Once you give your piece of art to the people it doesn’t belong to you anymore - Mommy Issues INTERVIEW
Mommy Issues, photo Lux Praguensis
Marie: Pierre, how did you get to writing songs and playing music?
Pierre: I started playing music around 8, it was sort of a music discovery program for kids where I learned things like flute. I then begin playing guitar around 15 and singing around 20. It’s only when I started singing and playing the guitar altogether that I wrote songs since it makes it easier.
Marie: Since when do you as Mommy issues perform together?
Pierre: It is a trick question since we have been performing with the guys for quite a while now, but it all started sort of as a jam/cover band.
We all randomly met up while jamming and got used to perform together until the point where we decided to form a band and write songs. Our first official originals concert was back in June 2022.
To give you an example I know Alberto (on the keys) and occasionally played with him since 2015.
Marie: You are building a footprint in the scene in Prague as individual artists as well as a band. How would you describe the music scene in Prague?
Pierre: I feel that the music scene in Prague is very interesting because it is small yet quite rich. The musicians community (and especially the “expats” one) is quite dense and people often end up knowing each others. This said, you can find within that a lot of different genres and approaches to music. Prague is quite lively music wise, from smaller to bigger bands.
Marie: Your upcoming EP was written during lockdown and will be produced. What are the stories behind the songs and what was your inspiration for this?
Pierre: I wrote most of the songs that will be on the EP long time ago, and we started rehearsing them all together recently. I think the oldest was written around 2013 while the “younger” songs were written during lockdown or recently.
Those songs have various topics. One talks about childhood where I describe how it felt for me to grow up as an only child because it shaped my personality. Some talk about addictions in general, and this feeling of being stuck in a circle, pretending it’s not happening. A feeling that I am sure we all experienced in our lives. One called “H-bomb blues” talks about the absurdity of war and particularly the idea of nuclear warfare. We wanted to ridicule the fact that a handful of men have the ability of destroying the planet and everything on it. I think ridiculing war to show its absurdity has been in art for a while, you have books such as “Journey to the end of the night” or in Czech Culture you also have The Good Soldier Švejk. And of course the unavoidable topic: love. Our name is Mommy Issues after all.
Marie: Are your songs autobiographical or do they come from your imagination, or both?
Pierre: I would say both, even though they often derive from something that I have experienced. The actual story that I tell in a song hasn’t necessarily happened to me, but I have probably came across that thought or feeling before and wanted to describe it. I think there is also often a metaphorical sense to my lyrics, I see them as a tool that should give you, along with the music, a certain feeling.
Marie: Which of these have you chosen to play for (A)VOID sessions, and why?
Pierre: We chose to perform a song called “Pretty Lies”. We went for that one because we thought that fits the most Avoid Sessions identity. It’s a song that is more chill and a bit trippy, that could render well without drums or keys. It is perfect to give an intimate vibe.
Marie: You’ve been influenced by artists some people may not be that familiar with such as Jake Bugg. How would you identify your conscious and unconscious influences on your songs?
Pierre: We all have our own influences and backgrounds in the band, which I think spices up our songs. Marcio is more into modern rock but can also play various things such as bossa nova, Thibault use to have a hip hop/crossover band back in Paris, Dave is a double bass orchestra player that also has a neo metal band and Alberto, well he is just Alberto and knows probably about 2000 songs.
More personaly my core would be this old school rock vibes, that comes from blues and soul. I love the Rollings Stones, Otis Redding and so on. I think you can hear it in my way of singing. When it comes to more recent artists I like those that have this retro flavour: Black Keys, Jake Bugg, Alabama Shakes etc. I also was influenced by french artists, especially I think on my way of writting lyrics, such as Brassens, Brel or Barbara.
Marie: How would you like your songs to be received? Where and when should people listen to it best?
Pierre: I think experiencing art is quite of an intimate thing and once you give it to the people your piece of art doesn’t even really belong to you anymore. All that to say, people can experience my songs in ways that were not the initial intent, so my best advice is: suit yourself, I hope you’ll enjoy and feel something! Some of our songs have more of a chill vibe, I would probably listen to those on a summer night near the sea or something. Others are songs you can dance to and play at parties. Different moods for different times.
Marie: Do you listen to much music on Spotify, and if so, what are the top releases we should check out?
Pierre: Most of the artist that I listen to are not in this world anymore, so unfortunately the chances of new release are thinner. I rarely follow releases so I wouldn’t be the best to give advices on that, but maybe my advice is to revisit some older stuff. The industry back in the days was working in a very different manner, which made crazy odd things get into light. If you’ve never done it, listen to Dark Side of the Moon, Exile on Main Street, Songs in the Key of life, Rubber Soul, Blonde on Blonde etc. and get to understand why they are so great.
Marie: And finally, what are your plans with releasing music and playing live?
Pierre:We are currently recording our first EP, which should get out by early 2023! And regarding gigs, the best is to follow us on Instagram (@Mommy_issues_band) or Facebook for updates!
