FEMME’s debut album, Debutante, has been one of the best releases of 2016. It’s a punchy half an hour that takes in all sorts of influences, from 60s girl groups, to afrobeat, to hip hop beats. The end-result is beautifully boisterous and inescapably catchy pop music. She’s invited some of her favourite producers and musicians to remix tracks on the album and later this month, she’ll be releasing the new collection as Debutante Remixed. She talks to Joe Holyoake about the new album, as well as the past, present and future of FEMME.
Hello FEMME! Where are you calling from?
I am in Barcelona, sat in a square, drinking a coffee!
I hate to sound like my Mum, but is it warm over there?
It’s quite nice in the sun, yes.
Is your dog with you?
The dog is not with me, she’s with a friend. She hasn’t got a passport or the injections yet, so she has to stay home.
Does she come on tour with you when you play shows in the UK?
Yeah, she comes to shows and hangs around backstage while I’m on.
We first saw you at the ‘Fever Boy’ launch at Madame Jojo’s, which really suited you with all the dancers you had with you. Was that one of your first shows in London?
Wow, that was years ago… three years exactly near enough, isn’t it? So much has happened since then. Fever Boy was my first introduction to a wider audience and it really seemed to connect with people. It’s been the gift that keeps on giving as well and it keeps getting picked up by lots of different people.
When did you write it?
Not long before the launch really, around 2013. It was a bit of an accident really. I knew I wanted to write something with spoken, quite attitudey verses, but then I’ve always had an obsession with 60’s girl group harmonies. So, for me, it was trying to mash up all these influences, with an 80’s Salt-N-Pepa attitude.
It still sounds really fresh. How did you spend the time between Fever Boy and releasing Debutante this year?
We’ve been on tour a lot, playing in America a lot. We did Coachella and supported Charli XCX on her tour. What else…we’ve toured in Europe, we did Milan Fashion Week, and then Debutante as well, of course.
You’ve talked before about how you turned down offers to do Debutante on a major label. Did it make the process of releasing an album slightly longer?
Kind of. We started having conversations with labels quite early on, around the time Fever Boy came out, as that was getting a lot of attention, so inevitably, labels started to call. It was very clear to me, quite quickly, that it wasn’t going to be the right thing for me. I love being involved in the whole process, the writing and producing, performing it all. From the meetings, I could see that they perhaps wanted to pluck me out and put me with other lots of different writers and producers, which wasn’t the route I wanted to go down. For me, making music is quite self-exploratory and it’s sort of how you get to know yourself. I could see myself going mad if I wasn’t allowed to be in control of my music. You see it happen a lot, the music industry is a weird industry really.
Do you think Debutante would have been a very different end product had you gone on a major label?
Yeah, it would’ve been very different! I’m not saying I couldn’t have done it, but it’s not the reason I make music, to sing other people’s songs or be told what to wear and how to stand. So I’ve tried to navigate a way through the industry where I’ve got control over what I do and reach a pop audience. It’s unchartered territory really, no one really does pop on an independent budget. It’s been difficult at times, but we’ve had such amazing support, especially with Charli XCX inviting us on tour, which was a massive boost.
Did you have to rein in some of your ideas without the budget to back it up?
Not my ideas, but it would always be nice to have a bigger budget, there’s never enough money! The shit I’d love to do, I love all the Bathing Beauty synchronised swimmers, I’d love to do something like that. If I had all the money in the world, I would be right up there with the surreal, large-scale productions, but unfortunately, there isn’t that type of money around!
So you’re releasing ‘Debutante Remixed’ on December 9th. How did that come about?
Yeah, we’ve got tonnes of different people on board, like NZCA Lines, Lindstrøm and FaltyDL. It’s re-visiting my past really. I came to London to go to Goldsmith’s, which is renowned for left field, experimental art. I got involved with a band called Ultraísta with Nigel Godrich, who produces for Radiohead, so it was similar to that sort of thing. After a while of making very technical, left field music, I just wanted to kick back and make a pop record, which was Debutante! Debutante Remixed is re-visiting my previous world, as I still have a lot of friends involved in the left-field, electronic side of things, it’s an opportunity to re-connect and collaborate with them.
So they’re not big poppy remixes?
No way. I think the most poppy one is my own remake; it was one of the songs that got picked last really, ‘Shout Out Loud’. No one else wanted to do that one for some reason!
You mentioned you’re in Ultraísta and you’ve got other projects you’re involved in. Is FEMME a temporary one, or is it your main baby now?
Yeah, FEMME’s the main one now. But I’ve always got time for other stuff, I just like making stuff. I’ve also been doing a bit of modelling recently, which is new territory. I think the fashion industry is even scarier than the music industry.
I suppose that ties in with all the FEMME merch, like those pink bomber jackets. Is that something you take the main role in too?
Yeah, I literally make it all at home! With the Debutante bomber jackets, I got the patches made and then sat at home lovingly putting them together. We sell it all at shows and online as well. Maybe eventually I’d like to have a sideline making clothes as well.
It’s early days, but what plans do you have for 2017?
Well, over the past couple of months, I’ve been making tonnes of new music. I’m not going to give away too much, but I’m really excited about it. I think it’s some of the best stuff I’ve ever done and takes in all the stuff I’ve done before, with the big pop hooks, but also slightly left-leaning too. So, that’s the main plan for next year, just to get new music out and do some more shows.
We look forward to hearing it. Thanks for speaking to us!
No problem, thanks!
• Debutante Remixed will be released on December 9th and is available to pre-order on iTunes.
