It’s been nearing a decade since Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo released their debut album Chain Gang Of Love, which stormed the music scene with its scuzzy two-part vocal harmonies and dirty 60s guitar riffs. With their new UK tour on the cards, we caught up with the band to talk about 10 years in the game and their new album, Observator.
It’s been almost ten years since Chain Gang Of Love. How have you evolved as a duo during that time?
It’s hard to say but I’m sure we have… People move on in life in various directions but our love of the music has never faded one bit.
Did you guys have a strict idea of the direction that you wanted to head in at the start?
No. All our albums are quite different from each other and so is the imagery and stuff. We’re just presenting ourselves we feel in the moment, not much thought is put behind it. We like to be in control of everything we do though regarding merchandise, album covers and all of our videos.
How did you initially meet?
Through mutual friends in Copenhagen. I’d just come back from LA where I had written most of what was to become our first album and Sharin was fresh out of school so we hooked up.
Your earlier records had a very experimental sound. Were you concerned at taking risks so early on into your careers?
Not at all. You need to take risks. It’s what makes life more fun. We always did music to please ourselves and then when people started liking it, we were quite ecstatic and thrilled.
What was the inspiration behind Observator?
There isn’t one particular inspiration. All the songs are inspired by different things, from a cool NYC street dancer who just dances whenever and wherever she like and doesn’t care about what the general public deem to be ‘acceptable’ to unrequited love to lost love and giving up on love.
One of you lives in L.A and the other in New York. You wrote the record long distance, right?
I write all the songs home in NYC and then I email Sharin to ask her opinion or sometimes I email her fragments of songs to see what she thinks before I finish it. I’m actually moving to LA in November so now we have more time together outside cyberspace which will be nice.
So where did the name Raveonettes come from?
It’s a take on my favourite artist of all time Buddy Holly’s song Rave On and the girl groups from the early 60s. It really summed up all of our parts when we began making music and I think it still does.
You’ve released a record pretty much every other year since 2003. Are there any plans for solo ventures?
I released a solo album a couple of years ago but it’s in Danish so I didn’t really take it on the road outside of Denmark.
Your UK tour kicks off at the end of the year. What can we expect?
Some serious shit! We’re poised to make a huge impact again in the UK, it’s been way too long! We’re bringing the Raveonettes sound back to the UK and we’re super excited about it!! I’ve missed playing a proper tour in the UK and visiting different towns and cities.
Observator is out now. The Raveonettes UK tour begins 28 November. www.theraveonettes.com
Words: Shane Hawkins