Profiles

Q: Who's who in Le Chat Noir?
A: Teddy Hesper (vocals, guitar) has lived in Devon since the age of four, going to school in Exeter before a three-year stint in the Midlands attending the University of Warwick.

Eileen Spruce (drums) drummed on and off in her spare time while trying her hand at many different jobs and lifestyles in California, even including a spell in the US Armed Forces until she moved to the UK to be with Hesper and play music full time.

Despite their markedly different backgrounds the duo share a love of the Devon countryside where they're currently based.

Q: What's the history of the band?
A: After the demise of Teddy's previous band in 2005 he and long time friend Eileen began to concentrate on their musical correspondence via mail and over the internet.

At his residence in Devon Teddy began to write songs which he then sent to Eileen in LA. She would then add drums to the recordings and return them.

Eventually this method was no longer enough and following in the wake of positive feedback for their demos, Spruce crossed the Atlantic so the duo could cohabit and write faster, so Le Chat Noir was born.

In October 2006 the band finished their self-produced Album Tales From Silver City, a journey through the troubled streets of Silver City, a fictional town that incorporates elements from a diverse range of sources such as film noir, Paris and the Wild West with a modern twist.

Q: How did your name come about?
A: Le Chat Noir, in the Montmatre district of Paris, was an infamous cabaret in the 19th century.

Le Chat Noir do film noir

Many people know the name because of Theophile Steinlen's iconic poster art and in its heyday it was part artist salon, part rowdy music hall, a bustling nightclub enlivened by an illegal piano.

The name seemed appropriate as we both share a love of continental European culture and art.

Q: What three words best describe your music?
A: Rock and Roll!

Q: Give us a little information on your demo track.
A: The Streets of Silver City is a good example of our chaotic, back-to-basics, blues infected alt rock. Clocking in under three minutes we think the song typifies our no-nonsense stripped down aesthetic.

Q: What do you think of the current music scene?
A: There seems to be a real lack of passion out there - although there's been a resurgence in guitar bands in recent years a lot of the indie and rock in the charts at the moment is a bit anaemic.

When you listen to bands that were around 30 or 40 years ago, their music seems so full of energy and life, artists like the Stones, the Kinks, Hendrix, Led Zeppelin.

There's no contest between them and the chart topping guitar bands these days. People don't seem to have anything interesting to say anymore, it's all so middle-of-the-road and complacent.

We want to play the kind of music that makes people sit up and take notice, it's what we want to hear, and if other people like it, then it's a bonus.

(Continued)

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