Tempo Talks: A Conversation with Marlene Larsen

THE RELEASE

Rising indie soft rock star Marlene Larsen is unafraid to forge her own path in the music industry. She effortlessly combines fascinating vocals and guitar riffs into a unique blend of hit tunes and uncensored truths, creating a captivating 90s-inspired sound. In an other reality, she might be spotted on the third season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer's set or serenading travelers on the highway between Vancouver and Toronto with Alanis Morissette and Avril Lavigne. Marlene performs on stage with Hélène Badouin, her right-hand lady, in an explosive duet that mesmerizes audiences. Listeners can anticipate a rich tapestry of emotions, weaved across five powerful and heartbreaking tracks, each shining a spotlight on tragic moments from her upcoming debut EP, "Galore," with Unicum Music.

The captivating second song from Marlene Larsen's debut EP, "I Said I'm Fine," has just been released. The song is a slow burner that embodies Marlene's distinct sound and builds to an exhilarating four-minute crescendo using beautiful production, beautiful harmonies, and her ever-addictive voice. The song, which is bursting with vigor and resonance and leaves listeners raptly spellbound, is a testament to Marlene's outstanding ability as a singer-songwriter. "I Said I'm Fine" deepens listeners' immersion in Marlene's enthralling world thanks to its accompanying visually stunning music video, which features dramatic vistas, brilliant colors, and emotionally charged cinematography. Marlene Larsen continues to solidify her place as a musical powerhouse to be reckoned with, poised to dominate the indie music market as anticipation for the release of her upcoming EP grows.

THE INTERVIEW

If you had to create a Mount Rushmore of inspiration, what four individuals molded the artist you are today?

First, I love the Mount Rushmore image!

Ok so, my first two are really really easy, I call them «my two mothers»: Taylor Swift and Hayley Williams. Taylor Swift really shaped an entire generation of singer-songwriters and I'm definitely one of them. She truly is a story telling genius, she normalized writing lyrics that feels like poetry and I admire her connection to her fans. Hayley Williams is in a band called Paramore, and when I discovered them as a kid, I thought "that's it ! that's who I wanna be!" I didn't know being a musician was a possibility for me, and I literally had no clue you could be a girl and in a rock band. For context, I’m a millennial and I come from a rural family in the south of France, and I thank god everyday for Youtube's arrival in our home when I was a teenager. I used to spend hours and hours on it trying to find new songs and artists I could relate to. Hayley Williams truly is the reason I am where I am today, because she was the representation I needed at the time. I saw Paramore in concert twice by the way, in 2017 and 2018, and I ugly cried the whole time.

For the other two… Hmm. I have to put The Beatles up there, because we had one album in the house when I was a little kid and it was the Red album. I used to listen to it on REPEAT, and it’s such a monumental classic for me. Oh man, I cannot choose between Paul and John. I’m going to put them both up there in the mountain, mix their faces or something, so I can add…

Ellie Rowsell from the band Wolf Alice. For context again: I started music at 17 by joining hard rock bands, then quit the rock music scene and had a go at pop music, because I really felt like I didn’t belong there. People from the scene used to make me feel like I didn’t have a "rock" voice, that my voice was too high and not powerful enough. They would be annoyed by it, like what came out of my mouth was some sort of feedback. The first time I listened to "Don’t delete the kisses" it stopped me in my tracks. I was like "so… you’re allowed to talk? Whisper even?? AND be in a rock band??". A game changer for me.

Incidentally, "Larsen" means "feedback" in French, that’s why I chose that name when I went back to my roots, to the music I love, which definitely involves saturated guitars. Like a joyful statement of "I’m not going anywhere this time around and you’re gonna have to deal with it".

Were there any personal experiences or stories that influenced the creation of the music video [For 'I Said I'm Fine'], and if so, how did they shape the final product?

Oh yeah definitely! Xus, the director of the music video, asked me bunch of questions about the song, on why and how I wrote it, so she could perfectly transcribe my personal experience in the video. I think she did an amazing job: I love how it happens on different timelines, how the fantasies are intertwined with reality. I love how it ends with this epic scene of me running free, because that’s how it felt for me when I discovered, as I was writing the bridge of the song, that: "It’s not about you… it’s about the missing piece of my soul that you embodied".

If you could sum up the essence or overarching message of the music video [For 'I Said I'm Fine'] in a few words or phrases, what would they be, and why are those concepts significant to you?

The music video perfectly encapsulates the story of the song, which is about the little scenarios you make up inside your head to cover up a deeper issue. The techniques you use to be able to keep pretending "It’s fine! I’m fine! Everything’s fine!"

It’s a dreamy music video full of colors and life and anger and bittersweetness, and it adds a queer vibe that you can’t really feel in the song otherwise, which was important to me.

Can you discuss any unique or unconventional techniques or choices you or the producer made during the song's creation process that helped to shape its distinctive sound?

I’m not sure that it’s unconventional, but me and my co-producer Theo Das Neves love to put massive reverb and chorus effects on everything. Plus, I’m very 90’s inspired. So I love to pile up dozens of airy vocal tracks, and add approximately a hundred slightly different guitar tracks, just to create this heavy dreamy almost shoegazy ambiance. Oh right, a special thing that I just remembered, is that I re-did the lead vocal recordings, alone in my bed at home. I wanted that close up super small main vocal that I wasn’t able to channel properly in a big studio cabin. Some may have thought that the first takes were good enough, but trust me, now they’re perfect.

When it comes to the songwriting on this record, what is the message you want to get across to your listeners?

"No, you don’t actually have a special connection with that person who barely knows your name, you just need therapy. Also, no, you’re not fine. But being truly honest with yourself will set you free."

This song is my favorite one on the record (due to be released on September 15, 2023) and is really important to me, because it made me grow, and move on to another season of my life. A much more peaceful one. I’m so happy and eager to share it with the world today. Hopefully it will resonate for people like it did for me.

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