Interview: Pierre-Alexandre Busson from Yuksek

Words by Scenewave Australia - Published on July 25, 2012

French electro musician Pierre-Alexandre Busson, AKA Yuksek, is touching down in the country tonight, and just before he boarded his mammoth flight over here, we were lucky enough to have a chat with him about his upcoming Aussie tour and particularly, Splendour in the Grass.

Busson’s first LP release, Away from the Sea, was a major success in Australia, with singles like “Tonight” and “Extraball” going off in clubs and on radios around the country. Busson has developed from the one-man band he was playing as on his first tour, to a more instrumental live show. Whilst both LPs are Busson’s original material, on his most recent tour for sophomore album Living on the Edge of Time he’s traded in the lonely solo act for a collaborative effort with two additional musicians.

Busson explained that he loves coming to Australia, and has just recently released a single of local act Gold Fields’ “Move On” (that remix can be accessed here). He is also keen as the proverbial mustard for Sunday at 4.45pm, when his electro, dance-pop extravaganza will bring the house down at Byron Bay for Splendour in the Grass. “I am very excited to play Splendour in the Grass this year. I enjoyed my time at the 2009 festival after the release of my first album, and I enjoy travelling and touring in Australia.” His latest singles, “On A Train” and “Always on the Run” are going to be head mental on Sunday, and we can’t bloody wait. Busson explained that he doesn’t have any bizarre pre-stage routine before unleashing his dynamic set on the unsuspecting audience – “No, I don’t have a crazy routine, or crazy persona. I just try to do my best and play music that I love.”

For the adventurous few who’ll try to get their hands on a celebrity photo or just a general hangout with a wandering festival musician, Busson doesn’t know a single other band on the Splendour In The Grass bill, so he’s your man! “I don’t have any plans during the day, and I will just be hanging around enjoying the music. I don’t know exactly who is playing this festival, but I will be around, sure,” he explained. We recommended Miike Snow and Bloc Party as something he may be potentially interested in, however we may as well have been speaking Spanish, because he didn’t have a scooby doo what we were barking on about. It’s a pretty great insight to the industry, speaking with an artist with such a nonchalant approach to a festival to which we’ve had our annual leave booked for more than six months!

We hit him with some quick-fire questions at the end of the interview, which he had some interesting responses to.

SW: Favourite album of all time?

Y: Lou Reed – Transformer.

SW: Favourite French wine?

Y: French Champagne, of course. I actually live in the Reims, in the Champagne region.

SW: The Beatles or The Rolling Stones?

Y: The Beatles.

SW: South Park or Family Guy?

Y: Other.

SW: Australia or New Zealand?

Y: Australia.

SW: Thoughts on Dubstep?

Y: I hate that. Honestly. I’m very sorry about that because I know people like it, but sorry no, I don’t really like that at all.

SW: Ever had an amazing moment with Phoenix?

Y: Yes, plenty. I love their work and we tour together a lot. I’ve done a couple of their remixes and they are great to work with. I saw them live in Melbourne when they played to shows and we’ve also been to the alps together.

Given Busson’s penchant for his native drop, if I were you, I’d be inclined (and after a few champagnes … reclined) to hang out at the Splendour In The Grass Champagne Bar, which this year is sponsored by Moët & Chandon.

Yuksek is playing the following shows during the next week:

PERTH | 27th July @ Villa

SYDNEY | 28^th July @ Oxford Art Factory

BYRON BAY | 29^th July @ Splendour In The Grass