Whisperin' & Hollerin' have been going into raptures over Belgian chanteuse AN PIERLE'S magnificent second album "Helium Sunset" over the past couple of weeks, so when the opportunity arose to call the lady herself at home, we grabbed it and shouted "Gimme Gimme Gimme" before collapsing into excitedly gibbering heaps at W&H towers. The ensuing chat proved as fascinating as the richly diverse album itself, so prepare yourself for stories involving Patti Smith, Walt Disney and slaughtering boyfriends. The latter meant only metaphorically, you understand.....
AN PIERLE is a joy to talk to, with a lovely coquettish laugh and keen to fill in any gaps we're curious about. She's a little nervous about her lack of good English comprehension, but her grasp of the language certainly puts your correspondent's lack of Flemish to shame and she protests too much on this score. But let's not waste time: An, you're from Antwerp and live in Ghent now, but have you been involved in this topsy-turvy business for long prior to the release of your 1999 debut album "Mud Stories"?
"Oh yes, for quite a while," replies An.
"I was at theatre and music school and wrote my first song at 18," she continues.
"Before making any records I was in a number of groups but just as either singer or piano player - not as a songwriter. I did a "Rock Concert" programme....what do you call it?"
Talent show, you mean?
"Yes, sort of...that got me some attention and finally led to me making my first record in 1999. I'm still proud of "Mud Stories"...your first record's an important artistic statement, but the new record was less tense to make."
If I have this right, I believe you began work on the songs for "Helium Sunset" as far back as 2001. It seems a long gestation period: was writing the songs a difficult process?
"It was a different process really," considers An.
"This time round I wrote the songs with Koen (Gisen - guitarist/ producer and partner) and I had never written with anyone before. It was quite an...organic process really because we only started writing for fun on a Sunday afternoon when we were relaxing together and there was no pressure on it to develop."
"We tried out a few of the songs before live audiences gradually and they were very positive," she continues. "Slowly it took shape and began to grow into the finished record. That was it - there was no great masterplan behind it."
She says this almost apologetically, but there's no doubt the end results are startling. The album sounds quite complex, but very 'live' in the studio at the same time. Was a lot of it laid down live?
"Yes, some of it, but there was a lot of layering as well, "An reveals.
"We had worked out a lot of the structures previously and with Koen producing we began experimenting and changed some of the arrangements in the studio and invented new bits on the spot."
"For me," she explains, "the strangest part was singing the vocals alone without the piano, that was...strange. I had to approach everything differently."
Well it seems to have worked a dream...
"Thank you!" she giggles.
Certainly the songs on the new album read autobiographically. For instance there's the dramatic "Sorry" that launches the album. It has intriguing lyrics such as: "I'm a jester, I'm not nice, I'm flirtatious, made of ice." Do such descriptions really fit you?
"Yes, sometimes," she replies carefully.
"But while the lyrics come from within me, I also write from what I read about or is happening to my family, friends etc. There are a lot of sources, though it's true I have a fascination for the human condition and these songs are personal, but not as intense as the first album."
Really?
"Oh yeah, because the first album was mostly me slaughtering my ex-boyfriends," she says gleefully.
"Only in words of course," she laughs uproariously. "Actually, it's interesting because I'm really happy in my relationship now and these songs were written from that point of view. Some of it sounds dark, sure, but there's irony and humour as well as melancholy in these songs."
I love the song "Nobody's Fault" where you duet with Koen. It has a real country/ psychedelic feel. Your press release likens this to Johnny Cash and June Carter, which I can understand. How do you feel about such a comparison?
"Oh, I like it very much!" enthuses An.
"I really like them and their music. Besides, I admire them as an example of people who made a career out of writing great songs and keeping their integrity. I admire that. It's from an important tradition....I'd also cite Linda Ronstadt and Aaron Neville in the same category."
Right. Meanwhile, I'm intrigued by the lyric on "Sister" which runs: "I've got a pretty face which automatically implies I'm dumb." I imagine there's a healthy dose of irony in there, but also some bitterness? Is it still harder for women to be viewed credibly these days?
"Oh, I don't know," An muses.
"I mean, we are supposedly all equal, but I still don't see many strong women in the Billboard charts. I wrote "Sister" after seeing Patti Smith play live and was really inspired. She can ...preach in a way that doesn't embarrass you and I wrote "Sister" from being frustrated that I couldn't write a song like Patti can. But then few people can!"
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Talking of which, I think it's inevitable your music will draw comparisons with the likes of PJ Harvey and Tori Amos. Do you have any specific influences as role models other than Patti?
"Yeah, quite a few, of course," she admits.
"But really I listen to male singers more. I'm not all that into female singer/ songwriters, though i do like Fiona Apple and I can admire Nina Hagen, Courtney Love and so on...oh, and Siouxsie, obviously. But you know, it's Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music who are the big thing with me. I try to steal loads from them."
Well, it's not that blatantly obvious, but talking of slyly purloining source material, the new single "Sing Song Sally" - apart from being the rockiest thing on the album - quotes from Neil Young's infamous "It's better to burn out than fade away" lyric which Kurt Cobain later used - to Young's horror - in his suicide note. What gives, An?
"Actually, I thought it was just a general expression," says An, innocently.
"I like Neil Young, but it wasn't a conscious thing at all to incorporate that line. The thing is because I'm not English, I don't try too hard to use English perfectly. I like the sound and feel of words, even if I don't always use the language perfectly. It's feel and emotion that matter to me, so bits and pieces come from all over the place. It's really not calculated."
Intriguingly, you also sequenced the album with - for me - the two creepiest tracks at the end in "Leave Me There" and "Walk". These songs are wintry, chilling and affecting, but where did they come from?
"Amazingly, "Leave Me There" came from the Sunday songwriting sessions with Koen...it was one of the first we did. It was created on a small synth and a guitar. It got changed around a bit, though..."
How do you mean?
"Well, now it's now kinda like a cross between Roxy's "In Every Dream Home A Heartache" and The Smiths and also Jane Birkin. It starts creepy and underground and then sort of...flourishes. I love the way it does that," she finishes with a sense of real detahced wonder, like she couldn't possibly have had a hand in such a desperately personal song.
"As for "Walk"" An continues, "it was originally only an accordion accompanying, so it was reconstructed from there. The hidden song at the end is similar in feel too. I wanted it to sound really Walt Disney, but we didn't quite have the budget."
Talking of such constraints, you've been playing gigs like crazy of late...over a hundred this year and counting. Do the songs take on new shapes live?
"Yeah, in every way," An replies. "I love the fact we've been playing in so many different types of places, ranging from big cultural arts centres to small clubs and the songs change depending on reaction and setting. I'm really pleased that we're not bored with playing songs like "Sing Song Sally" even after 150 performances. It shows we're doing something right!"
Indeed it does, but finally An - when are you bringing the band to the UK and Ireland? Soon, we hope...
"Oh yeah, of course we are. We' ve only done one show at the Notting Hill Arts Centre in London, so far in the UK, but we can't wait to do more shows. We've taken an orchestra to France and we're looking to bring in trumpets, percussion and strings for the next record. Its' well into the planning stage.."
Really? Bloody hell, this one's hardly in the shops yet!
"Sure, but you have to keep writing and looking ahead. It's the only way. If you're not playing concerts, you need to write. It's important to be creative at all times. Don't you agree?"
Naturally. Only give us a chance to keep up! After all, most of us are only just experiencing the emotional ride into the "Helium Sunset." It'll keep us warm until the New Year and way beyond, that's for certain.
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