Nicolas Stephan, a saxophonist, improvisator and composer recently released his experimental solo album, ‘Null’ via petit label.

Nicolas Stephan is also a member of Paar Linien, which one can translate from German by “a few lines,” reflects Nicolas Stephan’s attempt to make autonomous, sometimes contradictory musical “lines” cohabit within the same piece. and with several other groups as well. He’s also active working with Surnatural Orchestra and much more.

“To explore the parameter that is undoubtedly dearest to me in music: sound”

Petit Label recently issued your music on vinyl. What kind of record did you want to make with ‘Null’?

Nicolas Stephan: ‘Null’ is my first solo attempt. After setting up a lot of bands and ensembles of all shapes and sizes, I felt the need to go back “to the source,” so to speak, to develop my language and experience a feeling of “nakedness” that I think is conducive to the birth of poetry. Ironically, when I was working on it, I had the impression that the “solo” form led to a more direct relationship with the audience, and a feeling of sharing that is sometimes more intense than with a group, where the direct and indirect alchemies sometimes make the path to the audience more tortuous. Recording this solo was an opportunity to explore the parameter that is undoubtedly dearest to me in music: sound. Its nature, its contours and its limits, which are those of my instrument and those of my body. Then there was the desire, despite the fact that I was alone, to be able to be “disturbed” by other mechanical and random musical sources (taped vinyl/modular synth), which allowed me to look for new ideas in improvisation. As far as the choice of vinyl as a medium is concerned, or rather the Maxi 45 rpm to be precise, I’m not a vinyl fanatic to begin with, but this music was built on a dialogue with vinyl, and it seemed obvious to me that ‘Null’ had to take this form. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Le Petit Label for having followed me in this direction, which was not an easy one in economic terms.

<a href="https://collectionpetitlabeljazz.bandcamp.com/album/null">Null by Nicolas Stephan</a>

Was there an initial idea you wanted to follow when you approached the project?

I wanted to start from zero, and I didn’t know exactly what that meant. Is nothing silence? No. That’s how ‘Null’ came about. The starting point was the surrounding sound, the sort of perpetual sonic chaos that surrounds us all the time. Taking it as a first stone, and a first step. I wrote the poem on the cover that way, and that’s a bit of the why behind it :

(Originally in French..)

“Zero doesn’t exist
A circle collapses
A loop, a trap
A target, Null,
When whatever it is
The first step figures the end as nothing does
No beginning, but a black hole surrounded by an oval circle,
your body freed from other bodies
From a loop, from a trap Zero doesn’t exist
Only mayhem
Silence isn’t
Only a latitude, a light loop fibrous target,
happy chaos primary forest,
and infinite layers Of life, death and in-between
I say mayhem, I think prudery
one theory among many
Places at the beginning, or just before
When, whatever they might be, these first steps clear a path already trodden
Of the living, the dead
and in-between
You don’t start from where you think to start in order not to get there
Where we are on our way “

Then, in more practical terms, I simply wanted to work on the sound of my instrument, to give it the leading role. And not limit anything that might come out of it. Accept accidents, follow them, branch off all the time. In a second part, working with tape and vinyl would serve as a contradiction in terms. So I spent a long time looking for LPs, both on my own and with Ben Gilg, who worked on the sound of the record. We spent a lot of time recording several tests of taped vinyl, to understand how it could work technically. I use a little old manual turntable, the same one I use live as for the recording, with a mono output and a rather damaged grain. And this sound becomes my chaos, my external brain. The scotch tape and other scratches I inflict on the vinyl become loops, outflows of samples that are never identical.

Tell us about your recording and producing process? How do you usually approach it?

We recorded at my place, in Le Havre, with Ben Gilg and a few microphones of very different types, which enabled us to create different spaces for different tunes. Three days of listening, recording, listening again, and throwing away a lot. A solo is never a solo, it doesn’t exist, as the silence. The process is a long one, filled with encounters and the very concrete work of a host of fine people. Ben Gilg, but also Marie Pieprzownik, who does the crucial work of engraving the first layer of lacquer on the vinyl. Le petit Label, with Nicolas Talbot, and Helene Balcer’s artwork for the sleeve. Not forgetting Sebastien Brun, of course, and the musicians who let me scratch their music, like the French group, Guess What.

What it was like to work with Sébastien Brun on ’33’?

The piece ’33’ was produced in a different way and over a longer period of time. It’s a piece that I can’t play live, obviously, and which started out as an improvisation and ended up being written very precisely, including the drums. I’ve known Sébastien for 20 years, and we shared a very important band for me, ‘le bruit du sign’ (Yolk Records and Cobalt Records) for about ten years, with some great tours, and we also played together in Le Woland Athletic Club (Carton Records) and ‘Art cira musicae’ (Ora Records). This is the first time we’ve worked “long-distance,” as the track ’33’ was written and partly recorded during the Covid. I sent him a sort of sound score to play and record over a striped vinyl. He worked from home and then I recorded the saxophone at home. I think our ideas of music overlap and complement each other. He’s an extraordinary drummer and he also added a layer of electronic processing to the piece.

As someone who is active in several bands, what are some of the latest projects you are working on?

Actually, I’m working on a new trio with Louis Freres (my partner in the Paar Linien band) on bass and Maxime Rouayroux on drums. A lot of improvisation, an attempt to work on Louis’ graphic scores, and a softer” approach to music, with lots of space. There’s also a combination of musicians, circus artists and dancers putting on a show called ‘Cosmophonie,’ in which, under the guidance of Jeannot Salvatori (with whom I work in the Surnatural Orchestra), I’ll be playing saxophone, keyboard and vocals. Théo Girard, also a fellow traveller since the days of Le bruit du sign, recently set up a trio with David Aknin and me, based around his very open, sunny music, called ‘Wagon’. But I want to continue the work I started with ‘Null,’ and play it as much as possible, especially in places far from me, far from this music, elsewhere. At the same time, I’m still pursuing the adventure of the Surnatural Orchestra, which is currently touring its show ‘Pic’ under a big top, with the ‘Inextremiste’ circus and music groups like Grand Sorcier and Stephane Hoareau’s Gree Maloya. In the end, there’s a lot of different kinds of music, which I’m enjoying more and more.

Klemen Breznikar

Nicolas Stephan Official Website / Facebook / Bandcamp
Carton Records Official Website / Facebook / Instagram / Bandcamp / YouTube
petit label Official Website / Facebook / Bandcamp