Macaulay Hopwood, Roberta Fidora and Camille Philips are CURXES and they’re based on the South coast of England. Their sound has been likened to “The sound of two robots f*cking”. Clearly, they’re our kind of band. CURXES talk to Nina Fritsch about their influences, their new LP and random budgie heads.
One of the things that attracted me and lots of other people to Curxes is the aesthetic as well as the sound. In band photos the styling is reminiscent of a vintage vision of the future.
Is there a visual artist whose work you find particularly inspiring?
M: Depends what you mean by a visual artist, though in terms of films and directors, Lars Von Trier is a favourite at the moment, as well as David Fincher.
R: I collect unusual and kitsch items from the 50s/60s; the styling of objects from that time and the exaggerated visions of technology and space travel are amazing. I suppose things I’ve collected have ended up becoming visual reference points. You could probably blame Blade Runner and Yevgeny Zamyatin’s novel “We” too. On a more colourful level, I also love Patrick Caulfield’s work, plus his wonderfully blunt headstone.
What are your influences and what are you listening to at the moment?
C: At the moment I’m mostly listening to a lot of alternative/experimental hip-hop which has drastically influenced my playing over the last couple of years too. Death grips, MF Doom and EL-P being some of my faves.
M: Similarly to Camille, I’ve been listening to a lot of electronica and hip-hop as there’s some amazing stuff coming out right now. The crossover between genres is becoming fantastically blurred and it’s really exciting to hear. Right now I’m loving Run the Jewels and Shabazz Palaces.
R: Noir Boy George and George Michael, in equal measure, with a bit of Birdy Nam Nam thrown in – 4 DJs from Paris with brilliant videos of geometric bugs.
The remix you guys did for CHVRCHES debut EP “Recover” was really well received. Any more remixes planned for the future?
M: Nothing in the schedule at the moment. Remixes can be fun but right now we’re concentrating on album number two, which is coming along swimmingly.
R: We’re hoping to do something with Deluxe Flamingos again when we’re all free though.
The latest LP Verxes was written over the course of 3 years. How would you say that your sound developed over that time?
M: We were influenced by a lot of different artists over that time which meant we tried out tonnes of different ideas. As we did that we also grew in confidence.
R: It’s gotten more distorted and more “drummed”?
What song off the album are you most proud of?
M: Can I pick three? I’m going to anyway… “Further Still” for its gradual crescendo, “What You Want” for its unashamed pop and “Valkyrie” for being so visceral.
R: “Run from the Funeral”. It’s my favourite song to play live and it combines the two extremes of our sound. Not only that, but the themes in the lyrics are quite important to me.
You’ve got quite a few gigs and festivals coming up. What are you most looking forward to? Are you hoping to see anyone else in particular play?
C: I’m really looking forward to Blissfields, The Horrors and Ghostpoet are in the main line up – Ghostpoet’s new album is fantastic.
M: Same here with Blissfields, though Victorious Festival also has Primal Scream, Johnny Marr and Basement Jaxx. So plenty of party times there too.
What can people expect to see from you at the live shows?
C: John Bonham with tits.
M: Random budgie heads made out of papier mache.
R: Horrible dancing.
CURXES Live Dates
Blissfields 2015 3rd – 4th July
Victorious festival 29th August
The Shacklewell Arms, LDN 20th September
