LA FEE NENE : Usual question : Who are you ? What is your role in the band ? Cria Cuervos : Teresa : Drums, Isabelle : Lead vocal and guitar, Geraldine : Lead vocal
and bass. We are a " Do it yourself " band. We deal with everything ourselves :
website, promotion of the band, Cd's distribution, and booking of our gigs.
LFN : In order to know you better, what do you love in Music, Litterature, Movies ? Teresa : In music : Propagandhi, Good Riddance, Avail, Pennywise, … for the today's bands,
and Rip, Cicatriz, Eskorbuto, Kortatu, Dead Kennedys, … for the bands who do not exist anymore.
Litterature ? Classical writers as Boris Vian, Malraux, Shakespeare … Movies ? A. Hitchcock, H.G.
Clouzot, F. Truffaut, W. Allen, P. Almodovar, S. Lee, and probably many others I don't remember right
now …. Isabelle : Same as Teresa for the music. Movies ? Bergman, Kurosawa, Lee,
Truffaut, that's a very hard question for a cinephile person. Of course, there are many others,
but mostly specific films. Litterature ? Faulkner, Vian, Shakespeare, Dostoïevski. Geraldine : In the Punk-Hardcore music : Conflict, Crass, for music and constructive
attitude, Dead Kennedys, Kortatu, Bikini Kill, Bérurier Noir, Les Brigades,… I am a big fan of
Edith Piaf and Frehel too. Litterature : Emma Goldmann, Albert Camus, Victor Hugo, Georges
Orwell, Police writers as Caleb Carr or Siniac, and literature about or written by ameridindians.
Movie : Audiard, Clouzot, Stanley Kunbrick, Jim Jarmusch.
LFN : What does the name of the band mean ? CC : It's a spanish proverb that says " Cria Cuervos y te sacarán los ojos ", that means
" Raise raven and they will pick your eyes out ". The meaning is that we are often payed back with
ingratitude. Trying to educate people, and making them become aware of certain things, is not
very paying. We have to keep on this way. " Cria Cuervos " is also a film of the Spanish
director Carlos Saura, which talks about the education of 3 orphan, in a middle-class, during
Franco, with the famous song " ¿ Por qué te vás? ".
LFN: Is Isabelle the only one at the origin of the Spanish influence of the band? CC: No, Isa and Teresa are sisters, and both Spanish .
LFN: Tell us more about the bands which you come from... In what way this musical formation
does influence CRIA CUERVOS ? T: Isabelle and I were the leaders of Ahorcados. The Ahorcado's line up changed twice.
And both times we had a mixed line up, with girls and boys. We learned playing music during this
time, we met the punk scene in France, and specially the Parisian scene, and people in it. We
opened our eyes and we growed up. We have passed from a passive role of public, to an active role
of musicians, and gigs promoters. Even if Ahorcados is a good and a worse memory, we don't regret
anything, because it was a step useful to our maturity. I think that the three of us have reached this
maturity with Cria Cuervos. G: I play in Kochise since his formation in 1988. Since the beginning, it is
a band which always keep the " Do it yourself " attitude : self production of the albums in
profit to various organizations in which the band takes part musicaly or more actively, or
of the interindividual relations. This " Do it yourself " way is the one in which I am involved
and I also live in Cria Cuervos or Turtle Ramblers another band in which I play, a completely
different musical style (garage folk), but in the same state of mind.
LFN: Which bands influenced you on the level of the musical writing ? CC: Bands or singers politicaly and socialy involved for the lyrics, and powerful punk bands
(involved too) for the music. For most of them, we already told their names before.
LFN: Tell us more about your discography, merchandising... Is SOAP OPERA
self-produced ? CC: Our first true production was out last year. It is our 9 tracks CD : " Soap Opera ",
which we have totaly produced ourselves. It was what we wanted. We have some T.Shirts we
distribute ourselves in our gigs, and also with Goéland productions.
LFN: Why this game around " Charlie's angels "? Who is then Charlie? CC: It was a show we loved when we were kids. Jill, Sabrina and Kelly were
among the first feminists seen in a TV show. Who is Charlie? If you have seen the show,
you know that nobody never sees him, or maybe Bosley... That remains a mystery...
but we keep investigating to find it out !
LFN: Why the choice of a 100% female band ? CC: The Three of us knew each other before, and we shared the same ideas.
It is mainly a choice of persons, but we liked the idea of making a totaly female band too.
For some of us we would probably not have played in another band with a mixed line up.
Question of personalities and motivations...
LFN: Why mixing the three languages, French, English, Spanish, in your lyrics ? CC : We speak these three languages, and this way we can transmit our ideas to more people.
Not by desire of expansionnism, but rather of communication.
LFN : Why do you apeared in " Tracks " (musical TV program) ? CC: They were looking for bands which were politicaly and socialy involved, for a subject,
and they offered us to take part in it. It is a good musical TV program.
LFN : Tell us a word about the Gigs you already have done ? Which ones did you
the most appreciated ? T: There are not many gigs yet, but for me I have a preference for the gig we made at
la Pêche last October, with Mascarade, and Brigada Flores Magon. A good memory in the band,
we laughed so much during the photograph sesion in the backstages…
LFN: Often, I heard saying that the libertarian gigs become more and more
" intolerant " because the pogos are not appreciated, and sometimes it is prohibited to
dance " freely ". That's a way of thinking very " popular " now. What do you think ? CC: For a band like us who wants the maximum respect to other people (except if this other people
is not itself respectful) we cannot appreciate a violent dance which keep some people in the
audience (inparticular girls) at the bottom of the club or on the sides. To dance " freely "
doesn't mean fighting, we don't know in which B movie all these guys have seen that Punk
means this, but it would be great that they evoluate just a little more to open their mind,
because Punk doesn't mean that.
LFN: Did you felt sometimes that your were playing in front of a machist audience ? CC: Never the entire audience, but always part of it. In punk music the sexism
is not a current subject and when some bands talk about it, especially a female band,
some people are badly disturbed. A guy who had seen us in Troyes, and who we had seen
later, told us something like " I like what you do, but all this stuff about chicks … "
LFN: Do you think that the hardcore scene is a a little sexist ? CC: It is the continuity of the precedent question. We live in a patriarchal society
and no musical scene or anything else escapes from it. The antifascism is often asserted in
punk–hardcore (not always, see the " apolitical attitude " in some bands of these scenes),
but it is only a fight against fascists, symbolized by the skinheads (most of the time), therefore
reducing, whereas the speech of these groups is deeply sexist. More concretely, we often saw
a weird behaviour in front of us: Does they know playing music ? Can they play the same music
than guys ? Will they manage to carry the so heavy amplifier? These are the questions that ask
people who think that the punk hardcore is for those which have some. Too bad for them …
LFN: Why, in your opinion, is there so few women in the hardcore scene, I'm talking about
the bands line up ? Do you see an evolution with this phenomenon ? CC: Men and women link the powerful and speed music to the masculine sex, not female's.
It is more "normal", less shocking that it is a man and not a woman who plays it. Behind
all that, there is a whole education that must be changed : what is the women's or men's role ?
It is deeply a conformist attitude which remains : " Why change things ? it has always been
like that... ". It's like vegetarianism and the "theory" of the man "carnivorous animal".
The man is considered since always as a carnivorous animal, so even if there is overproduction
of meat, waste, and violence in the slaughter-houses, we musn't change its nature... It is conformism.
An evolution with that? It is necessary that people want to change the things, and do not simply
accept what currently exists.
LFN: In your opinion, where does a sexist insult starts ? T: We are insulted by a glance, words, a growl, a whistle or this kind of stuff...
from a guy in the street, which we do not know.
LFN: What remains to be made, concretely, regarding feminism, the fight for the
recognition of the equal position of Woman ? CC: Unfortunately, it is necessary to keep on fighting for what we already have too,
otherwise they will steal us that ! It is necessary to stop seeing oneself through the glance
of the Man. But this question can be answered with an entire book… There is besides a very
good one on this subject by an american woman called Susan Faludi : " Backlash ".
LFN: What do you think of the pro-life militants? I: Those people make me mad ! I cannot stand people who involve themselves
in the private life of others, and who claim to decide, to choose for others. T: Even more on this subject, there is nothing more personal. G: The religious fanatism always wanted to dominate the private field to better
controlling the individual and being able to impose a totalitarian system. Today they
always represent a danger. In Paris they regularly stand in front of private clinics which
practise the abortions. There is people against them that come and stand too.
LFN: What do you think of the X industry ? T: The industrial is inevitably worse. No interest. I: It does not interest me. I have a boyfriend and I am SXE. G: It is the testimony of all the frustrations accumulated by hundreds of years
of judeo-christian and Muslim moral. The pleasure you can have in front of a bench of dicks,
clitoris and ass, seing a simulated pleasure is definitely not a proof of a sexuality and a human
relationships open out.
LFN: " Trêve de comptoir ", is it a personal experience ? CC: No - But we would probably have burned the bar too.
LFN: What do you think of the " chiennes de garde " ? I: It should be a movement which concerns more women, and not only the public ones. G: This fight is essential today, because for example advertising never used so much
the body of the woman. To sell perfume, cars or anything else, women are shown as a merchandise
and they are reduced to a body, and particulary an ass. It is a real violence. The advertising executives
call this the " porno chic ". But regarding the " chiennes de garde ", their fight deserves a more radical
attitude.
LFN: Which is your engagement regarding political prisoners ? Regarding death
penalty abolition ? What do you think of the FLIDD ? CC: We are against the death penalty, moreover we have two songs on this subject,
for the same reason that what we think about the pro-life movement : you cannot decide
for a body and a life which is not yours. Reg. the political prisoners, we support their cause
as long as this one seems to us right and also does not convert into intolerance and oppression.
LFN: Are you vegetarian or vegan? Why this choice ? T : All of us are vegetarians because we are against the fact of killing animals to eat.
Today, it is not necessary, there are alternatives to feed oneself. To kill an animal without real
obligation is a crime, and it is definitely a crime when animals are killed brutally in the
slaughter-houses, and that the overproduction of meat is often thrown by the producer.
Moreover, the vegetarian diet is complete, and healthier than the meat diet, which contains
more nonnutritive fat. The vegan diet has more deficiencies at the nutritive level, and requires
much more attention for feed oneself in a good way. I think that it is really too bad and also
contradictory that people who fight for human causes as antiracism, antisexism, antifascism,
do not become also aware of the injustice and inhumanity in the fact of killing animals and
eating meat. For us, it is a conviction, as strong as the other causes for which we fight.
Many people do not want to simply change their mode of feeding by conformism, and
others because they consider that an animal is not equivalent as a human being, even if an
animal suffer and has feelings such as joy, fear, sorrow... We are a little disapointed when we
think that some of those people are part of our close relations: family, friends... But we understood
one thing : the conscience of people cannot be forced.
LFN: What do you think of the phenomenon of bad eating ? CC : It appears in all the countries. The cause: conformism, laziness and liberalism.
Conclusion : plenty of MacDonalds restaurants, and fast food, beautiful imperialist picture which
imposes itself in the whole world. It is the consequence of the overproduction, which regularly
involves to get back some food of the market and in a more insidious way to develop diseases
like the cardiovascular diseases. When does the Bio will not be a luxury anymore ?
LFN: I often saw you maked up... What do you think of vivisection regarding cosmetics
products? CC: Obviously, our make up is selected very carefully, in the same way as our food.
We take care to buy our make-up using marks which do not test on animals. One can find the
list of those marks on the web (for example: www.onevoice-ear.org). Our position against
the animal cruelty is not limited to animal testing.
LFN: Do you have pets ? CC: Isa and Geraldine have female cats.
LFN: Are there others causes in which you are involved ? CC: Feminism, pro-vegetarianism and animal liberation, antiracism, antifascism, anti-death
penalty and political prisoners support. Isn't it enough ?
LFN: Which can be the importance of a band in the social revolution? In what way
a politically concerned band can contribute to wake up the individual consciences? I: Always with the vegetarianism subject, especially in this moment of carnivorous
" psychosis ",I believe that the fact of being vegetarian, healthy, and active, can convince some
uninformed people. G: The music is a good way to transmit a message, of course not so deeply than
literature could. But music must represent more than that to be an element of a social revolution
or simply of change. Many people went to see Léo Ferré singing " the Anarchists ", but those people
are definitely not anarchists today !... The multinationals of music are sincerly happy with bands they
produce which encourages the riot, since they pay back. To be constructive, Music must also be
established on bases of individual respect between band, promoters, audience and establish his own
distribution networks or production, building an alternative.
LFN: How do you manage to deal with CRIA CUERVOS, KOCHISE (Geraldine's second band)
and the fact that Isabelle leaves in Madrid (Spain) ? Does that slow down the projects of
the band ? CC: Kochise and Cria Cuervos go their own way, and we manage to make
both without any problem. Definitely, the fact that we don't leave all in the same country
can slow down sometimes our activity, but this will change from next year. Anyway, we
keep organizing ourselves our tours. What is essential is being motivated.
LFN: Geraldine, how was the tour in Italy with KOCHISE ? G: Touring is always the time to meet and discover alternative places. It allows you
when you do not want just to play, drink and get the money, to build a relational network. This
time was the first we went so down in Italy and we could visit Pompéi, impressive. The atmosphere
in the north seemed rather strange to me, many Fascism. Moreover, the Italian government has
proved it not too long ago in Genoa.
LFN: Tell us more about the HORCA association. Are you all part of this association ?
What is its goal ? On which criteria is made the choice of the bands which you make
play ? Are you self-managed? CC: Yes, now we are all part of the association, with other people who help us the
nights of shows. The goal of the asso is to organize quality shows with a low ticket price. We
want to animate the scene, and try to make people become aware that paying 100 FF (US $ 15)
for a show, is too much expensive, and that the bands are not merchandising. A whole program...
We make play bands that we like, and often that we listen to. And of course, we are an entirely
self-managed association, as usual…
LFN: Do you belong to a political collective ? I : I am my own party.G: I belong for a long time to an anarchist organization,
(not a party and I will never). Right now, it is not the case but my ideas keep being the same,
of course. I am involved in a collective supporting the political prisoners and in associations of
solidarity with the immigrants or solidarity with the amerindian fights.
LFN: In your opinion, which is the definition of the vital minimum ? CC : Everyone on the same equal foot and stop being satisfied with the crumbs which wants
to give us the liberal system so that we do not foment revolts (see RMI, SMIC and others
" minimum helps " not to die of hunger, and of course being able to buy with a credit card
the production of the multinationals).
LFN: Which are the festivals which you would advise ? CC : Ladyfest in which we take part this year in Glasgow and which is organized
by women, to promote the Woman. Opened to all. And then also the festival " Todo es ", in
which we took part last year. Very well organized, and good mentality.
LFN: Which are the projects of CRIA CUERVOS? CC: Some shows, and keep on writing new songs, in order to think of a forthcoming recording.
LFN: Just a word to finish ? Thank you! CC: Thanks to you Audrey, and stay the same one.
