlfriend who even says that I’m a dork (laughs).
SHE. The song you usually sing out loud in the shower?
H.N. So, it’s very strange, because I don’t think I’ve really listened to the song, but in the shower I often hum Elton John’s “Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word”. (She sings, editor’s note) “It’s sad, so sad, it’s a sad, sad situation”… I don’t know how he did it, but he left this imprint on me.
SHE. What song have you listened to the most since the start of 2022?
H.N. Logically, it should be “Happier Than Ever” by Billie Eilish, because that’s my ringtone. I love Billie Eilish. I think she brings something new to the music industry. Thanks to her, I learned what “digital silences” are (discreet and enveloping electronic layers, editor’s note). It’s good when young people teach us things.
SHE. Are there young French artists who inspire you?
H.N. Pomme, Clara Luciani, Corine, Lous and the Yakuza… We are lucky to have, at the moment, a new generation of girls who are doing the max. I would even say that these girls comfort me.
SHE. Why ?
H.L. There are things my generation mightn’t change. There are things that we women artists lived with, without realizing that we might take another path. These chicks came in and said, “Stop, we don’t want this anymore!” “. Today, they compose, they sing what they want… It consoles me to know that they are free.
SHE. Finally, what was the last song you shazamed?
H.L. “Enough”, by Zao de Sagazan. It’s so beautiful. I like what she says, the way she says it, her voice, her sobriety, her minimalism, the atmosphere of the song. It triggers in me a strange feeling, between sadness and joy. This Zao, I want to love her, to kiss her. Maybe I’m exaggerating? (laughs).
