Au Revoir Simone: The band David Lynch said “really makes me dream”
Many musicians, filmmakers, and artists over the years have considered it a compliment to be described as “Lynchian”, but that oft-used adjective, by definition, also suggests some degree of distance from David Lynch himself. To be Lynchian, you must have created something with a mood, look, or sound that’s reminiscent of the late director, but independent of his direct involvement. Once you take the next step of actually collaborating with him on a David Lynch project, an interesting trade-off occurs.
Sure, you probably had a marvellous experience, but in the public consciousness, you’re also now irrevocably attached to that world. Like Dale Cooper in the Black Lodge, you are no longer just an outside observer or a so-called Lynchian artist—you’re a permanent resident.
Since Twin Peaks debuted 35 years ago, countless bands have acknowledged the music from the pioneering TV show as an influence on their work. Some will directly cite the compositions of Angelo Badalamenti or the ethereal voice of Julee Cruise, but more often than not, the influence is derived more from the spirit of the show, the sort of 1950s sweetness underpinned with terrible dread that Lynch devotees can usually identify after a few chords. Sometimes, as in the case of the New York synth-pop trio Au Revoir Simone, the clarion call of the music is so strong that even Lynch himself was drawn to it like a cartoon dog on the floating smell trail of a freshly-baked apple pie.
“I heard Au Revoir Simone years ago and their music really makes me dream,” Lynch told the Daily Telegraph in a joint interview with the band in 2009. “It opens up a world to me that wasn’t opened up before”.
The group, which formed in Brooklyn in 2003 and was named after a line from Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure, features a unique set-up of three harmonising vocalists – Erika Forster, Annie Hart, and Heather D’Angelo – and three keyboards, with no additional instruments utilised during most of their early touring years. Four studio albums were released between 2005 and 2013, but the band has largely been on hiatus for the past decade, save for two very notable appearances as one of the performing acts at the Bang Bang Bar in Twin Peaks: The Return. It was a full circle moment for the trio, who’d grown up with the original series and once re-watched the first two seasons during one of their tours across America.
“Since there are so many plot lines and unresolved endings, we’d spend hours debating what actually happened,” Forster told the Telegraph. “It was really good at twisting our brains together”.
Au Revoir Simone’s music returned the favour for Lynch. After recruiting the band to provide backing music for one of his book readings in New York, he remained a fan for the rest of his life, even including one of their songs, ‘The Lucky One’, at his 2009 wedding.
“I’m drawn to the melancholy in Au Revoir Simone’s songs, but it’s a joyous melancholy,” Lynch explained. “It’s about their dreams and loves, but it’s bigger than a single person’s life”.
Since their appearance in The Return, Au Revoir Simone have generated a much larger cult following, shedding the Lynchian tag for a direct connection with the man. But as a band, they’ve also remained in the proverbial Red Room, as D’Angelo, Forster, and Hart have taken on other projects with no sign of a reunion or new album anytime soon.
Of course, the late Mr Lynch, as big a fan as he was, would be the last person to judge three artists for trying new things. “You’ve got to be intellectually curious in this life,” he said in that same 2009 chat, noting, “Au Revoir Simone have got that cosmic mind.”
