25 Sep INTERVIEW — Fontaines D.C. : « Romance is something forgotten nowadays »

At the end of May, as they wrapped up their promotional tour for *Romance*, Fontaines D.C. stopped in Paris to talk with us. We sat down with Conor Deegan III, aka Deego, the band’s bassist.

SOB: Your fourth album, Romance, is about to be released. How do you feel?
Deego: I’m really happy with this album. I feel very confident. I think we tried to push ourselves to the limit with this one, to create something new and fresh, even for us. And I believe we succeeded.

SOB: What does romance mean to you?
Deego: That’s a tough question. And I think it’s something we’ve questioned ourselves. I believe the aim of this album is almost to challenge the meaning of romance in our lives, to reaffirm it.
You know, I think romance can be seen as something forgotten nowadays. The world has become a bit cynical; it’s important to be free, it’s important to hold onto it. We need to keep the spirit of romance alive, I think.

SOB: In the first song, it says, « maybe romance is a place. » I know you’ve lived in Paris. Is Paris the place of romance for you?
Deego: I find that funny. Yeah. I moved here with this romantic idea of Paris, and I quickly realized it was like living anywhere else. It’s a place for people—you go to bars, and it’s still a great place, don’t get me wrong. But yeah, I also moved during COVID. A strange time, but beautiful, with the streets being very quiet. And I think it made me become quite introverted while I was in my apartment. I stopped writing music, and I think I created this little one-person cult in Paris. And I believe we all did that in some way—we wrote music, and then we kind of carried on with those writing styles, those suspended words. Even when we went back on tour in France and came together to write the album, we had a lot of songs practically finished individually for the first time. And yeah, I think what I learned there was to nurture those feelings inside me, that sense of romance, to go and read and all that. I discovered my own version of romance in Paris. My own way of living here. It wasn’t a postcard image, but it was beautiful in its own way. And it’s a real experience, you know, but also an idea that I can take with me when I travel. And I think that’s what we all discovered individually, together, and what we want to share with people. But I moved to London last year, so that’s a new experience for me now.

SOB: Speaking of living abroad, you all live in different cities or almost. Do you still write about Ireland? Do you feel the urge to write about a country you no longer live in?
Deego: That’s changed a lot over the years, as we’ve been living away since our Dogrel album. That was kind of about missing Dublin. Then Skinty Fia was about being Irish abroad and what it means to be Irish in London. I feel like I’m repeating our press release now… but I know it’s true. So it’s funny to repeat it. It’s like we’re trying to find something else around us that can be romantic. It’s been a while since we’ve been back to Ireland, you know. And I think we’ve written a lot about Ireland, so now we’re looking outward to see what else from our lives we can write about or romanticize.

SOB: You toured North America with Arctic Monkeys. Is that why you decided to work with James Ford on this album?
Deego: It’s partly because we had the same management as them, and we developed a connection with James Ford through that, along with a curiosity to work with him based on what he had done on other records. But the first time we recorded with him was actually before the Arctic Monkeys tour. We recorded Motorcycle Boy at The Church in London to try it out and see how we worked together. It went pretty well, so we decided to do the full album with him.

SOB: Conor Curley and Carlos O’Connell wrote two of the songs on Romance. How does your writing process work? You mentioned having a few songs finished?
Deego: So, since our first album, there’s been collaboration on the lyrics. I’ve written a few lyrics here and there, but yeah, I think it’s becoming more and more collaborative. I think we’re all working to become better songwriters and lyricists, and Grian is naturally talented, but he’s obviously worked hard. He’s put in a lot of effort to become as good as he is. As for my songs, in the end, I decided to hold back on a few because they were a bit more folk. It was kind of about keeping the sound of the album really cohesive. But I have them, and we can use them in the future for anything.

SOB: And you don’t want to try going solo?
Deego: Actually, I’d love to. I have something in mind. I’ve got a song where I had a singer feature on it, which is going to be cool when it comes out—maybe next year, I think. I sing on it too, but I’ve got a pretty cool guest vocalist doing it.

SOB: So you recorded Romance at La Frette, a studio near Paris. Why?
Deego: Actually, we worked in a really beautiful studio in England, but we heard that some great albums had been recorded there, like those by Nick Cave and Arctic Monkeys. We wanted to check it out. It’s an amazing studio, really great. It was our longest recording session! We really delved into it much more deeply. On our previous albums, we took three days to record everything live. Then we had another two days to mess around and another week to mix. This time, we did it all in two weeks. So we spent about three weeks recording this one, then another week for James Ford to do some mixing at home. And then we did the mastering, etc. So it all took about six weeks. It was a much more detailed process. We understood much better how we wanted things to sound, thanks to all that home production time. And yeah, I think it was strange because you might think that when we recorded live, it would sound more spontaneous. And that gave it that energy of a live band, which has a certain spontaneity. But we had exactly the songs defined. All the parts were in place, and we had rehearsed a lot. However, for Romance, we didn’t rehearse much. We didn’t really finish the songs. So it was more spontaneous in a way when we got to work. It sounds very contradictory, right? Oh well!

 

SOB: You decided to leave Partisan Records and go to XL Recordings. What motivated that change?
Deego: Yeah, just for the sake of change. To shake things up, we wanted to change our musical style, our aesthetic, our way of dressing, and also our record label. I think I was really happy that we did that with Partisan. Sometimes it’s just cool to change things up, and XL is a great label for helping artists do that.

SOB: When you toured for Skinty Fia, which was post-COVID, you canceled a few dates. Many artists like Sam Fender and Arlo Parks have canceled due to their mental health, due to burnout. Do you think the music industry has recognized that you don’t just need to cancel for physical health reasons, but also for mental health?
Deego: Yes, I think one of the really positive things since COVID is that people have become more tolerant of cancellations. There have always been many valid reasons for cancellations, but I think artists were often told, « No, you can’t cancel. » We’ve had our manager, Trevor, since we were very young. He’s from Dublin, and we’re all really close to him as friends. We can call him if we’re feeling unwell, and he’s truly there for us; we’re very lucky. We’ve all had mental health struggles in the band at different times. This idea of the tortured artist, I think there’s probably more leeway given to artists than to someone who isn’t an artist to be depressed. We’ll accept it to a certain extent because of that myth. But if it goes too far—if someone becomes really, really depressed, if someone even gets very anxious—then we just need to help our friend.

SOB: Grian said he wrote « Starburster » after a panic attack. Is that something that concerns you and that you want to talk about more?
Deego: I think a lot of the stigma around mental health has disappeared. What I would actually like to say is that I hope people can really reach out to professionals because I think there’s an issue with people going on Instagram and deciding they have whatever diagnosis comes to mind when they see it. And I think that’s very misleading and dangerous, you know?

SOB: You created a fund for students applying to the music school you attended. What motivated you to do that?
Deego: A woman who worked at our music school in Dublin asked us about it. There had been a few scholarships given out in the names of different people, other Irish artists. And she said to me, « Would you like to do one in your name? » And it would be a scholarship for years to come. We thought, « Yes, absolutely. » It felt amazing to be able to give someone the opportunity to embark on that musical journey, putting music at the center of their life when they might not have had that chance otherwise. She sent us the first wave of contacts, and we were all on tour reading the essays they had written, listening to their music on YouTube or elsewhere, and selecting them, you know? They had sent in their audition tapes. And for the one we chose, it felt like she was in our living room with her instruments all set up, with a loop pedal, and it was really cool.

SOB: Since the release of your first album, you’ve put Ireland back on the map for the rest of Europe…
Deego: If I could take credit for that, I’d do it for the rest of my life! I’m not sure we can claim that credit, but I think Girlband (now Gillaband) was there before us, you know, paving the way for post-punk. There have always been good bands here and there, but I think the path to getting recognized hasn’t been easy. There haven’t been any talent scouts in Ireland for years. I think we might have drawn the attention of the British music industry to this country. They started noticing the good bands that were here and much more.

SOB: As a band, you’ve talked about a lot of political issues, including the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Do you think artists should use their platforms more to address these topics?
Deego: Yes, I think they should free Palestine, but honestly, I think they should do it because remaining silent is a more political act than speaking out. It’s a form of denial. But I think there’s a huge level of egocentrism in music, and this echo chamber we all live in on social media—with cat videos and all that self-diagnosing—blocks the truth about what’s happening in the world. We need to use our voices whenever we can to help advance that conversation. Pop singers like Dua Lipa have enormous platforms and a lot at stake, yet they speak out. But rock bands that play stadiums say nothing… It’s really revealing. The fact that it’s so silent right now is shameful.

SOB: Many bands also canceled their shows at SXSW and The Great Escape because of support for Israel and sponsorship, and many of those bands were actually Irish.
Deego: Yes, I think it’s a very courageous gesture for someone just starting their career who doesn’t know how it’s going to pan out for them. They could really risk everything. At Austin [at the SXSW Festival], I believe there was an Irish showcase, and all the Irish bands were supposed to play there among other shows, and they all canceled. But some of them were in Austin when they decided to cancel, and they all gathered and made that announcement together on stage; it was very moving. They’re all in their twenties, and newdad spoke about it, and I think they’re so inspiring. I believe a few bands played, but they donated their money to a Palestinian fund. I’m so proud of the Irish!

SOB: Back to Romance, what were your influences on this album?
Deego: We kind of opened Pandora’s box and didn’t want to find consistency. In the past, we always scrutinized every idea to make it very, very coherent. On this one, we just asked ourselves, what are we actually listening to? And it’s so random. Let’s just be influenced by what we’re listening to behind the scenes; we’re listening to Korn and Outkast, so let’s go for it.

SOB: What film or book would you associate with this album?
Deego: Yes, I think of the book What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond Carver. It’s a very good collection of short stories. And maybe Pluto, a dystopian anime.

SOB: Are you open to collaborating with other bands?
Deego: We are open to that, yes. Whether we do it or not, I’m not sure; it would be really cool. I think it would be great to work with Jonathan Davis from Korn.

SOB: I know that Favourite had 12 verses in the original version. Do you think you’ll release another version in the future with all the verses?
Deego: I don’t think we would do something like that, to be honest; we won’t be releasing a ten-minute song. But we could change verses in live performances. Yeah, that could be really cool.

SOB: What is your favorite song to play live from Romance?
Deego: Favourite. We played it once in Brooklyn, and I want to play it every day. And In The Modern World, I’d love to see how that goes.

SOB: Any bands you’d like to introduce us to?
Deego: Yes, there are: Fcukers. They just released a great song called Bon Bon. Then there’s an Irish band, Cardinals. And I recently saw a band in Brooklyn called Cum Girls 8; they’re amazing! They’re great, right? There are so many good bands lately!

 

À lire aussi :

Fontaines D.C. — Romance

Fontaines D.C. en tournée en Europe au mois de novembre

Grian Chatten – Chaos For The Fly