You've probably already heard of Jumo, the young French electro prodigy! Signed on the label Nowadays Record which has already seen Fakear, La Fine Equipe, LeMarquis, ...
As his first album "Et le vent ?" (which means "And The Wind") has just been released, Jumo gives us a moment for an exclusive interview...
Can you introduce yourself ?
Hello, my name is Clément, and I have been doing electronic music under the name of Jumo for 6 year.
Where does your stage name "Jumo" come from?
It was basically a kind of avatar, a duplicate of myself, that allowed me to tell a story through images and music.
How did you discover your passion for music production?
I started out by doing drums in a high school group but I was quickly drawn to synthesizers and computers as a production tool. I didn't have the freedom to compose as a drummer, yet I wanted to write music other than doing rhythm parts. The issue was I didn't know other instruments, so, instead I started using my computer to write a few lines that I used with the group, then I started making songs, I liked it, and I just continued in this direction, with later, machines, and synthesizers.
What are your musical inspirations?
During the creation of the album I listened to Koudlam, Battles, Rone or Bicep a lot, but I have listened for a long time to bands like Atom for Peace, Son Lux, Royksopp or Aphex Twin.
Does a period such as the confinement that France has experienced allow you to have more ideas for your productions?
Yes and no, this period was still quite anxious, we were not sure where it was going, for my part it was quite difficult to focus on music, even if I took advantage of the lighter moments to compose and testing new things, I also had a lot of work to finalize the album which came out just after the end of the confinement, whether for the clips, the promo and the networks.
How do you qualify your musical style?
It's difficult for me to qualify it because I explore new horizons with each new ep or album, what is certain is that it is electronic music. I like to add the term of tension and positive melancholy, but for this album I oscillate between pop, and club music.
What tools do you use when you are in the studio?
I mainly compose outside the studio, on a very small laptop that I take everywhere with me, just to ask for ideas and record sounds on site. Then, when I go to the studio I organize all these
ideas and use my synths and rhythm machines. I replay these ideas with my material and I structure the pieces.
What are the first steps when you produce music?
I think I answered in the previous question;)
The name of your first album is “Et le vent? », Why this title?
This is a specific notion that comes up often in the texts I write. I have been able to illustrate some of the pieces of the album through videos where I have projected these specific texts in more or less neutral environments. It has become something quite important to me, something that allows moments to freeze. It is sort of as if I truly paid attention to the wind allowing for everything to stop and to free my mind. Its like a kind of meditation, where all of a sudden we can refocus on the essentials, and get out of this continuous communication. It's an important state for me that I can materialize by writing about it. The sea, where I spend much of my time, also allows me to be in that state of mind.
What does the cover of your album “Et le vent?” represent ?
We see a chair photographed in my living room, with a projected text: "Et le vent? "
The wind is difficult to represent, even less indoors. Bringing it back next to this chair creates a peaceful space for freedom of imagination. As with the clips, I wanted to relate words to a context. This decor is quite different from the meaning raised by the text but the whole point is to question the meaning, a new meaning, and I prefer letting everyone project themselves into it and decide the meaning of it for themselves.
How would you describe your album in 3 words?
ET LE VENT (which means "And The Wind") ;)
In your music and clips, you might think that human relationships inspire you, is that true? If yes, why ?
Since the beginning I have been surrounded by a great group, at about the same time as the Jumo project. We have advanced together for the clips and for the scenography. Beyond that, human relationships touch me and inspire me, it's something that has always intrigued me while being my engine, the video and the song "The Others" reflect this. It is also a way to thank the people around you, those who make you strong and who allow you to do all that, because without them there would be nothing.
What do you think of the place of women in the world of electronic music?
Something is happening today, I have an impression that there are more and more women finally being considered for THEIR work, and who are put forward, at least in my entourage, but we are still far from real equity. And the same goes for the other music professions, where as everywhere, the disparities in wages speak for themselves. There are still too many preconceptions about these positions which are too easily attributed to men and which mean that women are not taken, by everyone, seriously.
How do you see the electronic music industry evolving in the coming years? Could today's underground become tomorrow's mainstream?
I think underground has been playing with the boundaries of pop for a long time, alternative music uses codes that give it prominence in the media, but I don't think it's new. I think if today’s underground music evolves into more mainstream music, a new underground scene will replace it, and so on.
How do you see your musical style evolving in the coming years?
I think to evolve my musical style by myself, I have not reproduced the same pattern between each ep or album, but I am not able to say what I will evolve in a year or two!
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