voila l'interview.
Interview of Graham Coxon by Maryse Laloux, Lille, France, 5 Nov. 2004
Last week-end there was an exhibition of your drawings & paintings in London. What sort of audience do you hope to appeal to with your work?
I didn’t think about it really… um… it wasn’t a matter of appealing to anybody and certainly not any particular audience. I haven’t thought that far with it really, I’m still trying to think about what I’m doing visually, I’m still confused about that. So really it was an exhibition of stuff I’ve done over the years that, erm, is not necessarily focused or, erm, erm, consistent in any way. But that’s what I’m hoping to work on at some point soon as well, work out where I am visually because I think now really over the last three years I’ve worked out what my roots are musically after much confusion in my twenties, so now I think, er, maybe it might be time to find out where I am visually, in visual language, you know, apart from my artwork for the album.
Would you be interested in creating a multimedia show, a type of exhibition where you combined your music and paintings?
Not really. No, I think it’s overkill, you know. I did some, er, some acoustic shows at the private view and I just got embarrassed, there was too much of me around, you know. So I don’t like that idea. I like to keep it separate, in a way. For other people, fine, but for me I don’t like my visual work to be mixed with my music.
When you do the artwork for you albums and singles, do the songs inspire the artwork or vice versa?
Er… no, the artwork has to in some way encapsulate the records, definitely.
Which is more challenging to you, exposing yourself through painting or playing your music for people?
Challenging isn’t the right word, really. Er… I don’t… I guess I find both… I mean, at the beginning of this year I found the idea of playing in front of people extremely scary, but I’ve done it a lot now and I’m very relaxed, erm, so with the exhibition I was very sc… So challenge isn’t the word, it’s more like which is the more scary. But I think, erm, since…. I think being scared is a good reason to do anything, if you’re afraid of it, so that’s why I’ve agreed to do things even though it’s very uncomfortable for me, so yeah.
Where do your videos fit in? Are they an important aspect of your work as an artist?
No. I don’t think video’s important. Mostly I view video as a waste of money for everybody and, er, yeah, it’s mostly a total waste of money. And I’m very old-fashioned. I wish that the music industry wasn’t so business-orientated and all of that, and artists didn’t have to be all-singing and all-dancing performing monkeys. I think it’s kind of pathetic. It makes a lot of people look bad when they’re probably not bad. I’ve never been involved in one good video. And the only good videos I’ve ever seen are probably a couple of Radiohead ones and that’s it. I think it’s mainly videos are made by people who are just not very talented and have jobs for absolutely no reason I can see.
Even your videos?
But they just have to be made, you know. Well, my ‘Freaking Out’ video I kind of like. You know, but generally they’re just sort of a chore. There’s better things to be doing in life than a video, I think.
You used to describe yourself as somebody who wasn't really at ease with people. Has that changed now that more people have seen your videos and stage shows?
No, because they’re not seeing me, are they? They’re seeing me… er… In a performance they’re seeing… in a show they’re seeing… er… me involved in my own fantasy of what a rock star should do and how a rock star should perform. Yeah, I’m very unsure of people, any kind of social interaction… erm… erm… but like any performer or creative person I kind of do crave for attention, when I want it. And when I want it and don’t get it I get upset. And when I don’t want it and get it I get upset. So it’s that complicated… er… balance between self-loathing freak and egocentric maniac. And I think a lot of people have… (laugh)… it’s a weird balance. But generally I’m better now than I used to be.
As a member of Blur, you were used to collaborating with other musicians. Now that you’re a solo artist, are there people you’d like to collaborate with?
Who? Who did I collaborate with?
Well, the three other Blur…
Oh. No, that’s not really… Yeah, yeah I guess that’s kind of collaborating. Yeah. Collaboration is weird. I guess I’ve been in the presence of a band and their demands just pissed me off in the end… um… and so the idea of collaboration in any shape or form now is a bit… I’m not interested in it. I’m quite happy on my own at the moment when I can say, you know, I’d like some… you know, I can have some time off if I want to, if I’m not feeling… feeling it, and don’t feel dragged somewhere to do something I don’t particularly want to do. And I think a lot of my anger, which fuelled a lot of my self-loathing and in turn fuelled a lot of my self-destructive behaviour, was due to that. And really, so I’m loath to go back to any collaborative work with anybody unless it’s going to be absolute fun and nothing else.
In the past, Dave Rowntree played the drums for some of your live shows, didn’t he?
Yeah.
Could this happen again?
No.
Would you be interested in having Dave play the drums on your next album?
No.
So do you mean that your next album will be with your touring band?
No, the same as I always have, just me.
Playing all the instruments yourself?
Mmm. I don’t see any reason to change that.
But it looks like you’re playing with regular people now, so will we get a Graham Coxon band?
Well, one day maybe. Yeah. Maybe one day. But at the moment I’m quite happy as it is. The next album is all demo-ed and I’m ready to record it in January and I know what I’m going to do with drums and all of this, so… er… I’d rather be in the studio and do the work and not sit around. If I’m in the studio I want to work, you know, and not sit around and wait for a bass player to get his part together, you know, which can take a long time in my experience. So I… if I’m in the studio I want to work. And I’m not very good at teaching anybody parts, you know. If I do get a group together then I’d like the music to be unorganized so they can come up with their own ideas, you know, and then it would be proper. But as I’ve got everything sorted out already there’s no point in teaching. I don’t like being a fascist in any way like that.
Now that “Happiness in Magazines” has been a commercial success, are you going to keep…
Well yeah I guess, I dunno, I haven’t kept my eye on the sales too much, so I’m not sure, it’s been alright, yeah.
…are you going to keep releasing your records on Transcopic or are you going to move to a major label?
Well, no, “Happiness in Magazines” was on Parlophone, EMI, so…
so you are going to keep on releasing…?
Well I’m still contracted to them. And erm, you know, with my new… kind of… lighter approach to life, I sort of figured that I should restore my… kind of… relationship with Parlophone because a lot of the members… or people in the staff have changed and so I wanted to see who was there. And I like a lot of the people at Parlophone now. But it’s kind of still a joint thing between Transcopic and Parlophone, kind of like Blur with Food and Parlophone, I guess.
How does the European audience react at your gigs?
It depends what country they’re from. Yeah.
Where have you been so far?
Swedes on a Monday night are not too responsive. Uh, the Danish are a bit better. Belgium was really good. Belgium was nice, but I think that was because it was a good PA and a good room. Um… French ones are normally great. But I think if I tell them that the Belgian audience was really good then maybe then they’ll make more of an effort to be better than the Belgian ones… er, no… That’s my plan… when I get to London, to tell them that, you know, the European audiences were fantastic and that they’ve got a lot to live up to. I… I don’t know. I like coming to Europe. I like particularly coming to France, actually, because I enjoy the pride here rather than the acquiescent lying down and letting American culture stamp all over it, like we seem to be doing in England. Yeah.
So where are you going to go after Lille? Paris?
Oui. La Cigale. And… Nan… Nantes? Nantes. And… er… Spain. Er… Italy. And Germany. And then home, yeah. And then a show at home. And then, er…
Home at the end of November?
Yeah, towards the end of November, yeah. Yeah, 25th. Show on the 27th in North London and then… er… some rest or maybe just do some peculiar little things for friends, parties and stuff.
Merci, Graham.
Oh, cool.
C’est tout.
C’est tout? C’est ça.
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