Philippe Cohen Solal
Interview Michael Kessler
Images Photolibrary.com, Rex Features
DJ, Producer and Composer Philippe Cohen Solal is a founding member of French Gotan Project. Their album La Revancha del Tango and Lunatico sold over two million copies worldwide and inspired an electro tango movement. Following a lengthy tour with Gotan Project, Cohen Solal, aka $olal, is preparing to tour his newly released project, The Moonshine Sessions
01 Where do you live and why?
Paris, because I’m born and raised there, it’s a “très jolie” city and the more I travel the more I see that Paris is a great town to live in.
02 What’s your favourite place to see live music in Paris?
I love the Ba-Ta-Clan, it’s an old venue with the right size and generally the right vibe. Carlos Gardel – the tango legend-sang there in the ’20s and we did our very first Parisian Gotan Project show there.
03 Where’s your favourite place to play music in Paris?
I love to play at l’Olympia because it absolutely has the best conditions but it’s such a legendary venue that unfortunately we’re always too stressed when we’re playing there to enjoy it fully.
04 Outside of Paris what’s your favourite city?
I love capital cities or just the countryside, but outside France my favourite cities are Nashville, Melbourne, San Francisco and Rio de Janeiro.
05 You’ve been touring constantly for the past 18 months, what do you do in your spare time?
Spare time? What spare time? To me, the most rare, precious and relaxing thing is having a nap and if possible, not alone.
06 What’s the last concert you saw that really moved you?
Morrissey at The Fillmore West in San Francisco. I adore his last album and on stage he is… a living legend.
07 Name a musician or group who you’ve never seen live but would love to?
The Sex Pistols in ’76.
08 Which cities inspire you creatively?
Berlin at the moment is very alive and so inspiring creatively.
09 What’s your favourite bar in Berlin?
Kaffee Burger in Mitte (Torstrasse). An old bar with a young crowd that plays great alternative music. Any night there is a good night… it’s even better on late Sunday night.
10 And a favourite restaurant in Berlin?
Bandol (also on Trostrasse), it’s a small restaurant serving French cuisine but quite different from a French restaurant…
11 What music are you currently listening to?
I’ve been listening to the last White Stripes album all summer but currently I’m listening the new Tunng album Good Arrows, its magnifique!
12 What’s the most forgettable gig you’ve played?
Once in Italy, our (previous) local promoter organised a show in the most corny holiday camp you can imagine… after screaming for 10 minutes to him on the phone, we fired him!
13 And the most memorable?
The Fillmore West in 2003 or more recently, Stubb’s in Austin TX… it was magic!
14 Is there a secret to staying sane while touring?
Are you sure that I‘m sane? Ahaha… more seriously: Sex and drugs and rock’n roll!!!
15 You’re just about to release a new disc, Moonshine Sessions, describe it
A listening trip, an hour in the countryside with country-fied and bluegrassy pop music. The smell of wood, grass, meadow and moonshine of course…
16 What are your plans for the next year?
Preparing the live show with all my moonshiner friends from Nashville, Tennessee.
17 Who would you invite to a dream dinner party?
David Lynch, Damon Albarn and Tenzin Gyatzo (the Dalai Lama), plus some chicks: Gisele Bündchen, Doris Lessing and Dolly Parton.
18 Which living musicians do you admire and why?
Damon Albarn – because he’s more handsome and talented than me. Neil Young – because he is Neil Young and he’s living in a gorgeous ranch in California. David Bowie –because I would love to have been Ziggy Stardust and the Thin White Duke.
19 If there was one disc you had to recommend to people to listen what would it be?
The Moonshine Sessions by an unknown artist called $olal.
20 What’s your motto for life?
Music is my first love and it will be my last.
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