TB: In the “to get rid of but impossible for me not to ask you” questions, I’d love to know how it’s been working with Peter Christopherson as Soisong (note to the readers: if you don’t know it check it out. It is just wonderful.) and earlier with Coil? Did you have the chance to meet in person on a regular basis? How did you relate to Sleazy and John’s most particular philosophy? Can you say you had similar interests? Did you have the chance to have meaningful conversations with them or the opportunity to share relevant ideas, concept?
CoH: We have been friends for years - both with John and Sleazy, having met in 1997 through John Everall. After that I used to visit London every now and then, also seeing Mika and Ilpo (of Panasonic) who used to have a squat in town. Steve Thrower and Ossian Brown - they were running a funky bookstore in Soho, as well as Drew (McDowall) before he moved to the US. I can say that both Sleazy and John were extremely sensitive towards ideas, moods, or what this should be called.. also towards sounds. So even with spending an occasional hour on the phone with Balance once in a while, much of the more profound communication was pretty much ”unspoken” or ”between the lines”. At the same time, we seem to have shared a common, resonant humour between us, as well as a rather transparent sincerity and openness, regardless of how intimate the subject would be. With all that, just hanging out with them, or having a meal, or working in Coil’s studio has been pure joy to me. A joy of humanity, so to speak.
We have become progressively closer with Sleazy over the time he lived in Thailand as I used to visit 2-3 times a year. We’d go to Japan together, or he’d fly over and stay at my place when we were touring, or recording in my studio as Soisong. I even managed to get him go to the gym with me in the mornings (I still wonder if it was entirely for the sake of seeing me shower afterwards! :) and my daughters would cook him lunches, calling him a pirate because of the ring he used to have in his ear. Sleazy’s company was always warm and generous, he was very patient and he had this comforting ability to find amusement in the most difficult of situations.. or in the darkest of subjects.
TB: Did you have a chance to read Cosey’s book? I found your work with her very inspirational. You said in an interview that you talked with her about sexuality at the time you collaborated, which is not extremely surprising. Were those conversations rather about your respective experiences or rather on a general, philosophical aspect?
CoH: No I haven’t read the book as generally I don’t read, but thank you for the kind words, I am glad you found COH PLAYS COSEY an emotional experience. I did my best trying to zoom into the details of the voice, putting them against each other in the way that would communicate the essence of what was not mentioned in our conversations with Cosey, something that is not generally available through a discussion, or through written language. In our exchange we never went into details of sexual preferences or practices - it would have been rather pathetic, I believe. However, the making of the record in itself could definitely be referred to as a sexual encounter, where I play Cosey in a multitude of ways - as a male actor plays a female, trying to immerse into the dark depths of the character; or as a game of pretending through which you can win what you desire; or even most literally playing a sensual object, a voice in this instance, as a mere toy, or an instrument in skillful hands. The resulting record ended up being an attempt at presenting the masculine take on feminine sensuality, and I would like to emphasize ”take”, rather than ”view” of sensuality. In that sense, to me it *is* an artifact of ”sex” or ”sexuality”, in a very intimate explorative context.
TB: About your participation at Atonal Festival 2017, could we have a word about what will take place there?
CoH: Having performed at Atonal back in 2015, I have a rather clear understanding of what sound will make better sense - I will be revisiting the material featured on the 2012 COH album IIRON. Expect immense power. After all, the venue is a power plant!
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-Yannick Franck
