Quick-fire Questions: 10 minutes with The Psychotic Monks
France’s avant-garde music scene is thriving right now. Mimicking the country’s troubles, the sounds are echoing resistence. In amongst the melee is the bold and dazzling brethren of The Psychotic Monks. This oddball bunch of merry musicians are back with their third album, Pink Colour Surgery, and it’s as joyously manic as ever.
The band boldly decided to produce a partly improvised album with Gilla Band’s Daniel Fox, and the result is something that sounds frenzied and fresh, while the scope remains full of cognisance. It might sound jarring on the surface, but the depths of Pink Colour Surgery are welcoming. As you’ll find out from the answers below, at their heart, they have a poppy eye for a ditty.
After two fiery albums, Silence Slowly And Madly Shines in 2017, and Private Meaning First in 2019, the band are establishing themselves as a growing experimental act. Clearly, they refuse to rest on their laurels or play it safe, and the return of Pink Colour Surgery shows that they continue to develop. With the brutally honest Artie Dussaux at their heart, they keep trying to spear the zeitgeist in the weirdest way.
With that in mind, we caught up with them to try and rattle free a sense of sentiment beyond the music. So, we hooked up with the band’s Dussaux for a round of quick-fire questions. After all, if you don’t have long to get to know someone, then it’s best to pick their brain on big issues and trifling insignificance in rapid succession.
Quick-fire Questions: 10 minutes with The Psychotic Monks
1. What song would you want to be played at your funeral?
“I don’t really want a funeral, but I’d say ‘Everytime’ by Britney Spears.”
2. What was the last book you read and how was it?
“Non Binary by Genesis P. Orridge. I think I’d have loved to read this when I was 11 in secondary school.”
3. What is the best gig you have played so far?
“It was in a bar in St Nazaire in France. We were in the centre, and everyone was around us, like a small modern amphitheatre. It was so special.”
4. Name an artist you would love to see live but haven’t yet?
“Bjork.”
5. What film do you laugh at the most?
“Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life.”
6. What is the best song you’ve written so far?
“I think we haven’t written a good song so far, but I like very much ‘Decors’ from Pink Colour Surgery.”
7. What is your go-to takeaway?
“Falafel sandwich without hesitation.”
8. What was the first album you ever bought?
“A single with ‘Baby One More Time’ by Britney Spears.”
9. Who the hell is Mark E. Smith?
“Ask the Fat White Family?”
10. Tell us a hidden travel gem that’s worth a visit?
“Everywhere in Vercors in France if you like hiking.”
11. The most prised musical item you own?
“A great set of pots and pans.”
12. Who is the greatest songwriter of all time?
“The wind!”
13. Tell us your dream four-piece band?
“Charles Hayward, Arca, Charli XCX and members of Death Grips (ok it’s more than 4 now).”
14. Are The Beatles overrated?
“I think so, a lot, but that also doesn’t stop them from being great.”
