An
Interview with
MARTIN BLOHORN,
The New Member Of Trisomie
21
“The
New Member Of Trisomie 21”
An Interview With MARTIN BLOHORN
of T21
(Jan. 2004)
Interview by Todd E. Jones
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Trisomie 21 is back and with a new member named Martin Blorhorn. Trisomie
21, also known as T21, is a French cold-wave / new wave band that has explored
music ranging from gothic to industrial to ambient to new age. Started
in the 1980’s, T21 was mainly 2 brothers named Philippe Lomprez and Herve
Lomprez. While Philippe did all of the singing, all of the music and most
of the lyrics were written by Herve. For years, T21 has been an enigmatic
group who rarely did interviews or live performances. Their album “Million
Lights” is a classic in many people’s minds. Their follow up album “Works”
was a much more commercial success with songs like “Another Move” and “The
Messenger”. Each LP by Trisomie 21 displays a growth and maturity. All
of their albums possess a deep passion and a magnificent atmosphere of
romance. Their last LP “Gohohako” (released in 1997) was rumored to be
their final album. It was their final album… but their final album to be
released on Play It Again Sam Records. For years, T21 was silent but due
to their official website, some remixes for other artists and some compilation
appearances, T21 was back in action. Martin Blohorn first began to work
with Herve Lomprez on a side project called Process Of Composition. Their
song “Unrequired Love” was a beautiful track that had the passion and atmospheric
quality of other T21 songs. It appeared on the Fun Radio compilation "Ballade
Nocturne Vol. 2" alongside respected artists like Massive Attack and Moby.
Around 2001, T21 announced that a new album was coming out on a new label.
Martin Blohorn was also announced as a new member of the group. I had a
conversation with the man and he gave me some insight about the future
of T21. Ladies and gentlemen, I introduce to you, Martin Blohorn, the new
member of Trisomie 21. |
T.JONES: “How are you?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Very well. Thank you.”
T.JONES: “How
did you meet the Lomprez brothers and how did you end up joining Trisomie
21?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“We have a friend in common and that friend and I met at a party.”
T.JONES: “Tell
us about Process Of Composition.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Process composition was a band only created for one project.”
T.JONES: “Where
were you born?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“South of France.”
T.JONES: “Where
do you live now?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Always at the same place.”
T.JONES:
“Tell us about the new T21 album.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“The new album will be more commercial than 'Gohohako'. We used more vintage
sounds and more dance programming keyboards.”
T.JONES:
“What was a typical day of recording like?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Every musician in T21 is used to working alone. Hervé and I meet
together every week to continue the works.”
T.JONES: “What
are you contributions to the new album?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“My job is to program the computers and keyboards. I also give my opinions
about the choice of sounds.”
T.JONES:
“How much control did Herve have over the new T21 album? Total control?
How much creative input did you have?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Hervé works like a artistic director. He also recorded and mixed
all the songs. I don’t have any limits in T21, everybody gave his own opinion
about the evolution of the song.”
T.JONES:
“You will play keyboards in T21. At the beginnings (in the early 80’s),
T21 used a lot of vintage keyboards. What do you think about the vintage
fashion in the Electronic music (in general)?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Vintage is really more interesting than plug-ins. It’s really easier to
create, to mix, and to finish the song.”
T.JONES:
“What do you think about Vintage analogic emulation (like Korg MS2000,
Clavia, Access, Waldorf)?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“The sounds seems to be better but, in fact it’s not really true because
all of this synths are very cold. That is the big difference with older
keyboards.”
T.JONES:
“Will you use vintage keyboard on the next album?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“None.”
T.JONES:
“What is your favorite keyboard?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Roland JD800.”
T.JONES:
“What other instruments do you play on the new LP?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“S770, D50 Roland, T1, Z1 Korg, Yamaha CS1X, K2000 Kurzweil.“
T.JONES:
“Since Herve and Philippe Lomprez are brothers, were you ever caught in
the middle of sibling rivalry?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“The meeting with all members of T21 are only for photos and interviews
but never in studio, so there are never any rivalries.”
T.JONES:
“What CDs or LPs are you listening to these days?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“The last album by Killing joke.”
T.JONES:
“Favorite TV show?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“I am not interested in TV.”
T.JONES:
“Favorite movies?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“The Matrix.”
T.JONES:
“Favorite books?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Programmation of the MC68000 Motorola.”
T.JONES:
“Height?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“1m 80.”
T.JONES:
“Weight?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“85kg.”
T.JONES:
“Eye color?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Brown.”
T.JONES:
“Hair color?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Brown.”
T.JONES:
“Age?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“30.”
T.JONES:
“Zodiac sign?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Gemini.”
T.JONES:
“Do you have a favorite T21 album besides the new one?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“I never listen all the T21 albums.”
T.JONES: “Do
you have a favorite T21 song?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“No.”
T.JONES:
“What other bands or musical projects have you been involved with?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“I never had any other musical project.”
T.JONES:
“Word association time. I am going to say a name of a person or artist
and you say the
first word that pops in your head. For example, if I said ‘The Beatles’,
you may say ‘The White Album’ or ‘John Lennon’. If I said, ‘The Rolling
Stones’, you may say ‘Lips’ or ‘Sympathy For the Devil’. Ok?”
T.JONES: “Stereolab.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“?”
T.JONES:
“Serge Gainsbourg.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Alcohol.”
T.JONES:
“Air (French Band).”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Home studio.”
T.JONES:
“Rolling Stones.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Concert.”
T.JONES:
“The Beatles.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Submarine.”
T.JONES:
“Herve Lomprez.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Works.”
T.JONES:
“Philippe Lomprez.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Fish.”
T.JONES:
“Bruno Objoie.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Clothes.”
T.JONES:
“Massive Attack.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Clips.”
T.JONES:
“Indochine.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Bob Morane.”
T.JONES:
“George Bush.”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“War.” 
T.JONES: “On
days when things are going very wrong and you are so stressed out, what
do you do to calm yourself down?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“I drink a cup of tea.”
T.JONES:
“Favorite color?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Red.”
T.JONES:
“Drug of choice?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Food.”
T.JONES:
“Favorite food?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Cassoulet.’
T.JONES:
“Do you believe in God?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Sometimes.”
T.JONES:
“Are you going on tour with T21?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Yes.”
T.JONES:
“Did you have to learn their older T21 songs? What was that like?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“We only work on the new album for the moment, so we don’t start any reflection
about the songs we are going to play on tour.”
T.JONES:
“Have you had any formal musical training?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“No, only my own experience.”
T.JONES: “What
are some of your other interests besides music?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Computers and electronics.”
T.JONES: “Have
you seen the T21 website? What did you think of it?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Yes, of course, I don’t have to make any comments on the T21 website it’s
not my job.”
T.JONES: “Are
you married or romantically involved with somebody?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“I am involved with somebody.”
T.JONES: “What
would you be doing if you weren’t in Trisomie 21?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“I enjoy playing music with or without T21. It’s my favorite activity.”
T.JONES: “What
advice would you give to someone who wants to be a musician?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“It’s very important to forgot the commercial side of music. It’s must
be only a pleasure.”
T.JONES: “What
is in the future for Martin Blohorn?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Nobody knows.”
T.JONES: “Any
final comments for the people who are reading this?”
MARTIN BLOHORN:
“Downloaded music killed the musicians.”
THANK YOU
MARTIN BLOHORN,
The New Member of T21 ! ! !
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