Photo:
From artwork to videos right down to Alison Goldfrapp’s spectacularly sparkly red shoes, it has to be said that Goldfrapp are one of the most aesthetically interesting bands around at the moment. What with front woman Alison’s art school background, and synth-master Will Gregory’s contribution to TV and Film scores, an understanding of the relationship between image and sound seems something that comes natural to them as a band, and something which they enjoy exploring. “It’s like if you make a picture, you’re going to want to choose the frame too”, Will reasons.This sense of in-band autonomy presents itself in the band’s sound and in particular the recording process of their albums. Shutting themselves off in small studios, ('Supernature’s recording studio resides in a little cottage in the middle of the country), that they then fill with lots of synths to jam around with.
In particular the recording of eagerly anticipated 'Supernature' had a minimum amount of input from other musicians, give or take the odd ukulele-baring friend. (The ukulele becomes a recurring theme in the interview “I think we just like the word. ‘What do you think of the ukulele?” he takes pleasure in demonstrating the enjoyment derived from the word’s phonetics). And then, of course, came the critical input from drum-programmer Nick Batt: “he doesn’t mince his words, so we get some feedback from the outside world.”
In comparison with the previous two albums Will describes Supernature as “stripped down, confident because we know more what we’re doing so there’s less exploring of avenues, thinking ‘what will it sound like if we do this?’ ”. This confidence leads to a speedier song writing process, the product of which only half was used. “So we upped the prolificness, which was good, but we halved the quality!” Will quips. Like previous releases Felt Mountain and Black Cherry, Supernature is self-produced. Asked what the band likes about producing their own material, Will seems slightly baffled. “We don’t know any different really. I’m not even sure what a producer does.” With reflection he explains, “We could delegate things a lot more. We’d like to find someone with the perfect in-synch mind, it would take a while but it would be nice. It’s pretty unrealistic though.”
Having just played a set at The Big Gay Out (“nice event, nice atmosphere”), their first gig in quite some time, the band now look forward to a string of festival dates ahead of them, including what we believe to be their first main stage headline. (Will’s not completely certain). The gradual rise up a festival bill a band experiences is surely an indication of a career progression. So, how are the band feeling about playing the 
? “I’m not sure what it means to be honest. I saw someone interview Basement Jaxx when they were headlining something and they were asking what it meant. Does it mean you have a terrible responsibility to be the best? They looked a bit bemused. Have you got to be like a school prefect and set an example?” He concludes: “It probably means you’ve got to go on really late, absolutely knackered”.Lastly, having been known to slip a cover version into a live set (Physical, and Yes Sir I Can Boogie) if he could choose any song to give the Goldfrapp treatment, what would it be? “Hmm…that would have to be a surprise,” he says, with an air of mystery, before revealing, “mainly because I don’t have a clue”. Then with a playfully sinister tone he announces, “It’s always quite fun to completely destroy an innocent song…”
