Gregory de Rocher_ aka Lowfish. aka Pest(e).
Articles and interviews_

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Exclaim!
Igloo
YRB

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Lowfish: Dans le sans du courant

Gregory De Rocher, mieux connu sous le pseudonyme de Lowfish, est un nouvel artiste Canadien, un des nombreux manipulateurs électroniques à percer avant tout en Europe, puisque les Allemands et les Français ont une sc&eacut;ne électro beaucoup plus prolifique que nous. Le label de Lowfish. Suction s'est mis en tête de faire percer l'électronique au Canada, mandat qui est presque attient. Mélangeant plusieurs aspects du new-wave et délectro-minimale. Gregory s'est fait remarquer par des institutions dans ce domaine. Récemment invité à Mutek (festival de musique électronique (?) de Montréal).

JB: Quand avez-vous décidé de faire de la musique, cela sans guitares ou autres instruments typiques?
LF: J'aurais aimé avoir un groupe vraiment, ça serait beaucoup plus facile de tout installer l'équipement que je traîne pour les spectacles : ) Je fais de la musique depuis à peu près 1985. Lorsque j'étais enfant, je m'amusais avec les premiers synthé casio de piètre qualité et aussi avec des batteries électroniques digitales qui sonnaient très mal. Ma musique dans ce temps-là était vraiment terrible. Très mauvaise. J'ai détruit la plupart de ces cassettes. J'ai toujours aimé travailler avec des machines car elles sont beaucoup plus faciles à contrôler que les gens. J'aime mieux faire de la musique extrêmement vite, sans être obligé d'en parler et d'y penser, alors l'électronique me permet de faire cela. Je ne suis pas intéressé à utiliser les mêmes sons que tout le monde. De plus, je deviens ennuyé très rapidement, alors avec ma collection de vieux équipements poussiéreux et mes ordinateurs... je peux faire n'importe quel son que je recherche pour l'insérer dans une pièce que je suis en train de travailler. De plus, on ne peut pas dépendre des gens :)
 
JB: Quelles sont vos influences musicales, celles qui vous ont marqué?
LF: Lorsque j'avais environ 8 ans, nous avions l'habitude de faire l'aller-retour entre Toronto et la côte est du Canada, où mon père travaillait à ce moment. Le voyage était d'environ 16 heures ! Ma mère avait une compilation disco sur 8-track qui contenait une très rare version de la chanson « I feel love » de Giorgio Moroder. J'ai dû l'entendre entre 500 et 1000 fois durant cette période. Cette pièce, en particulier la ligne de basse qui a été si influente, m'a changé à tout jamais. Depuis ce temps, j'ai été en amour avec tout ce qui sonnait comme ça, même si j'étais trop jeune pour savoir ce que c'était que j'aimais vraiment ( de gros sales et poussiéreux synthétiseurs qui jouent des lignes de basse répétitives). Mon amour pour la musique remonte jusqu'à cette seule et unique pièce de musique, cliché ou pas, c'est la vérité. Depuis ce temps, je suis à fond dans des groupes comme OMD, Depeche Mode, Front 242, Polygon Window, Locust, Nitzer Ebb, etc.
 
JB: Ça semble bien aller en ce moment pour Lowfish. Vous avez participé à la dernière édition de Mutek, comment était-ce?
LF: Oui, je suis très occupé ces temps-ci, mais je voulais vraiment jouer à Mutek car Lowfish ( et Solvent) ne sont pas des artistes standard de Mutek. En général, j'ai toujours vu Mutek comme un forum pour les « laptop/ weirdo-house », mais avoir Lowfish, Solvent et Bola ensemble a été un changement majeur de direction et un indicatif de ce que les gens trouvent intéressant ces jours-ci, c'est-à-dire, les mélodies, les structures de chansons et des « clinical beats » :) Ce spectacle était vraiment excellent avec un auditoire éduqué et ouvert. En plus, le public dansait, ce que très peu de gens font sur notre musique à Toronto. :)
 
JB: Aimez-vous quand les spectateurs dansent pendant vos prestations?
LF: Certainement, car en général, je ne fais pas de la musique où les gens peuvent juste se gratter le menton et hocher de la tête. J'aime vraiment l'idée que les personnes dansent mes prestations, mais je ne leur rendrai pas la tâche facile - ce n'est pas 2 heures de boum boum idiot. L'électro en général en demande plus des auditeurs, en particulier s'ils veulent danser et particulièrement sur mon type de musique.
 
JB: Que pensez-vous de la scène électroni-canadienne en ce moment?
LF: Pour être honnête, je ne crois pas qu'il y ait vraiment une scène. C'est par pur hasard que Solvent et moi demeurons dans la même ville et c'est ici que nous avons choisi de continuer à vivre, mais il n'y a pas vraiment de base locale de fans pour notre genre de musique. Cela étant dit, nous faisons un effort pour nous faire connaître dans le pays où nous vivons - en plus de nous concentrer sur l'Europe, qui représente probablement 70% de notre base de fans et des ventes... Le fait qu'il n'y ait pas de vraie « scène » pour nous déranger est une bonne chose, puisque de cette manière, nous pouvons nous concentrer à faire de la musique. Maintenant que votre excellent mini-album « Maintain the tension » est paru, à quoi faut-il s'attendre de votre part prochainement ?Merci. Je travaille présentement sur un long jeu de Lowfish qui devrait paraître plus tard au courant de l'année, en plus de remixes et d'un album avec Solvent - ensemble nous enregistrons sous le nom Tin Foil Teakettle. Les prochains trois mois seront surtout consacrés à des spectacles en Amérique du Nord et en Europe.
 
JB: Que pensez-vous des gens qui vous qualifient de « dance music » ou de « Intelligent Dance Music (IDM) » ?
LF: Que les gens choisissent de parler de moi c'est une bonne chose, donc ils peuvent dire ce que bon leur semble :) Je ne suis cependant pas très enthousiaste lorsqu'on me demande de jouer pour 5000 personnes dans des raves avec des DJ s trance et je n'aime pas lorsque les gens réfèrent à ma musique en l'appelant « Intelligent Dance Music »....c'est tellement un terme idiot et arrogant...

Exclaim!, Canada. July 11, 2000.

Who are you?
I'm Gregory de Rocher, aka Lowfish, and one half of Suction Records.

What are you up to?
I just released a new album "Eliminator" on Suction Records, I'm also working on tracks for the Awkward Silence label in the UK and Germany's ADSR label.

Hometown and current HQ:
I'm a born and raised Torontonian. I love Toronto -- like a typical Canadian I keep travelling around with the intention of moving somewhere else but I always end up back here. Suction might need a "winter office" in San Francisco though.

Current fixations:
After pretending for years I knew all about him I went out and bought all these Gary Numan records I've never owned. People get all freaked out when I tell them I missed him the first time round as a new wave geek. His stuff up to 1984-ish is wicked. (He should stop now though).

Mind altering work of art:
I'm a freak for all the old Factory Records record sleeves (New Order, OMD, etc.). They're brilliant and never has packaging gone so hand in hand with the music. It's not often I can look at a sleeve and know exactly what to expect from the record like you could with most Factory stuff for awhile there.

Most memorable / inspirational gig, and why?
Solvent and myself opened up for NoMeansNo at a CBC party in Montreal a few years ago, which was weird enough. Backstage I heard some one ask them (from NoMeansNo) what time they we're going on and one guy answered "as soon as these guys staring at their calculators, adding machines and VCRs finish." I knew then that we'd have to figure out a way to explain to people what the hell we do standing up there with all this gear and cables everywhere.

What should everyone shut up about?
MP3s.

Your greatest strength / weakness:
I'm a freak. I'm a freak.

Your vital daily ritual:
Turning on the gear when I wake up, so that it's done warming up after coffee.

Guilty pleasures:
From a production standpoint I like a lot of what ABBA did -- I often imagine what ABBA would sound like if they were produced by Giorgio Moroder, could've been the best thing ever.

If I wasn't playing music i would be...
Complaining about how I just can't find shit that sounds how I want it to.

Your most memorable day job:
I used to work at the Metro Toronto Zoo and pretend to be the penguin keeper on my lunch and spout off all these facts I got from the sign in front of the penguin enclosure to tourists.

Best / worst advice received:
Best: "We should release these tracks instead." (Solvent, 1997)

I would drop everything to play a benefit for...
Maybe Factory Records, if they could get the money together. Seriously I'd do anything for any sort of hearing society -- I've no doubt that I'll need hearing aids by the time I'm 45. At least by that time they'll be all small and stylish (cause I won't be the only one needing them).

What makes you want to take it off and get it on?
I'm not sure exactly what this question means, but women aren't the only ones who respond to bass.

What personal trait would make you kick someone out of your band and / or bed? And have you?
I think it's morally wrong to be a harmonica or an accordion player.

When I think of Canada I think:
Skinny Puppy, The Spoons, Images In Vogue, Ceramic Hello, Plastikman, Suction Records.

Music and sex:
Is there a difference? Why? Both are very cathartic.

Strangest brush with celebrity:
Busta Rhymes and myself flew from Phillidelpia to San Francisco together. He's a truly wack and funny person (and not to be messed with).

What does your mom wish you were doing instead?
She wishes I'd stop being so picky and obstinate about the kind of tracks I do and just do some booming house track and get it in a Coke commercial.

Igloo, USA. September 2003.
"Lowfish Top-11"

Co-founder and full-time Snow robot, Gregory De Rocher supplies IglooMag.com with his All Time Top-11. Set to release his third full-length album (1000 Corrections Per Second), Lowfish produces raw, precise and emotive melodic electronics from Canada. Here's what he has in constant rotation...

01. Polygon Window (album) by Polygon Window
02. Orchestral Manouvers In The Dark (original album)
03. The Hurting (album) by Tears For Fears
04. I Feel Love (track) by Giorgio Moroder
05. Incunabula (album) by Autechre
06. many things by Front 242
07. Warlock (track) by Skinny Puppy
08. Everything's Gone Green (track) by New Order
09. Your Silent Face (track) by New Order
10. Speak and Spell (album) by Depeche Mode
11. The Chauffeur (track) by Duran Duran

YRB, USA. May 2003.
"Pure Sine Waves Through A Back Drop Of White and Pink Noise"

All right, so trends come and go, right? Who cares? I mean we aren't exactly living in the most stable of times. The fact that everything's temporary is downright comforting. Thing is, there are still classics being produced all the time. We just won't know it, 'cuz they wont' be calssics for another hundred years.

In the fickle realm of electronic music, Toronto's Gregory De Rocher may prove to be more permanent than others. Using the moniker of Lowfish, he's been engineering his own brand of robot music for about five years, and while electroclash's makeup job is already looking a bit slept in, the mechanics of Lowfish still seem shiny and well-lubed. As Adam Lee Miller (of Adult.) so bluntly puts it, "I think he's awesome, his music's awesome, and his label's awesome. He manipulates his 808 like no one else! The music of Lowfish won't fade over time, it will only be appretiated more."

Guess what? De Rocher was also born deaf as a doornail, so we just had to ask him some questions:

First, is that loss of hearing story true?
Yep. I was stone cold deaf for my first year in this world. Then up to six it was all tests and operations. It was wicked -- I got to spend a lot of time in soundproof chambers with really tight and uncomfortable headphones listening to pure sine waves through a backdrop of white and pink noise. Tell me that didn't have an influence on me!

Let's talk Canada. Obviously there's some mad culture going on there, right?
Well, I don't want to burst any bubbles but my electro-hipster universe here in Toronto extends to Mr. Solvent (who lives cross-town), my studio (where I type this now) and one wicked night out a month called Peroxide run by a friend. I've lived in Toronto most of my life and it's a wicked place -- vicious winters aside -- but it's a very tight-assed business city where indie rock still rules. Montreal is very art friendly and one of the coolest cities in the world. Last year I played the Mutek festival there, and with Solvent, Too Many DJ's, and Tiga.

Are the Canadians as freaked out about this war as we are?
Canadians are freaked. Straight up. We are freaked. You have to remember that in Toronto, where it's hyper multicultural, there's a next level freaked-outness going on.

Most hyper-creative Canadians I've met end up migrating elsewhere. You haven't. Why?
I've also read in a magazine that Lowfish is a band from Berlin. Pretty funny. Being isolated is very good for productivity. Toronto has the perfect mix of access to most of the things I want and nothing particularly cool enough to make me stay out and act like someone more important than I am. Try and figure out how Skinny Puppy came from this total lack of chaos.

Okay, here's a question -- who do you prefer, Abba or Skinny Puppy?
That's hard. My parents were Abba freaks and I've heard "Super Trooper" probably 1000 more times than "Rabies", "Too Dark Park", or "Back and Forth", so it's not really a fair question for Skinny Puppy.

Electro. Clash, class, pop, etc. I can't help but notice that your last record almsot seems like a reaction against the electroclash thing. You went more pop, still excluding vocals, etc.
Since day one I've been trying to do something timeless, I'm not saying I've succeeded, but it's what I'm trying to do. It's totally selfish. I want to do tracks I can listen to in five or ten years and not wince in embarassment. I mean it's hard not to suck up certain things, certain things are infectious and just take hold of you, so I'm as guilty as the next producer of using some "played out" tricks. But i try to do what I term "stripped down electro-pop." As for vocals, it's the same thing. I've done tracks with vocals that are pretty wicked -- but no one will ever hear them as that's not what I do. That would really place my stuff in time.

But what about your side project Tinfoil Teakettle? That's got vocals
This is Lowfish vs Solvent. We get in a room with big, dusty, broken and semi-operational machines and battle it out together. So far we've done about four tracks together, one of which -- "Think Like Us" -- we play live together and people freak out. Which is weird as it's totally dark and evil vocoder electro-pop. TFTK will release an album this year. We're trying hard to invent a new genre with this shit.

The Raelians, that cult that cloned a baby, believe that long hair and beards help people receive alien telepathic messages. That said, you recently cut your hair. Have you noticed any differences in your thought processes?
You juke, but hair, like so many other things in life, is distracting. Hacking my hair back to the wood probably freed up some extra brain cells. If what you say above is true, I'm going to shave it all off as I hear 'nuff' voices in my head as it is.

What advice do you have for others who would make their fortune in electronic music?
Don't get distracted by all the new bells and whistles that come out -- it's got very little to do with the gear you have. You need a few machines that make the exact sounds you want (not close approximations), inspiration, passion and good ideas. Some of the best masterpieces have been made on shit gear based on "simple" ideas. Listen to tons and tons of music and figure out where you can carve your place. Don't send me another demo that ripss off Fischerspooner. And trust your mom when she says that new track you made is shit. They can't explain why, but they're right.

What is the most perfect reaction someone has had to your music?
In an interview with a French mag, [they asked]: "Are you the next Chemical Brothers?" Perfect.

What's a lowfish anyway?
A low fish is a colorless, spiky toothed solitary dweller of the inky black bottom of the sea. It's also a reference to the notion of lo-fi "ish."

Bill Ball