about Demis CousCous (UK/Norway): I’m a self taught songwriter, musician and producer. I have a habit of not taking myself seriously which occasionally backfires on me when people take my work at face value.
I’m largely studio based but recently managed to gather together a loose collective of musicians to perform some of the songs live.
career highlights: Discovering communities of internet users in Spain and the US discussing my first album. To have a self-produced work travel around the globe by word of mouth and be deemed worthy of discussion with absolutely no promotion expenditure whatsoever was something that really took me by surprise and spurred me on. Other than that, I’ve recently arranged to work with part of a local orchestra, but seeing as that hasn’t yet happened it could transpire to be a career low point if it all goes wrong!
which creative people, places and things on your radar right now?
people: In the contemporary sense, I’m very interested in fringe elements of the music scene, like the Drift Collective and other low key musicians. However, the music which is really capturing and maintaining my attention right now is largely old French stuff created by people such as Serge Gainsbourg, Jean-Claude Vannier, and Jacques Brel. There’s something about those arrangements that I find really effective and I’m striving in my work to achieve something similar, albeit on a relatively Lo-Fi scale using melodicas and other cheap toy instruments.
places: Right now my heart is in Norway. It possibly seems a strange choice but I’ve been spending some time out there both in the mountains and by the sea and it’s vastly different to the UK. By comparison it’s completely timeless and there’s much more room to be inspired. I’m heading back out there soon to get a good start recording the next album. I hope to make it a permanent move at some point.
things: I just bought a Bass Harmonica. I wasn’t really sure what to expect and it’s much bigger than anticipated. It’s like playing a huge sandwich that makes your head vibrate! I bought it to try and recreate some of that Brian Wilson Pet Sounds vibe.
what’s your favourite daydream? That I own a house in Norway with my studio in the basement and a dog in the yard. Either that or I’m Serge Gainsbourg and France Gall's illegitimate child.
what was the last rule you broke? It depends what type of rule you mean. To avoid any legal trouble I’d have to say something to do with microphone placement. That’s not a euphemism by the way, purely a technical issue.
if you could ask a question of someone you respect, who and what would you ask?
Bob Dylan: What the hell happened after Desire?!?!
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