Enfnts Terribles

You already made three albums. How was the process of making the album different this time?

I think it’s the return to making a project with one person, amongst other people, of course, but with James Ford as the key person. I think I really needed someone who was able to merge all the ideas and have this focus. Making the album was just incredibly fun and effortless.

There are some similarities between your debut Devotion and the new record. In what way is What’s Your Pleasure a reflection of your celebrated debut?

I think there’s a kind of freedom and naiveté when you start in this music world because you don’t really know how everything works. It’s that enthusiasm and the ability to take risks without having to think about agendas that were really wonderful to me.

Seventies and eighties inspired music seems to be the new trend in the music industry, but you do it with a different approach. What makes this funk and disco-inspired sound so attractive?

I came from the world of dance, and my first entry point to experiencing dance music was through drum and bass. I love that, but there’s something so soulful about house and disco that I wanted to tap into that and the warmth of it. I wanted this modern approach to making music, so it’s definitely nostalgic, but we also wanted to create something that sounds relatively fresh and fun. For me, there’s a freedom in dance music because you can completely enjoy yourself and direct that to other people. I love the optimism about that.

Your songs have been remixed a lot in the past. Did that inspire you to go for this sound as well?

I mean, I love it when I get remixed and they mess around with my vocals because it’s always a reimagination of the song. I wanted to experiment with how my voice was presented in the songs and not have these very dry pop vocals. In the last song of the album, for example, it’s not necessarily me singing the chorus, but rather me singing it with a lot of other people. We started to use my voice as an instrument, which was really lovely. And because I love remixes so much, we’re probably going to release a remix version of the album. It makes me excited, and it gives me so much joy to know that you can go anywhere with dance music.

Did you have a lot of self-doubts in the past years?

I think it was just a bit of grinding down. I was forgetting myself a little bit. So yeah, it’s sometimes just exhausting, and I was just trying to prove too much that I could do everything because of the pressure.

The main inspiration of the album seems to be the irresistibility of love. Were all the songs written from fantasies or are the songs based on real stories?

No, “Adore You” is about me and my unborn child who was in my tummy at the time. “Remember Where You Are” is about the situation of today, and it’s about what’s going in the world. It’s a weird time right now. “In Your Eyes” is a personal song that’s about reminiscing someone. So, there are some real stories on the record, but it was quite nice to also step away from that as well.

Talking about the album closer “Remember Where You Are”. It’s a slightly political song since it talks about our society and how it’s divided. Was it a way for you to write a song about your own frustrations?

When I was in the studio, we were talking about the current situation, and we were just having an open discussion. I think it was about this feeling of “this might be going on in the world, but remember who you have close and hold onto them.” I mean, it’s the nearest I’ve gotten to any political situation. It’s just reflecting on society and the way we’re living right now.

A lot of artists are exploring songwriting about political topics, but you kept it a bit different. Do you think that you will maybe write an album with a lot of political statements in the future?

I don’t know. I’m not sure. I think whatever feels right. Never say never. I think there are some amazing people out there already doing that, but yeah. Who knows.

You stated that the album is escapism for you in a specific way. Was there a moment where you realized you needed to reinvent yourself as an artist?

I think it’s exhausting having to feel like you have to reinvent yourself. If anything, I was trying to return to myself. But yeah, I think there’s this kind of preoccupation, especially with women that feel like they have to reinvent themselves for men. I think it’s also you as an artist, you want to keep trying things and keep pushing. You don’t want to ever feel like you’re repeating the same thing. I still feel like I’m trying to find my perfect voice, but I think I’m nearing that with this record.

You’ve announced your UK tour for 2021, which already has some sold-out shows. What are the plans to promote the album because we live in such unsure times? 

If we carry on to be in lockdown I have to think of a way to get it to you over the internet. But hopefully, I’ll be able to tour. I love touring in Europe. I’ve had wonderful shows there, so hopefully, I will be able to do it. We’ll just try to be creative on how to put it out.

The record comes out on Friday. We’re trying to do a visual for each song. We’re getting there. It’s exciting.