La Roux: Industrie, Schulden, Arschlöcher

Students.ch: Is this your first time in Switzerland?

Elly: As La Roux, yes, but I've been here with my family before, in Grindelwald. We went skiing there and celebrated Christmas and New Years there. It was really nice!

Students.ch: When was that?

Elly: A couple of years ago – not that long ago, actually. It was a really nice stay...

Students.ch: So you now how to Ski then?

Elly: Yeah, I love skiing – it's probably my favourite thing to do next to music and cooking.

Students.ch: When you're on tour, like now, do you still to stay in contact with your close friends, like from the UK?

Elly: Well, there are phones – but I don't really get to see them obviously. There two or three „tight“ friends, that when you're home for a week or 2 or 3 days, you see them...you know, there are friends that are relaxing to see, and then those that like live on the other side of London, people whom you haven't spoken to for the last 6 months and it would be too much of a catch-up...but then you have those people that you're „tight“ with for your whole life and those are the persons I usually see. I've got a friend called Emiliy who I've known since I was like 1, like my best friend.

Students.ch: And the whole „tour-thing“, do you find that stressful?

Elly: I used to, I used to...it's really weird, all of us have said that this year, just when we started touring America, we've just only gotten used to it, like we've just only gotten into the swing of it and it's taken a year. We've all said this seperately to eachother to eachother..this tour, this particular tour....it's so easy now...just, like suddenly, I get it. It's probably also due to the fact that I've been really strict with my manager about how many gigs I do on and off. Like, I will never do more than three shows back-to-back. Ever. My voice just can't handle it. Now we have a lot more relaxed touring schedule – it's still intense, but probably more relaxed than other people's schedule.I don't really do very much promo either...like if you have to get off the bus, go to 5 radio stations and do a filmed interview, you have to be dressed up all the time...that's when you fucking stressed...

Students.ch: Well, you didn't have to get all made up for me, you know...

Elly: (Laughs) well, I had a photo-shoot before, so....anyhow, so some artists do it, they want to be on every blog, in every magazine – I don't. I'm like, you know what, I'll do the press that's important, that's classy, that's the right direction on things that I would read. I'm just not going to do millions of interviews, it's just too much. You can't do it.

Students.ch: You debut album has been very successful – I read in the beginning however, that a lot of radio stations were reluctant to play „In For The Kill“....

Elly: (Slightly annoyed) But that's just normal – I don't think there's a single radio station that instantly here's something and says „Yeah, I'm going to put that on the playlist!“.

Students.ch: So you don't think there is a particular reason why this was the case?

Elly: Yeah, because radio stations don't have a fucking clue what they're doing. I mean, my A&R man in America is Lady Gaga's A&R man, and it took like 12 months to convince the stations there to play her. It's ridiculous. And they look at you and go, like „Ohhh, but you're not like the girl next door...“ The thing is everybody thinks all people want is X-Factor. If you go to the radio station and say „Pleeeeease play my CD“ they'd go „You're not the girl from next door, you don't wear any hot-pants, you don't have blond hair and big tits, and you voice is a bit weird, a bit high, you look like a boy...“ and you just get all that! Just sillyness! You get people texting in, saying „Ewww, I don't like her voice“ - and if only one person does it the radio stations go „Halt, OK, we're not playing it!“ because they're terrified that people might turn off the radion. I switch off the radio because all of that is on it! It's very frustrating and it happens with everyone. The only time they'll really play you is when they see a reaction from the public.

Students.ch: Bit it's strange as well, because all of a sudden it switches and you're played up and down, twentyfour-seven...

Elly: Yeah! And then you're not in control anymore and they'll be all, like „Awww, I was wrong about this one...“ Again, it's like EVERY single time you're wrong! Are you EVER right? I thing BBC 6 Music we're the first to play us and they're like always the first people to play new stuff...and the pirate radios and small student radios. It's because they don't see it as a risk, they're like „well, we're here to provide people with music – this is something I've discovered, here it is“, rather than like „Unless I get 6 Million people listening to this, it's pointless.“, which is basically the way commercial radio thinks. They do research in the most backward way you can imagine – like getting 10'000 people to write down what they listen to on the radio...they actually choose what they play on the radio like that, it's sooo retarded!

Students.ch: Well, there's very little chance of hearing new tunes then, isn't there?

Elly: Very little chance...the thing is though, you will hear new music, but only that kind which already has loads of money behind it. That's what, I think, is frustrating for new artists or young bands. They'll play something on the radion if you've got the marketing campaign, if you've got the posters, if you've got this and got that...MTV, everything, the look, the image...then they'll play it. If you're just some new young band with some really good songs, they'll go „weeeell, you're not really ready, now are you?“ They won't just play it like in the 50s or the 60s., where a band would be completely not ready at all, but it would be put on the radio. Then again, say if your song is put on the radio and you're really not ready, then you're expected to be like Madonna in five minutes. You can't really get it right either way, you just have to roll with it, I guess.

Students.ch: Did you anticipate this success in the beginning?

Elly: I knew something was going to happen. Otherwise I wouldn't have spent 5 years getting into debt making a record, well it wasn't really my debt, but Ben's...but neither of us had a job for like 3 or 4 years, no money at all. Luckily, I've got very nice parents who supported me, I'm not going to sit here and pretend I was on the dole, because I wasn't, I was completely comfortable. However, you don't do anthing with music in your life unless you think it's going to go somewhere. I mean I worked in a bar for three months just to go on holiday. If I thought it wasn't going to work, I would've had a backup plan. I don't think I was naive enough...also, when you write a song like „Bulletproof“, you don't go like „Ahhh, I wonder if this will be a hit....“. We didn't sit down and say, let's write a hit, but when it was done, we knew that it was going to do well. I didn't think „In For The Kill“ was going to be big, but Ben always did...I thought it was going to be more of an underground, clubby thing and not really go mainstream. It's nice that it did get so popular though.

Students.ch: When did you start „dabbling“ into music then, so to speak?

Elly: Always, just always...I can't really remember a time I didn't. I've just always been fascinated by song-writing, instruments, the music industry, record labels, studios...I think I dreamt of going to a record label more than I've ever dreamt of going on stage. I've always dreamt of going to a record label, signing up or sending in a demo tape...

Students.ch: Did you ever send in a demo tape then?

Elly: (Laughs) Nooo, my God, that's like, something's not right when you have to do that...

Students.ch: When you write the lyrics for you songs or come up with new tunes, what's the creative process behind it? Is it always Ben and you together working on this?

Elly: Depends really. Now on tour it's a lot different, because Ben isn't here...it's the case of me being on Logic playing around with beats and demo vocals. Then I'll wait until I see Ben again and we'll go over it together. Sometimes I've got bits and pieces and don't know how to go further...Ben helps me then. And sometimes Ben will come to me with some ideas of his.

Students.ch: I've read the lyrics of the songs on your debut album and it appears to me that the main topic is about unreciprocated or unfullfilled love, and I've read that this is based on past experiences – has this in any way changed you in the sense that you don't put your heart on the line as much as you did before?

Elly: (Pensively) I think if I were in the same situation I was three, four years ago, which is what the records about. I think I would've gone about it much differently. I was really lacking in confidence then. I mean I have been really rubbish with men, because I wasn't a particularly attractive young girl. I never felt attractive, and I wasn't attractive – I was big...yeah I was big. I wasn't very happy as a teenager, it's nobody's fault, nobody made me unhappy, I just didn't like the way I looked. Then, of course, when I lost weight, and (smiles) got a bit of dress sense and stuff like that, I'd start to attract boys. Even the fact that I'd attract, like, ONE boy was, like, „Oh my God, this is insane, this is crazy!“. And of course, in that situation, because you're so happy that somebody is actually attracted to you, you're too easy – and I don't mean going to bed with them or anything, but in terms of that there's no chase. Now unfortunately you tend to get fucked about, depending on what boys you go for, but I always went for the arseholes, just complete, but hot arseholes...

Students.ch: I thought you said arseholes where attracted to the girls in the miniskirts and the big tits...

Elly: I know, I know...(laughs)...this a different type of arsehole, completely different type of arsehole. That, that's like the hit-your-wife type of arsehole., this is like the arrogant, trophy-shag arsehole...like...wait, what country is this?

Students.ch: Switzerland...

Elly: ...good, then he'll never read this. Anyway, there's this guy who tries to fuck everbody he signs on, obviously I didn't sign on to him...but people like that. But I didn't know that then. And it's weird, because now, if I know I can have someone, I'm not interested – I like to chase someone for months and months, to be questioning... I like one text message with three kisses and then the next with a full stop, so you're like „what's going on!?“ I like to be analysing for months otherwise I get bored. It's like a game! I like the whole game, the chase – I just love that! It's weird now, if I look back and the way I was with boys. I think I was just a bit naive then...

Students.ch: So what would your perfect man have to have? Do you have any expectations?

Elly: No, not at all, I'm not like that – He wouldn't have to have a good job, or be in Fashion or Music.... I like normal people that have something about them. You don't have to be trendy, I don't care, I don't care what you wear, as long as you're sexy. There are some people...they've got...they'll be messy, they'll be scruffy, but they've got something about them, something in their eyes, they way they look at you...that's what makes me fall in love with people. If they look at me and I'm like „ohhhh, why, why are you making me feel like that with your eyes!!“ (laughs)

Students.ch: So then, are you in love at the moment?

Elly: (smiles) Maybe...?

Students.ch: Fair enough answer...(smiles). Your next album, do you think it will go in a different direction topic-wise?

Elly: Definitely. They'll always be songs that will be yearning, have flavours of melancholy, because I like that type of thing and it works well with my voice, but I think I'd like the next record to be more observational, talk about other people's lives instead of mine – (becomes all quiet) – I don't really have much to talk about than possibly being in or out of love.

Students.ch: If you're not on tour and not making music, what other things are you passionate about?

Elly: I really like cooking! I like cooking for other people, holding social events, like house parties. I don't like going out very much, but I like people coming over. I really like going to the park, I really like doing exercise...I have a very normal and lovely life outside of this stupid industry.

Students.ch: Thanks for the interview and all the best.

Elly: Thank you!