Fire! Chatterton at the Nice Jazz Fest: preview of "Labyrinthe," their pop turn for the fall

When you look at the current musical landscape, you'll notice that bands are almost non-existent. And those with some success are even rarer. Feu! Chatterton, that's solid. Fourteen years of service , with exactly the same lineup, please.

A few hours before their scheduled show at the Nice Jazz Fest last Sunday, three of the five members relaxed and answered our questions. In order of appearance, Sébastien Wolf and Clément Doumic, guitarists and keyboardists, followed by Arthur Teboul, the singer.

So guys, what's the recipe for lasting together? "There's an effort at cohesion . But I think we've developed a common intelligence. We know that what we build together is valuable," says Sébastien Wolf.

Longing for first times

From words to actions, there is only one step. Or rather, one album. On September 12 , Labyrinthe , the fourth full-length album from Feu! Chatterton, will be released. This desire to freshen up the painting was felt when listening to it, in preview of the 13 tracks that compose it. They, who ventured mainly into the rock register, with a pronounced taste for refined lyrics flirting with poetry, have dipped a few toes in the pop field.

"We worked with producer Alexis Delong, who has collaborated with Zaho de Sagazan. He comes from a different school and with him, we tried to do things we weren't used to. There's a track that sounds new wave, another almost reggaeton," explain Sébastien Wolf and Clément Doumic.

When we ask the trio in front of us if the idea is to multiply the opportunities to experience firsts, Arthur Teboul raises his head. "We hadn't formulated it like that, but it's a good way of looking at things. Almost fifteen years of living together, it's like a couple's story . And in a couple, you have to continue to admire each other, to surprise each other, to renew yourself. If the album is called Labyrinthe , it's also because it's an ode to exploration, to daring to go on adventures together."

Between scenic flights and more intimate passages

To keep the flame alive, there's nothing better than live performances. Especially for a crew like this, renowned for its powerful stage performances. Feu! Chatterton's summer takes the form of twelve dates, "a pre-tour, an aperitif," joke Arthur, Sébastien, and Clément.

In November, they'll be back on the road for good, with a brand new album to promote. In Nice, as in their previous shows, they didn't hold back on playing some new tracks. "At first, it was scary. And now, it's exciting ," analyzes Sébastien Wolf.

"When you play festivals, you also find yourself in front of people who aren't necessarily interested in your music at first. We're happy because we see that there are songs that really resonate with the audience . This is the case with Allons voir , our first single, but also with less festive, more intimate songs. Until now, we had never tried that. From the first concert, we saw that it created moments of great attention, of great intimacy. That's what we're looking for."

In this register, there is Mille vagues . A guitar, a bass and a voice to pay tribute to Jean-Philippe Allard, the group's manager, who passed away in May 2024. "Before accompanying us, he was a great man of jazz in France . He worked a lot with Sébastien Vidal, the artistic director of the Nice Jazz Fest. For years, Jean-Philippe had told us that we absolutely had to play here. It's quite special for us to finally find ourselves here," explains Sébastien Wolf.

In search of simplicity in writing

Often praised for the beauty of his writing, Arthur Teboul has shaken up his way of writing a little for this new project, with the intention of moving towards a more refined style .

"With jazz pianist Baptiste Trotignon, I made an album of covers (entitled Piano voix ) of great French songs, Brel, Ferré, Barbara. By really getting into the making of the pieces, I discovered how simple they were, in their structure and their writing. It troubled me a little because I've been listening to them since childhood . And I had never realized to what extent this simplicity could lead to depth. Age, having children and the times made me say that I wanted to get to the heart of the matter, to express things more directly. For me, who likes to write in a sophisticated way, for pleasure and modesty, it was a real challenge."