DELHIA DE FRANCE – Photo by Robert Raithel
PENTATONES‘ singer DELHIA DE FRANCE just released her first solo EP titled Suavium. An EP with six songs and a strong concept. With Share A Breath DELHIA also just released her first solo video. Since each song of the EP will get its own video, five more will be released soon. At the same time Suavium (latin for ‘lover’s deep kiss’), is just the first EP of her ‘Kuss-Trilogy’ – three EP’s that set the topic of ‘kissing’ to music. Time to introduce DELHIA DE FRANCE. NOTHING BUT HOPE AND PASSION talked to the singer who is already known for her collaborative works with artists like ROBAG WRUHME, DOUGLAS GREED, STEVE BUG, ROBOT KOCH and many more. Definitely an artist to keep an eye on!
How did you come up with the plan to go for a solo career besides being PENTATONES‘ singer?
Well, being in a band means dealing a lot with compromises wich is nice and for sure makes a good mixture of ideas and influences. I love joining forces with others and for that I am also happy to have already worked – and am still working – with quite some wonderful people for collaborative releases, like ROBAG WRUHME / WHIGHNOMY BROTHERS, who actually got me starting into the club music and of course others from the Freude am Tanzen label. MARLOW who I went on working while we both studied at Bauhaus University Weimar, DOUGLAS GREED, longtime friend and collaborator, Gunne of course – my label boss from Lebensfreude Records – and lately with some more Berlin-based producers like YOUANDTHEMACHINES, STEVE BUG, T.RAUMSCHMIERE and ROBOT KOCH. Anyway at some point I grew a bit tired with compromising. Beside the collaborative work I wanted to get back to my own intuition being able to exactly do what I want without someone telling no I don’t like this or that. I am actually pretty much of a control freak and I often do have a certain idea of what i like to have. So Delhia actually was born out of the desire to just make my own decision about creative processes and of course especially music.
DELHIA DE FRANCE seems to be about more than music. You seem to set high priority on aesthetics, pictures and style. Tell us about the concept behind ‘Suavium’.
For me creation is a highly sensual process in any way and it refers to anything I do and I want to involve all senses. This might sound a bit conceptual and yes, my release became highly conceptual in a way but it also just happened. It’s really nice that I am in this state where I just let things flow. It’s like picking up trails of bread crumbs from here and there and following paths until another one comes up… I am happy to work with a lot of amazing artists and friends for this, and its very much pleasing to see how things develop just by themselves. Like when we shot the video for Holy Ghost together with illustrator Julia Humpfer who transfers her street art creature onto my body and filmmaker Nino Halm who actually comes from photography we had this beautiful photographs from the shoot, that just need to be printed. So, most of the stuff that is created creates even new more content all by itself. I love that.
As for my release I wanted to create a series of EPs that evolve around an idea but still free of any musical restrictions, yet framed somehow. I read about the latin meaning of kiss, so I came up with the idea for the ‘Kuss-Trilogy’. In latin there are three different meanings for kiss, wich will name each of the EPs: Suavium a lover’s deep kiss, Basium-kiss of affection on the lips and Osculum-kiss of friendship wich is given on the cheeks. The kiss as a symbol physically manifested affection and respect is the guideline so to say. This will be carried on further into the visual art, especially videos and other artwork that embarks from it. I will also work on live performances and physical artwork for the series.
In your new video ‘Share a Breath’ you are naked. Still it’s not a typical nude-video. How did you come up with the idea of being naked in the video?
I didn’t come up with it, it came to me! I really wasn’t planning to be naked. It actually all started out with photo session we did for the cover, wich turned out to be very minimalistic. I would have never considered my aesthetics to be minimalist, quite the opposite. More is more. But suddenly we had this very fragile truth-naked body revealing from the shoot. The concept more and more came together evolving around the body as a projection surface of sensual longing, like a screen or usable architecture. So for every video I invited and an artist and film maker to deal with this via the media of projection, animation, illustration, light and sculpture.
Also we didn’t have a lot of budget and I wanted to keep the process as small as possible so it became soon pretty clear that I had to perform in the videos myself wich, for me, is giving this body transformation theme another dimension since I am the one who experiences it the most. I wish I could switch sides with the viewer actually. It’s just so mesmerizing standing within that projected lines from the Share a Breath video and watch what I does to your body perception. But I am working on that…
How would you describe your music & art to a deaf person?
In ANY physical way
What is your main motivation when you write new songs?
Normally I just let things come out of me. Sometimes it’s easy and it all comes by itself, sometimes you have to push and pull and you get angry over it or you throw it away or you shift and alternate it through a process. That’s where the real work begins. Of course strong emotions trigger a lot of motivation. Or the need to say something that is important to you. Maybe I am also just talking to myself.
Would you rather whisper or shout for the rest of your life?
Tough one. I think whisper although I already hear my friends protest since I am a pretty loud talker. As a kid I always was thinking about that I´d rather loose my legs than my voice. I don’t know why I even came up with this, probably inspired by the Andersen’s little mermaid… I would never treat my voice for anything. So having a choice of no choices is pretty tough. I’d probably be whispering songs as a mixture of Janet Jackson and Rod Stewart.
Would you rather be a dragon or have a dragon?
Be! fly around, spitting fire, killing knights and keeping beautiful girls for me to entertain, nice :) This has to do a lot with power I guess, and yes I am very much drawn to the thought of power and strength and therefore kind of a force control. And there we are again: physicalness.
If you’d have to choose: which of your senses would you rather lose?
See, we are so privileged being a whole functioning human that we have to think of destroying a piece of it to actually appreciate it. Or at least I wonder about that question. Thats just downright impossible. Life is about beauty. Beauty you hear, see, fell, smell and taste. I wouldn’t even dare to think of loosing any of these pieces. I am denying myself emotionally following that question.
Do you see yourself as a musician or as an artist?
I’m a creator. How you name that is on your behalf.