Ariane Moffatt | INTERVIEWS | TORO MAGAZINE

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Ariane Moffatt | INTERVIEWS | TORO MAGAZINE | What Men Need to Know about Sex, Style, Music, Sports, Drinks & Video
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Montreal is a city divided from its country in some ways, one
of which is certainly the Francophone music industry. That’s not
such a bad thing – French artists can make a fine career,
CHAT WITH KIMBRA
Get to know Kimbra, the voice behind Gotye's
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critically and commercially, in their native language.
But the appeal of crossover success still beckons. For
genre-hopping performer Ariane Moffatt, 10 years and
four albums deep into her career seemed the right time to
go bilingual, a choice that has yielded great, renewed
creative power on MA.
We recently spoke with Moffatt about thinking in two
languages, going electro-pop and making MA on her own
terms.
Even in 2012, does Montreal still feel like its
own musical world?
We know to the rest of Canada it can be like a lonely
planet. I’ve had a lot of [success] at home but because of
the language barrier, Toronto or wherever ... no one may know who I am! With this bilingual record, even though it comes
naturally for me to write in both languages, I hope to build a bridge and ... get out. I’m not trapped! But it’s a good term.
To English speakers French can sound romantic and sophisticated. Alternately, how does our
http://www.toromagazine.com/music/interviews/a1de6918-678e-ccb4-3dbd-adfdb991ca0b/Ariane-Moffatt-/[2012-05-25 12:35:49]
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language feel to you?
It feels like another part of myself. As a kid my brother and I would highlight lyrics from rap songs we liked, and my
inspirations were as much if not more of English music. I grew with the presence of the language inside myself, and
getting ideas in English can feel like finding that other part of me. It’s a part [more removed] from myself, as knowing my
way around the French language leads to more intimate songwriting.
As for the sound, I guess it’s like playing a character. My voice goes lower ... I don’t know why.
As a French Canadian, when you are writing in English do you recognize and/or appreciate the
truth that more people are going to understand you?
Maybe, but that’s not the way I thought about it before [making the album.] I think if that was part of my career ambition I
would have made an entirely English-language record.
I once asked a Swedish musician why he chose to sing entirely in English, and he said, “It’s much
easier.”
I’ve heard that, people have said to me that the language is easier [to sing], that it is much more fluid. But I need my wide
vocabulary. I want to play with words, so I had to be able to write and think in English first.
Who are some of your Francophone influences?
I’ve had a lot of godfathers in my career. In 2002, I started playing keyboards for Daniel Bélanger, super songwriter from
Quebec. He took me under his wing. And from France, -M- (Matthieu Chedid), you know? He has his hair like “this” ...
One of my closest friends was a big -M- fan in high school.
Yes, so you know. He has a strong personality and a fantastic way of doing his job.
How do you think MA stands out sonically from your past work? To me it seems more ...
Coherent? Cohesive?
“Danceable.” I don’t know how to translate that.
Yeah, more of a tribal vibe. The goal was to get better with my production skills, to be able to just plug in and record with
the drums. I wanted to use the [percussion] in a hypnotic, repetitive way and I think it gave me a startup energy ...
A physical kind?
Yeah. Time would stop and I would just keep playing. Because I was producing the record myself I also wanted to make it
more coherent, where in the past I would flirt with some reggae here, some grunge there. It was a challenge to keep that
within both French and English. I think it works! It’s all subjectif.
Is “producer” an enjoyable role?
It was one hell of a journey! And I liked not having to explain anything, just a flow of music. It was a dream of mine,
imagining a roomful of instruments where I could just go from one to the other.
Is the studio in this video the one you primarily used?
Yup, exactly. Didn’t need a car while recording, could walk there. Maybe used my scooter.
Did you get lost in the space, finding yourself working for countless hours without realizing it?
Oh, yeah. The song on the album “L’homme dans L’automobile” ... I had a vision while looking out the window after
fooling around the studio for hours without real ideas.
You saw something that inspired you?
I saw all the spots [in the song’s story.] Starting from the hospital near Mt. Royal, I drew my eyes along the “ride” of the
character.
As someone who writes such lyrical stories, do people you know push inspiration on you? As in,
“Here’s what happened to me last week, write a song about it!”
I’m well-surrounded with people who don’t try and interfere that way in our relationship. They don’t distract or disturb my
creativity. I choose what inspires me!
Having wrapped her sold-out appearance at this year's Canadian Music Fest Ariane Moffatt will be performing
again in Toronto May 25 @ The Drake Underground (8 p.m.)
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CMW Report Card: Ariane Moffatt at El Mocambo » CHARTattack | Indie and Alternative Music
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CMW REPORT CARD: ARIANE MOFFATT AT EL MOCAMBO
MAR 24, 2012
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ARIANE MOFFATT
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http://www.chartattack.com/features/2012/03/24/cmw-report-card-ariane-moffatt-at-el-mocambo/[2012-05-25 12:34:36]
CMW 2012: Day Two Reviews | culture | Torontoist
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MARCH 23, 2012 AT 1:45 PM
CMW 2012: Day Two Reviews
Our breakdown of the shows we caught on the second night of Canadian
Music Week.
BY TORONTOIST • PHOTOS BY CORBIN SMITH AND DEAN BRADLEY
Missed it? Fear not, Torontoist was there for day two of CMW, and we report.
Jenn Grant
FROM: Halifax, NS (by way of Prince Edward Island)
PERFORMED: Thursday, 10 p.m. at The Mod Club
http://torontoist.com/2012/03/cmw-2012-day-two-reviews/[2012-05-25 12:29:19]
Pre-Show Hype: Medium.
Crowd: Into it, as best evidenced by a pair of inebriated superfans waltzing against the stage.
Performance: Sure, there’s a certain detached bravado associated with Little Girls’ brand of moody post-punk, but
frontman Josh McIntyre’s too-cool-for-school stage posturing feels tired.
Best Moment: See under “crowd.”
Miscellaneous: Sometimes a band is best enjoyed in the comfort of one’s own home. But maybe we’re just feeling
surly.
Verdict: 6/10
(Kelli Korducki)
Ariane Moffatt
FROM: Montreal, QC
PERFORMED: Thursday, 9 p.m. at El Mocambo Downstairs
Pre-Show Hype: Pretty, pretty high. Moffatt has been a Quebec darling since she released her first album in 2002.
But it wasn’t until her latest album, Ma, that she really blew up in English Canada (because, well, it’s her first release
that’s mostly in English).
Crowd: The perfect size. Packed, but with enough room to dance.
Performance: The pixie-haired Moffatt oozed sex appeal as she attacked the microphone, keyboard, and drum
surrounding her, bombarding the audience with her breathy yet forceful voice. She was backed by hard-hitting electropop from her band, which included members from Creature and Winter Gloves.
Best Moment: The sweat getting too unwieldy, Moffatt pointed out to the radio audience (the show was being
streamed on SiriusXM) that she was wiping her face with a brown paper bag, which was all she had. “Rock and roll!”
Miscellaneous: Ma might have been her breakthrough album in the English-speaking world (it was a number-one
bestseller on Billboard Canada and iTunes Canada), but we actually preferred her singing in her native tongue.
Verdict: 8/10
(Carly Maga)
Lake Forest
FROM: Toronto, ON
PERFORMED: Thursday, 1 a.m. at Cameron House Backroom
Canadian Music Fest 2012: The Dears, Cold Specks, Army Girls + more
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Army Girls' Carmen Elle goes to war.
FRI MAR 23, 2012
MUSIC
The Best Things We Saw at CMF: Day
2
BY: STUART BERMAN, ROB DUFFY, CHRIS BILTON AND SARAH LISS
Ariane Moffatt (The El Mocambo, 9 p.m.): In Quebec and other parts of the French-speaking
world, Ariane Moffatt is kind of a big deal—her 2002 album was certified platinum in Quebec, and
she’s won a boatload of Félix awards and some Francophone Album of the Year Junos. In the
rest of Canada, though, she’s still an unknown quantity, something she’s trying to change with her
new album, the electro-zapped MA, which features a handful of songs in English. Her set at the El
Mo—as part of the La Belle Province showcase—was her first Toronto performance ever, but
you’d never have guessed that based on the rapturous response she elicited from the packed
house; a cabal of 20-something women in pretty sundresses in a booth near the middle of the El
Mo were drumming ecstatically on the table in time with the booming drums and bass. The band’s
http://www.thegridto.com/culture/music/the-best-things-we-saw-at-cmf-day-2/[2012-05-25 12:27:30]
lush, dramatic arrangements (loads of spongy synth chords, thundercloud guitar) neatly
counterbalanced Moffatt’s throaty, mercurial voice, and her stage moves were charming—at one
point, she grabbed a pair of drumsticks and beat out a rhythmic tattoo; later, she rattled a
tambourine like Betty in the Archies. On disc, Moffatt’s songs can be sultry and somewhat
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subdued, but live, she has enough dynamism and showmanship (and slight cheesiness) for a
Vegas stage show.—Sarah Liss
Cold Specks (The Music Gallery, 9:30 p.m.): The conditions for Cold Specks’ local debut full-band
performance speak volumes about the lofty expectations that her new label, Arts & Crafts, have
for the 23-year-old, Etobicoke-reared singer-songwriter (born Al Spx). While Arts & Crafts host a
standard, six-act CMF slate tonight at the Horseshoe, for Cold Specks, they booked the Music
Gallery for a special solo billing—because showcasing Spx’s preternaturally soaring voice
anywhere other than in a church would seem like a waste. In A&C speak, Cold Specks slots
perfectly between the artful soft-rock of Feist and the shadowy southern gothic of Timber Timbre
(who first brought Spx to the label’s attention), and if the big-band execution felt overly studied to
start—Cold Specks songs unfold at a very patient pace, before yielding their big-chorus payoffs—
Spx and her five supporting players clearly grew more comfortable and confident as they moved
deeper into the hour-long set. (Best way to diffuse awkward between-song silences: impromptu
gospel renditions of the Fresh Prince of Bel Air theme. Second best: jokes involving clowns and
cannibals.) By the end, Spx’s frequently powerful performance earned a standing ovation from the
heat-wilted full house—to which she responded in kind with an astonishing, off-mic a cappella
encore (see the video below), wherein her unamplified voice filled the church as easily and
thoroughly as last night’s unseasonably swampy humidity.—Stuart Berman
1:30
pm
MUSIC
WED MAY 23, 2012
Cold Specks: I Predict A Graceful
Expulsion
If you’re looking for Toronto’s Adele, look no further:
Arts & Crafts made a wise choice...
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The Best Things We Saw at CMF:
Day 4
The Inbreds deliver a potent hit of circa-'96 nostalgia
at Lee's Palace; indie-pop wunderkind...
0 COMMENTS
Army Girls (Parts and Labour, 11 p.m.): If Wednesday’s invite-only showcases and sparsely
attended gigs felt like a CMF warm-up, Thursday evening was definitely the real deal. That was
clear by the time Army Girls kicked off the Hand Drawn Dracula showcase in the rec room–chic
environs of Parts and Labour’s basement venue, The Shop. Sharing a bill with local post-punkers
Little Girls and Rituals, as well as Holy Fuck co-founder Brian Borcherdt’s promising new solo
venture, Dusted, Army Girls were in good company. Despite their early-for-this-venue timeslot
(though they still started 30 minutes late), the duo—made up of singer/guitarist Carmen Elle and
drummer Andy Smith—brought a restless energy and tight-enough-to-seem-loose professionalism
worthy of headliner status. Elle’s mixture of open chords and spiky riffs fills up a ton of space
(though she also used an octave pedal to add some welcome bass tones to the mix), while her
2:30
voice has an ascendant, about-to-crack quality that’s perfect for Army Girls’ brand of dramatic
indie-pop. Most of the pair’s tunes are unbelievably infectious—especially “The Power,” from their
debut EP Close to the Bone, produced by Fucked Up’s Ben Cook. And even if some of their best
The Best Things We Saw at CMF:
Day 3
moments really just remind me of Land of Talk’s most energetic songs, Army Girls is easily one of
Cleveland-based quartet Cloud Nothings' midnight
performance at Lee's Palace—comprised entirely...
the best new bands in Toronto.—Chris Bilton
pm
MUSIC
SAT MAR 24, 2012
0 COMMENTS
The Dears (El Mocambo, 1 a.m.): Now that we’re almost a decade removed from the Montreal
indie-scene explosion, the mere sight of The Dears closing down La Belle Province night in the
warm confines of a packed El Mocambo may have acted as a portal back to a more innocent time
for some festival veterans. But the current six-piece lineup is far more than a mere ghost of
Canadian Music Weeks past: The Dears’ spirited headlining set reinforced the message behind
last year’s grandiose comeback album, Degeneration Street—that they’re a renewed band once
again firing on all cylinders. The best indication of The Dears’ rediscovered fifth gear is the way
the mountain-sized anthems of Degeneration Street (“Thrones” and “5 Chords,” to be specific) fit
in so effortlessly alongside the band’s older favourites. Opening with the new material before using
career-defining single “Lost In the Plot” to transition into the back catalogue, singer Murray
Lightburn’s combination of booming vocal tones and decidedly effervescent stage banter
suggested that The Dears have emerged from uncertainty in quite possibly their best form ever.
Set highlights like the haunting singalong of “We Can Have It” or the staggeringly epic conclusion
of “22: The Death of Romance” are welcome nostalgia trips, but we should all be more excited for
what the The Dears will do next.—Rob Duffy
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The buzz was high at Toronto's El Mocambo Thursday night as rumours swirled around
about a potential "surprise guest" at the annual La Belle Province showcase at CMW,
presented by SiriusXM and CBC Radio 3.
Sources later revealed that the guest in question was Rufus Wainwright, brother of
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Martha performed an acoustic set almost entirely comprised of new songs. It took a bit of
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She prefaced a particularly important song by telling the crowd, "I know it's a lot to ask
for you to be quiet but this is my first song about motherhood." She had to stop a few
chords in to say, "Shut the fuck up for three minutes, it's a song about fucking
motherhood."
Wainwright confidently went through her set of melancholic acoustic melodies, her voice
was the highlight of the night as she reminded us why she's not only one of Montreal's
greatest vocalists, but one of the Canada's most unique artists.
http://www.spinner.ca/2012/03/23/cmw-cmf-martha-wainwright-dears-ariane-moffatt/[2012-05-25 12:25:44]
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'In Your Body' singer Ariane Moffatt also took the stage Thursday night, hot off the heels
of her much-talked SXSW appearance last week. The Quebecois crossover performed
songs from her latest album, 'Ma,' mixing stomping percussion with sexy electro-pop,
almost giving artists like Robyn a run for their money.
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The night was rounded off by a remarkable lineup of both promising and veteran
Montreal acts. Adam & The Amethysts and Half Moon Run both had a great showing
while Galaxie and the Dears packed a solid punch at the end of the night.
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The Dears, who headlined the evening, closed the night with a set full of nostalgic hits,
and even though they showed little sign of testing out new material, their set was strong
as always.
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'Omega Dog.' Though Lightburn couldn't stop singing "T dot, oh!" while on stage, it was
evident that Montreal deserve the really shout-out for exporting some serious musical
talent.
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Ariane Moffatt: Canadian Singer Releases ‘MA,’ Switches To English, Denies Sex Addict Rumor - International Business Times
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By IBTIMES STAFF REPORTER: Subscribe to IBTimes's RSS feed
March 23, 2012 12:02 PM EDT
Ariane Moffatt is not new to the music industry. She's been a successful singer-songwriter for the past 10
years, but most people hadn't heard of her... until now.
The Quebec resident has released three albums, writing songs with French lyrics that endeared her to a
francophone fan base but did not bring her international fame.
But her fourth record, "MA," features songs in both French
and English -- and a Japanese title. Could that be why
Moffatt suddenly gained a myriad of fans from countries all
around the world, performing at this month's South by
Southwest Festival and even briefly zooming to the number
two spot on the iTunes Album Chart?
Or is it that her work has so matured over the last decade
that it transcends language? Moffatt's genre-bending sound -
Existing Home Sales Jump, World Banks
Lowers China Forecast, Euro Prepares for
Greek Exit
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- it combines aspects of pop, electronica, and folk -- has won
some serious awards, including the Juno Award for Best
Francophone Album of the Year and a MuchMusic Video
Award for Best French Video.
The artist told CBC News that she
switched to English in order to open
things up. "A language I control less
could maybe give more space to [my]
imagination," she said. "It's interesting
to see where the language guides me
or brings me."
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She was inspired by her Quebec
neighborhood called Mile End, which
is multilingual.
Now what about this sex addiction
rumor? The story is that when Moffatt
(Photo: Edvinsson Publicity)
Canadian singer-songwriter Ariane Moffatt released the album
described the song "In Your Body"
'MA,' which became an international hit.
during an interview, she used some
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Ariane Moffatt: Canadian Singer Releases ‘MA,’ Switches To English, Denies Sex Addict Rumor - International Business Times
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evocative terms. But she later said
the song was not about sex addiction;
in fact, it wasn't even based on her
"I gave a quote to Q magazine, where
I started to tell the story of "In Your
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Body" in a way that was a bit
suggestive, and they interpreted the song as being about sex
dependence, and that's not at all what I intended to say!" she
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And about that album title... what is "MA"? Moffatt explained:
"I was reading this magazine with a special on Japan, and
there was a photo report on 'ma.' It was talking about the
definition of spatial temporality, the space between things:
the silence between two notes in music, the distance
between two swords when you're fighting. This little
emptiness the Japanese call 'ma.' And for me it was really
significant and poetic to see time not only in terms of
6
Like
8
something really far and vast, but in the little contemplation
of spaces between things. When I was alone writing in the
studio and in a contemplative state of mind, the 'ma' spoke to
me a lot. And it's also my initials."
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Ariane Moffatt - El Mocambo, Toronto ON March 22 • CMW Reviews • exclaim.ca
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Already a platinum-selling artist in French-speaking Canada,
Québécoise pop artist Ariane Moffatt is only now crossing over
to the Anglophone market. Having just played a bunch of SXSW
showcases, she joined CMW with a keyboard-heavy five-piece - even the bassist had an extra keyboard Frankensteined to his
bass, on some tracks playing both at the same time. Moffatt's
set was well received from the start, her opening tracks sung in
English, on the third song switching to French. Displaying an
impressive vocal range and exuding a genuine energy and
humble personality, there is no questioning her passion for
what she does; several times the singer broke out into a huge
grin while singing. Some of the best tracks were where Moffatt
added additional percussion, and energy, on her floor tom. With
her latest album, MA, riding high on the Canadian charts,
there's no reason why her sincerity and infectious pop shouldn't
make her even more popular with a wider audience.
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Adam & the Amethysts,
Ariane Moffatt, Half Moon
Run, Galaxie, Martha
Wainwright and the Dears,
El Mocambo (downstairs), 8 p.m.
onward. If you just wanna park
your butt at a single venue for
the evening, SiriusXM's “La Belle
Province” showcase is an entirely
safe bet. Of particular note this
year is Quebecoise crossover
star Ariane Moffatt, who pulled
off some dazzling South by
Southwest showcases last week
and has a real winner in hard
with her first bilingual album,
Mon Corps. And, of course, the
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Young Rival and Jenn
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8:15 p.m. British Invasion-esque
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Joseph Arthur and the Pack A.D., Horseshoe Tavern, 9:30
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new free-giveaway double album, Redemption City, to life onstage,
Horseshoe a new one.
I Mother Earth, Sound Academy, 10:30 p.m. These mystically
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Ariane Moffatt: 'In Your Body' Singer Reassures Us She's No Sex Addict - Spinner Canada
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Ariane Moffatt: 'In Your Body' Singer
Reassures Us She's No Sex Addict
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Posted on Mar 22nd 2012 2:00PM by Sarah Kurchak
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She just got a little carried away with her description of the song when we debuted it
back in January. "I wrote a quote inventing some kind of story about the song, because
it's not personal stuff. But I said that it happened in my neighbourhood, so it looks like it
was for real."
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Before starting the interview, Quebec's reigning queen of electro-pop Ariane Moffatt
would like to set the record straight with Spinner: She's not a sex addict. Nor is 'In Your
Body,' the first single from her new album 'Ma,' really about sex addiction.
(205)
Inspired by her quote, we called the single "a woozy synth-drenched ode to sex
addiction."
"I don't remember that!" she laughs. "Maybe I wrote that... But it was all about inventing
a character."
Between the
Notes
(36)
And now the media in her home province are quite concerned about the singer's issues.
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(19)
"Everybody in Quebec after talked to me about this sexual album and this sex
dependence thing! I was like 'Oh man! Why does it always have to go with the first
http://www.spinner.ca/2012/03/22/cmw-cmf-ariane-moffatt-in-your-body/[2012-05-25 12:24:22]
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degree?' I thought I could just fly with the story, but after that, I had to answer all of
these questions about sexual dependence. And it's not even as if it was a personal
story!"
The deeper meaning of 'In Your Body' (which, for the record, she believes is more about
general obsession than sexual addiction) is really the only thing that's been lost in
translation when it comes to the Francophone's recent foray into the English-speaking
music scene, though.
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After charming Quebec audiences for the past decade, racking up a slew of awards and
earning plantinum-selling records in the process, Moffatt seems poised to conquer the
rest of the world. And 'Ma' -- a heady mix of French and English songs boasting sexy
(but not in a dependent way) synths and smooth, electro-fied pop -- should help her do it.
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For the singer and multi-instrumentalist, the choice to try her hand at English music and
the English market was an organic one. "Honestly, I know it sounds maybe not true or
whatever, but ... the songs came first in both languages. Living in this bilingual and
multicultural area of Montreal [influenced me] in a large way. I did an English project of
covers for a TV show in Quebec called 'Trauma,' so people knew that I could drop by
the English zone.
"But the thing that made it, for me, easier to make the decision was that I thought I could
write in English for the first time. Before I thought there was this idea, but can I do it? Is it
credible? I didn't think I could do it before now."
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Even the songwriting process was completely natural. She didn't set out to write in a
specific language, she simply followed whatever came into her head. "It comes from the
first line. Usually, before, I was starting with an English line, because I listen to mostly
English music, even though I'm really aware of the French scene. You know when you
write and you just improvise scenarios? They could be in English but then I would switch
to French. But now, if it's coming out in English, I was listening to it. What do I mean?
Where does it come from? I was doing a bit of psychoanalysis at the time, and I was
really captivated and intrigued by the power of words, the power of words that you don't
expect and where the come from.
"There's always a reason in the subconscious. And I was sometimes coming back from a
session of therapy and just throwing words around in the studio instead of planning
them. So it went a bit with the process, and it was interesting to compare English and
French and which part of me wants to do it in English and what does it express? It was
fun."
The results of her experiments were fascinating. Her voice, she discovered, is lower
when she sings in English, appearing to originate from lower in the diaphragm. The
subject matter of her lyrics and the style of the music seem to change depending on
language as well.
"There's a bit of darkness, maybe more in English, that wants to come, and something
more light with the French. And the sound, the French songs are the most electronic and
the English ones are more organic."
She hasn't drawn any definite conclusions about the whole experience so far, but she
admits that the slightly naughtier bent her Anglo self seems to be taking is not a
complete surprise.
"When I'm drunk, I love to speak English. I knew it wanted to come out at some point!"
Ariane Moffatt plays CMF's La Belle Province showcase at the El Mocambo on March
22, and returns to Toronto May 25th for her own headlining show.
Follow @Spinner on Twitter | Like Us on Facebook | Sign Up for Our
Newsletter
Download Ariane Moffatt Songs | Buy Ariane Moffatt Albums
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ARIANE MOFFATT plays the El Mocambo tonight
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Ariane Moffatt - Ma
TWITTER
(Audiogram) BY SARAH GREENE
GOOGLE +1
The title of Ariane Moffatt’s fourth album, Ma, refers to a
Japanese concept involving a gap or hiatus in time or a
substance – sort of a negative space or downtime. It’s
also an inversion of the award-winning Montreal
singer/songwriter’s initials.
SHARE
More than half sung in English and the rest in French,
Ma features lots of bass-heavy, synthy, sultry, electropop concerning matters of the heart, with the beats standing in for the human heartbeat
and Moffatt’s sexy, breathy vocals on top.
The bilingual affair, self-produced by Moffatt with technical assistance from Pierre
Girard, piques my interest most when Moffat sings low and sounds like she means
business, as on Mon Corps, and on trippy retro experiment La Pluie Et Le Beau
Temps. She sounds more at ease when singing in French.
Top track: La Pluie Et Le Beau Temps
NOW | March 22-29, 2012 | VOL 31 NO 30
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Quebec singer-songwriter Ariane Moffatt crosses
boundaries
CBC News Posted: Mar 15, 2012 11:25 AM ET
Last Updated: Mar 15, 2012 11:20 AM ET
Montreal singer-songwriter Ariane Moffatt is known for music that blends
genres, be it pop, folk, jazz or electronica. Now, after more than a
decade in the music business, she's bridging the language gap with the
bilingual MA, her fourth studio album.
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"Quebec has been quite familiar to me for the past 10 years, so why not
open boundaries and just live new things?" she told Radio-Canada's
Kevin Sweet.
The idea for a record composed of both English and French tracks came
naturally, after she had considered the idea for some time, Moffatt said.
The singer said she was inspired by Montreal's multilingual Mile End
neighbourhood where she lives and works. Also, a trip to Nunavut to
work with local teens showed her how making and sharing art can
transcend language, she said.
As an artist who values wordplay and the poetry of lyrics, Moffatt
discovered that composing in English brought her "into zones that I didn't
expect," she said.
"A language I control less could maybe give more space to [my]
imagination... It's interesting to see where the language guides me or
brings me."
Moffatt, who is popular both in Quebec and France, talked to CBC about
the genesis of MA, reaching out to new audiences and her electropop
style.
After a quick stint in Austin, Tex., for the South by Southwest music
festival this week, she returns to Toronto for Canadian Music Week
March 21-25 before continuing onto spring concert dates in Quebec,
New York and Paris.
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Bruce Springsteen is back, but
his “Wrecking Ball” failed to
smash through to the top of the
charts.
The Boss’ seventeenth studio
album debuted at No. 3 with a
rather ho-hum 18,000 in sales.
This paled in comparison to the
chart-leading “Star Academie
2012,” which raked in 54,000,
according to Nielsen
SoundScan.
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Bruce Springsteen (Handout)
For those living outside La Belle
Province, Star Academie is a popular Quebec talent show with an empire that
also includes compilation discs and concert tours.
Springsteen’s third place is a disappointment, since his albums have typically
fared well in Canada. He’s had No. 1 discs with 2009’s “Working on a
Dream” (which sold just under 20,000) and 2007’s “Magic” (25,000). The disc
was also heavily promoted following his appearance on the Grammys last
month.
Adele’s “21” marked its 55th week on the charts with a second place finish.
Her diamond-selling second album moved another 19,000 in sales.
Whitney Houston’s greatest hits, “The Essential Whitney Houston,” dropped
down one notch to No. 4 ahead of Big Wreck’s “Albatross” - the band’s first
album in over a decade – at No. 5.
Rounding out the
bottom of the charts, is
Quebec singersongwriter Ariane
Moffatt’s “Ma” at No. 6,
Leonard Cohen’s “Old
Ideas” at No. 7 and
http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/S/Springsteen_Bruce/2012/03/14/19502321.html[2012-05-25 12:19:11]
Madonna
Jack White
Kaskade
CANOE -- JAM! Music - Artists - Springsteen, Bruce : Boss' 'Wrecking Ball' at No. 3
2008’s “We Sing. We
Dance. We Steal
Things” from Jason
Mraz in eighth place.
Marilyn Manson
Feist
Yanni
Ben Harper
Van Halen
The final two slots
belonged to “The
Project X” movie
soundtrack in ninth
place and The Black
Keys’ “El Camino”,
which moved up seven
notches to land at No.
10.
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Springsteen fared better
stateside, where
“Wrecking Ball” debuted
at No. 1, while Adele
slipped down one to
second place.
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Will.i.am: 'I need Auto-tune'
Elton sidelined by 'serious'
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to vet
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me
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1. Adele: 21
http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/S/Springsteen_Bruce/2012/03/14/19502321.html[2012-05-25 12:19:11]
Five Questions with Ariane Moffatt » CHARTattack | Indie and Alternative Music
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FIVE QUESTIONS WITH ARIANE MOFFATT
MAR 13, 2012
BY COLTON EDDY
ARIANE MOFFATT
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Ariane Moffatt has a decade spanning career, but she wasn’t recognized outside of her native Quebec until her
albumMA shot to the top of iTunes chart, peaking at number 2 just beneath Adele’s 21. Now she’s in high demand,
performing this week at SXSW before dates in New York and Paris. We spoke with Ariane about making the transition
from French to English, untraditional song structure and personal songs that may not be about her.
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J’aime
This was your first album singing mostly in English. How was the whole approach different?
It came without any expectations from myself. There wasn’t a process when I started writing the songs; half of them
were starting with an English line and the other half in French. And I think for the first time I just allowed myself to do it,
maybe because I had a better understanding of writing and thinking in English. I think there was a part of me that was
waiting to do this, because when I was really young I started to take lyrics from rap artists, and was always inspired
with English music. It’s brought me artistically to some other places that I’m happy to have experienced.
Singing in English, but coming from the Québécois background – is it a political or a cultural
betrayal?
It’s an issue. And it’s a discussion that is still really heated because there is this importance of preserving the French
language, but…I don’t know, maybe I just don’t hear the bad stuff that is told behind my back (laughs). But I feel like
people, they know that it’s my fourth record and I’ve been expressing myself in French and I’m such a Francophile. This
is an artistic step of where I want to be and I think people are able to believe this (laughs).
Was the decision to go English prompted by different artists that you’ve been listening to?
http://www.chartattack.com/features/2012/03/13/five-questions-with-ariane-moffatt/[2012-05-25 12:17:34]
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Oh yeah, for sure. I’ve been listening, like always, to a lot of English music since I was young, but I was listening to
LCD Soundsystem at the time. I like this way of having hooks that are short and don’t take up all the space in a song.
Sometimes you have a minute or two of just groove and textures, and this kind of approach to songwriting is attractive
to me. It’s not always the verse-chorus kind of structure. In the music that I like in English, there is this space that I
wanted to reproduce, which is not always structured, but can also put attention on the production and the arrangements
than the writing or the song itself.
And that use of negative space… is that what the album title refers to?
Yeah, yeah. It’s from Japan, but the way I discovered it was through some contemporary kind of photo article in a
French magazine and it was all about Japanese people in the metro – really urban, in between two destinations, in this
lost space. It’s talking about the gap between things, but that has a matter without a total emptiness. So for music,
silence between the notes that makes music happen. In martial arts, the distance between two fighters is needed so the
fight can happen. For me, there was this real poetic aspect to using emptiness as a matter.
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“Mon Corps” was a very personal song - but it wasn’t about me or my body. The vision behind the song was more of a social study of dealing with our body
and managing it as a business, and always being tied up between balance and trashing ourselves, this dance that
never ends and is so present in our society. So at the beginning it was, in English “Our Body,” but at the end I said
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“well, I’ll just say ‘my’ and people are going to say it’s her and I will assume the role.” It was a way to make it more
intimate as well as a play on the proximity thing.
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We recently visited the acclaimed Canadian singer Ariane Moffatt at her Montréal studio in the Mile End
section neighborhood of Plateau-Mont-Royal just days before she launched her latest album, MA. Having
written in both French and English, Moffatt holds an eclectic, multi-genre appeal, incorporating elements
of folk and jazz into her distinct electro-pop sound. With seemingly so much of her musical inspiration
stemming from her creative space, we asked Moffatt to show us her favorite instruments. Here she
explains how she used these tools to develop some of the brightest songs yet.
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This electric guitar is the first instrument I ever bought on the Internet. It was purchased specifically for a
its thick, heavy neck. While recording MA, every time I had an idea for a riff, I couldn't help myself from
grabbing this baby and plugging it in to my small Vox amp. A really good-looking electric couple.
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Steel Drums from Tobago
I bought these pans during a trip to Trinidad and Tobago. I always loved Calypso music and the warm
Ariane Moffatt
sound of this metallic, percussive instrument made from old oil drums. It always surprised me how such
warmth could come from a metal surface. I always wanted to transpose that magical aspect into a different
style of music. I tweaked the sound using different effects, and played the instrument instinctively, since I
have no formal training.
Even before leaving for my trip I had the idea to bring home pans in my suitcase. I bought mine from a
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young, talented player who was moving away to attend university in the U.S. He delivered them to my
hotel room late one night, and included a case, the drums, stands and proper sticks. I was all set to bring
them back to Montreal's -25-degree weather! I have never been able to tune them properly since.
Roland Jupiter-6 Synthetiser (1983)
This was bought off of a friend of mine a while ago. It took me a long time to get used to this '80s tank of a
keyboard. It really is the main player on my most recent album. I love playing with its big buttons while
crafting my sounds. It's a huge machine that is totally impractical to bring on tour, but it represents the
audio aesthetic of my album and I am profoundly attached to its infinite creative possibilities and strong
personality.
Ariane Moffatt
Roland '70s Beat Box
On the road I have a habit of shopping for vintage instruments the way some people shop for antique
furniture. Finding a hidden shop or market where you can get treasures at ridiculously low prices is totally
satisfying. That's how this old wooden analog beat box and I met. It emulates beats from the foxtrot to the
rhumba in a full and soft way. I can sample its different parts and construct my own beats to integrate into
my songs anyway I want. During an acoustic set a few years ago the audience and I baptized it with the
name "Tapageur". It is the grandfather of all the toys in my studio.
Ariane Moffatt
Heintzman Upright Piano (Toronto, 1877)
There's an old piano shop in near my home called Montreal Pianos. The owner's son, JR, restores old
pianos and brings them back to life. My Heintzman was a love-at-first-touch encounter. I keep it at home
and only half-dressed to show off the gold keys and hammers inside. I find a piano in one's home to be an
important decorating element by bringing calm and openness to a room. This inviting instrument is not
only an inspiring friend for songwriting, but playing around on it keeps our home feeling alive!
Photography by SPG LePigeon
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It seems there wasn't much of
an appetite for the Cranberries’
first new album in over a
decade.
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Dolores O'Riordan and co's
reunion effort "Roses" wilted in
its debut, stumbling out of the
gate at No. 6 on the Canadian
charts, while ringing up just
3,100 copies, according to
Neilsen SoundScan numbers.
Dolores O'Riordan and the Cranberries
Their last disc, "Wake Up and
Smell the Coffee," sold 10,000 in limped in at No. 6. (AFP file photo)
its first week back in 2001.
Closer to the top, the latest challenger for Adele was Quebec singersongwriter Ariane Moffatt. Her fourth album "MA" had the biggest entry of the
week at No. 2, selling 10,000 copies, but couldn't topple the British superstar.
Follow QMI Agency's John Williams on Twitter!
Adele's "21" continued to come up aces on the charts, holding firm at No. 1
while collecting another 23,000 in sales, raising her grand total to an
astonishing 1,135,000 in 54 weeks. It makes us wonder - who doesn't have
the album by now?
It was the same old story down south as well, where she held on to No. 1
again, selling 247,000 copies of "21" in the U.S., according to Billboard.com.
Back here, Whitney Houston's posthumous effort "The Essential Whitney
Houston" (6,600) stayed at No. 3, and Leonard Cohen's "Old Ideas" moved
down two to No. 4.
The "2012 Grammy Nominees" compilation slipped one to No. 5, while Pink
Floyd's remaster of "The Wall" made a huge 109-spot jump in its 23rd week,
http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/C/Cranberries/2012/03/07/19471896.html[2012-05-25 12:14:14]
Madonna
Jack White
Kaskade
CANOE -- JAM! Music - Artists - Cranberries, The : Cranberries go sour on charts
re-entering the charts at No. 7.
The rest of the top ten comprised of Adele's "19" at No. 8, LMFAO's "Sorry
For Party Rocking" at No. 9, and Coldplay's "Mylo Xyloto" at No. 10.
Marilyn Manson
Feist
Yanni
Ben Harper
Van Halen
In the States, Whitney Houston's "Whitney: The Greatest Hits" placed second,
followed by Kid Cudi's "WZRD" in third, "NOW 41" in fourth, and "The
Bodyguard" soundtrack in fifth.
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Ariane Moffatt launches MA at Rialto – with lasers! - Hour Community
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In the gorgeous venue that is the Rialto, Ariane Moffatt launched her new album
MA tonight, playing all of it in sequence, “Pink Floyd-style.” As such, it was an intense
electro-pop trip, with shades of Hot Chip, Ratatat, The Knife and whatnot, all of
which was anchored by the charismatic Moffatt.
She was well surrounded by an already tight new band featuring sexy Lisa Iwanycki
from Creature on keys, Serge Nakauchi Pelletier from Pawa Up First on
guitars, Pat Sayers from Winter Gloves on drums, and Jonathan Dauphinais
from Beast on key bass. Katie Moore also showed up to do some back vocals on
Artifacts. And let’s not forget the priceless support lent by the impressive stage
lighting, which included some frickin’ lasers!
After the intermission, Moffatt and her musicians came back to play half a dozen of
her older songs (Hiver Mile End, Combustion lente, La Fille de l’iceberg, Montréal,
Réverbère, Je veux tout…), plus a neat cover of The Ronettes’ Be My Baby.
Ariane will be back at Rialto this Thursday, March 1 for another show.
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Interview, review: Ariane Moffatt creates a Mile End miniature with MA
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Interview, review: Ariane Moffatt creates a Mile End
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The wagging tongues would have it that pure-voiced Montreal pop songwriter Ariane Moffatt
has some dirty laundry she’d like to unload on her latest album, MA.
E-mail this Article
Photograph by: Pierre Obendrauf , The Gazette
Print this Article
Click here to read a review of MA.
MONTREAL - Could it be that there’s a dark side to the heart of this
angel among us? The wagging tongues would have it that pure-voiced
Montreal pop songwriter Ariane Moffatt has some dirty laundry she’d like
to unload on her latest album, MA. Namely as it pertains to the song In
Your Body, the slinky and sultry first single. There’s a persistent notion
floating around that In Your Body is the autobiographical confession of a,
er, sex addict.
“I gave a quote to Q magazine, where I started to tell the story of In Your
Body in a way that was a bit suggestive, and they interpreted the song as
being about sex dependence, and that’s not at all what I intended to
say!” laughs Moffatt from across the kitchen table of her Mile End home.
(A British music mag helping itself to some salacious hyperbole? Say it
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ain’t so.)
“Yesterday, (when I was a guest) on Tout le monde en parle, they asked
me about it, and I’m like, ‘What? Not at all!’ The song talks about craving
someone, about desire, and about losing the object of your desire
because you’re too obsessed. But there’s a difference between desire for
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The Quebec government announced
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unassuming, down-to-earth and insistently not-sex-addicted Moffatt is
11 MINUTES AGO
COMMENTS ()
someone and sex addiction … so please don’t repeat that!”
It should be noted that a bit of accidental controversy never seems to get
Target announces more Quebec
stores
nothing if not talkative when it comes to MA. It’s an album that she
claims is her most personal and fully realized to date, and that she both
Target has confirmed the locations of
five additional Quebec stores that
are expected to open in 2013,
bringing the total number of outlets in
wrote and produced while playing “90 per cent” of the instruments.
No one would ever accuse 32-year-old Moffatt of being short on ability or
ambition, having released four original albums (her 2002 debut
the province to 17.
Aquanaute, 2005’s Le coeur dans la tête, 2008’s Tous les sens and now
18 MINUTES AGO
COMMENTS ()
MA), an album of acoustic covers (2010’s Trauma, accompanying the TV
Minor fire at Schwartz’s Deli forces patrons out
series of the same name), a live CD/DVD (2005’s À la Station C) and a
five-song remix EP (2009’s Tous les sens Remix) in the last decade
alone. All of which have racked up so much award hardware, she could
3 believed dead, man in custody in Aylmer
Fire ravages bungalow in Terrebonne suburb
open a store.
And you’d be smart not to bet against MA earning Moffatt her fourth
consecutive ADISQ award for pop-rock album of the year.
MA is very much like its predecessors in that the songs, while clearly all
from the same Moffatt mother, are all different enough in their DNA to
question the stylistic provenance of the father.
“Some people might find they’re too different,” Moffatt speculates.
Though for a Quebec audience, where tastes tend to run the gamut, they
would seem a good fit. Montreal has long been a natural petri dish for
hybridized songwriting, with pioneering bands like Me Mom and
Morgentaler in the mid-’90s (“who were fooling with all kinds of styles”)
providing early evidence that classically, quintessentially Montreal music
often owes a debt to multiple stylistic lenders. Moffatt’s formerly
ubiquitous hit Montréal, from Le coeur dans la tête, is one of those
consummate hometown tunes.
“I was listening to Lee Scratch Perry and a lot of lo-fi, rootsy reggae,
nothing pretentious,” she says with fond recollection. “It was a playful,
joyful song about that feeling of getting back home after being on tour.
As I’m sure every artist that tours tells you, there’s nothing like coming
back to Montreal.”
For her latest, Montreal is again front and centre on a seamless quiltwork of songs sung, in a nod to the diversity of her Mile End
neighbourhood, in both official languages. MA inherits the
acoustic/electronic template of previous albums, as well as the
freewheeling genre mixology, though this time out Moffatt is perceptibly
under the influence of her electro inclinations.
“Since my very first record, I’ve had the same desire to mix organic and
electronic, but every time it was in a different manner. Le coeur dans la
tête had more rough, earthy guitar and was more organic,” she says of
an album she dubbed “rhythm ’n’ grunge.”
“But there’s this common denominator between all albums, which is a
different blend of mixing, because I just love mixing up these ingredients.
It’s not about wanting to be the flavour of the day. Electro evolves every
year, so it’s just about trying to grab what I like about electro currently,
and what I like in acoustic.”
Moffatt has assembled a top-tier supporting cast for her two Rialto
Theatre album launch dates. “I’ve got a kick-ass band,” she enthuses.
“I’ve found this balance between good people, good vibes and good
musicians.” Drummer Pat Sayers from Winter Gloves, Creature
keyboardist Lisa Iwanycki, Beast “keybass” player Jonathan Dauphinais
and Pawa Up First guitarist/keyboardist Serge Nakauchi Pelletier will all
put their best efforts behind the philosophy of MA, which Moffatt is more
than ready to explain.
“I was reading this magazine with a special on Japan, and there was a
photo report on ‘ma,’ ” says Moffatt. “It was talking about the definition of
spatial temporality, the space between things: the silence between two
notes in music, the distance between two swords when you’re fighting.
This little emptiness the Japanese call ‘ma.’ And for me it was really
significant and poetic to see time not only in terms of something really far
and vast, but in the little contemplation of spaces between things.
“When I was alone writing in the studio and in a contemplative state of
mind, the ‘ma’ spoke to me a lot. And it’s also my initials,” she adds slyly.
Hence the title, MA. Which works just fine. Rush probably has dibs on
Spatial Temporality anyway.
“Yeah, it’s kind of weird. ‘Ma’ is not English, it’s not French – I wanted a
visual signature, a tag that’ll be everywhere. And if you want to know
more about ‘ma,’ ” she smiles, “just Google it.”
Thanks, ma.
Ariane Moffatt performs Wednesday and Thursday (Feb. 29, March 1)
at 8 p.m. at the Rialto Theatre, 5723 Parc Ave. Wednesday’s show is
sold out. Tickets for Thursday’s show cost $32; call 514-790-1111 or see
ticketpro.ca . MA is out Tuesday.
© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette
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Ariane Moffatt - MA | SNAP! Magazine
magazine · artists · tv · podcast · win · about
ARIANE MOFFATT - MA
Posted on February 14th, 2012
Montreal artist Ariane Moffat will release her much-anticipated 4th album 'MA' in 2 weeks. You can stream the single 'In
your body' (a woozy synth-drenched ode to sex addiction) here - very cool!
(Title image by SPG Le Pigeon)
- "Out February 27th on Audiogram, the acclaimed Quebec songbird is now reinventing herself, delving into uncharted
electro-pop territory and reaches new heights with the boldest, brightest songs of her career."
Here is an album teaser ...
http://snapme.ca/story/2012/02/14/ariane-moffatt-ma[2012-05-25 12:10:53]
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Ariane Moffatt | INTERVIEWS | TORO MAGAZINE

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