Robin Rimbaud, musicien évoluant dans les sphères de l’électronique.Co-fondateur de Ash. Int, boss de Sulphur rec. Collaborations par centaine (Main, David Shea, Bisk, etc...) Albums sur Staalplaat, Sub Rosa, Sulphur rec., Noton/Rastermusic, Na rec, Soul Static Sound...

JadeWeb : What is your first musical memory ?
It’s difficult to be specific but I remember hearing glam rock played by my brother on his cheap hi fi, I remember hearing John Cage’s Prepared Piano pieces when I was 11 years old which were the first suggestion to me of another universe of sound out there, I remember hearing my grandmother sing old War songs in her room.

Which artist or song has "affected" your childhood ?
In retrospect I discovered what the piece of music was that really disturbed me as a child as it was used on a childrens tv series was Kraftwerks’ Autobahn’ and then at the same time the very strange sounds of an East German tv series called the Singing Ringing Tree with its surreal imagery and dark fantasies.

Did you think of working in music ? What did you really want to become later?
Not really. I played the drums and loved percussion but actually intended to become a journalist like my late father but I failed to get into college to study this. I played the piano at my mothers insistence and also the guitar but was never interested in the normal routes of musical composition or formula.

Are there any disturbing or nice sounds that have "affected" your childhood ?
My grandfather worked in a bakey opposite my home so I remember the voices of the men working there late at night, in strong Italian accents, a blur of words, laughter, the lighting of a cigarette, a door closing, the ovens opening and closing, the hiss of steam as the doors opened.

Did your parents give you a musical education ?
My mother paid for me to take piano lessons when I was 10 and 11 years old but she couldn’t afford it so I had to stop and we sold the piano not long after. I believe that she was apparently a very good pianist but got married instead and missed her vocation and had childen like me instead !

Can you tell us about a musical memory of your childhood (a concert, a show..) ?
I remember buying the Spiderman soundtrack LP when I was 10 years old and excitedly listening to the songs that had The Incredible Hulk on drums apparently and Stan Lee the originator of Marvel Comics would narrate through the LP.
Then I remember hearing Steve Hillages Temple Dome Music live in London in around 1980 with my mother, this floating abstract processed guitar sound, almost liquid in its smooth flow. Incredible.

entretien © Julien Jaffré 2003