Photo: Courtesy of Loren Wohl.
So, tell us about White Women. What did you want this album to sound like?
“Well, first of all, we wanted to improve. We came at it from a very humble standpoint, which was we’re still learning to be better singers and songwriters and producers. And, then in terms of atmosphere and vibe, we wanted this record to be a little bit more effusive, happy, poppy than our last record but also to have moments of real sophistication. We wanted to jack up both the highbrow dimension of Chromeo and the lowbrow dimension of Chromeo.”
Sounds like fun. Were you guys happier when you made this record?
Can you delve deeper into those social issues? Tell us more about "Over Your Shoulder" and about “Sexy Socialite.”
“Well, ‘Over Your Shoulder’ is a song that deals with women’s insecurities, and the guy who’s singing is saying, like, stop looking over your shoulder, let me boost your self-esteem. It could sound really preachy, but we made it, hopefully, in a fun, lighthearted way. Musically, ‘Over Your Shoulder’ is really smooth. It’s got that '70s-FM-radio, driving-on-Sunset vibe. ‘Sexy Socialite’ is really up-tempo. It’s got almost a Talking Heads vibe. The lyrics [are about] me pleading with a girl — like, you just care about being on the guest list. I say, ‘You’re a sexy socialite/I wish you were a socialist.’ And, the chorus is completely ridiculous because I say, 'I could be your boyfriend and your counselor.'
It’s a love song. At the end of the day, we’re guys talking about girls.”
OK, so why did you call the new album White Women?
“I was at a Helmut Newton retrospective in Paris a year and a half ago, and they listed off all the titles of Helmut Newton’s books. Helmut Newton has always been this huge influence on us. You know, we have the legs and that kind of sexy, '70s soft porn imagery in what we do. And, it said ‘Helmut Newton’s first book, White Women.’ So, I called P and I was like, ‘Dude, why don’t we call our album that?’
We want to talk about Surface to Air. You guys designed a capsule collection for them. Tell us how that came about.
“Well, Surface to Air has been our art director since [our second album,] Fancy Footwork. The legs keyboard-stands [we use] was a Surface to Air idea. I know them from when I was living in Paris. We forged this creative partnership with them, and then they offered to do the capsule collection. That’s been in talks...forever. But, then we figured now would be the right time to do it. So, we designed a little capsule — two pieces that I designed, two pieces that P designed. I did a leather jacket and a pair of leather pants, and P did a Versace-style shirt and a bomber [jacket].”
Why leather jacket and pants?
“Well, on stage I wear a leather jacket, right? I used to do suits, too, but I’m not gonna wear suits anymore. I’m just gonna do the leather jacket thing now. And, then, I mean, leather pants.... What’s more Chromeo than a pair of leather pants?”