Auto-translated by 44100Hz.
Read the Russian original →
Krikor. The French Techno Joker
Интервью · 12.03.2006
By Iovik
The new hope of French techno, Krikor, a very cheerful and charming young man, warned me right away that he is excessively talkative and that, if he starts to overdo it, I should stop him without any unnecessary sentiment.
Krikor, in the correspondence we had with you, you spoke extremely pessimistically about the current state of French electronic music – that the proper vinyl shops and clubs are going out of existence. To me such an assessment is surprising, because personally I haven't had the chance to hear this many good French DJs and bands since the first French touch brought on by Daft Punk.
Well, I'm a pessimist, of course, but the new French wave you're talking about is aimed mainly abroad. At Britain and Germany, the biggest music markets in Europe. The French themselves don't need any of it. From the point of view of international success and fame everything looks just great, but from the point of view of the scene and communication between musicians it's not so smooth. Good vinyl shops are being shut down because the records they sell are of little use to anyone. They're of no use because in Paris hardly anyone cares about good music. In the local clubs (except for the tourist spots) entry is almost always free, and people mostly go to places where the alcohol is cheaper. You understand, cheaper is where a CD is playing.
With us it's roughly the same, few are willing to pay for music. Your surname – Kochenryan – is clearly Armenian; were your ancestors somehow connected with the former USSR?
Yes, my ancestors are originally from Armenia. But they settled in France a very long time ago, so now our family has no ties with its homeland.
Alright, let's talk about techno. I find the long titles of some of your tracks very funny, like "Who's The Great Wizard Of Our Century?" or "He Prefer Whisky, But Drink Vodka Too". It seems to me that in this way you overcome the problem that there are few words in your tracks.
That's right. Honestly, I often lack the expressive means of techno music. Right now a friend of mine and I are putting together a techno hip-hop duo – "Sarkozy Band". We'll rap sharply social lyrics over a techno beat, and we'll perform in Sarkozy masks. He's our Minister of the Interior, a pretty tough guy, sort of like your Putin.
Yes, yes, I know him. During the recent unrest in France, he declared that all the rioters should be jailed or deported, and he has very good chances of becoming the next French president.
Yes, yes. In my opinion, if that happens, life in France will get much harder.
I really like your ironic approach to techno. To my taste, the flood of minimal that's washed over everything now is often very boring and tedious. Your music is some kind of new horizon for techno.
I completely agree with you. Not in the sense that Krikor is a new horizon, but in the sense that techno has become tedious. I remember, before, having bought a new Trapez record, I'd listen to it and think: "Wow! Amazing." Now it's not like that anymore.
You clearly have an art education behind you. Am I right?
Yep. I graduated from the American music college Berklee in sound production. Back then I was really into d'n'b and tried to set up my own label for that kind of music in the USA. But nothing came of it, and I returned to France.
And why haven't you, following the example of many techno figures, moved to Berlin? Techno there, by all accounts, is in much greater demand?
Oh come on. All my friends and like-minded comrades live in Paris. Berlin is an absolutely alien city for me, I'd have to start a lot of things over there.
So in Paris you can make a living working solely as a musician or DJ?
Yes, quite. I've always been involved in music. I worked either as a sound engineer or as something else. Long ago I worked at Paris Disneyland, helping to set up the sound for the bands that performed there.
Funny. And did you have some kind of uniform?
Ha-ha. Unfortunately, no. I'm too short for the Goofy costume and a bit too big for Mickey Mouse, so I went to work in whatever I had on.
And may we post one of your tracks on our site?
Of course. Whichever one you like more.
With us it's roughly the same, few are willing to pay for music. Your surname – Kochenryan – is clearly Armenian; were your ancestors somehow connected with the former USSR?
Yes, my ancestors are originally from Armenia. But they settled in France a very long time ago, so now our family has no ties with its homeland.
Alright, let's talk about techno. I find the long titles of some of your tracks very funny, like "Who's The Great Wizard Of Our Century?" or "He Prefer Whisky, But Drink Vodka Too". It seems to me that in this way you overcome the problem that there are few words in your tracks.
That's right. Honestly, I often lack the expressive means of techno music. Right now a friend of mine and I are putting together a techno hip-hop duo – "Sarkozy Band". We'll rap sharply social lyrics over a techno beat, and we'll perform in Sarkozy masks. He's our Minister of the Interior, a pretty tough guy, sort of like your Putin.
Yes, yes, I know him. During the recent unrest in France, he declared that all the rioters should be jailed or deported, and he has very good chances of becoming the next French president.
Yes, yes. In my opinion, if that happens, life in France will get much harder.
I really like your ironic approach to techno. To my taste, the flood of minimal that's washed over everything now is often very boring and tedious. Your music is some kind of new horizon for techno.
I completely agree with you. Not in the sense that Krikor is a new horizon, but in the sense that techno has become tedious. I remember, before, having bought a new Trapez record, I'd listen to it and think: "Wow! Amazing." Now it's not like that anymore.
You clearly have an art education behind you. Am I right?
Yep. I graduated from the American music college Berklee in sound production. Back then I was really into d'n'b and tried to set up my own label for that kind of music in the USA. But nothing came of it, and I returned to France.
And why haven't you, following the example of many techno figures, moved to Berlin? Techno there, by all accounts, is in much greater demand?
Oh come on. All my friends and like-minded comrades live in Paris. Berlin is an absolutely alien city for me, I'd have to start a lot of things over there.
So in Paris you can make a living working solely as a musician or DJ?
Yes, quite. I've always been involved in music. I worked either as a sound engineer or as something else. Long ago I worked at Paris Disneyland, helping to set up the sound for the bands that performed there.
Funny. And did you have some kind of uniform?
Ha-ha. Unfortunately, no. I'm too short for the Goofy costume and a bit too big for Mickey Mouse, so I went to work in whatever I had on.
And may we post one of your tracks on our site?
Of course. Whichever one you like more.
You can listen to the track Krikor - Whisky Boy (He Prefer Whisky, But Drink Vodka Too)!
