By Jae-Ha Kim
Chicago Sun-Times
April 23, 2004
Denmark isn’t exactly England when it comes to producing rock ‘n’ roll bands, but it has a nice little start with the Raveonettes. Comprised of Sharin Foo and Sune Rose Wagner, the group is touring to promote its latest album, “Chain Gang of Love.”
The Raveonettes rock, but their love of pop also is evident in their melodies and wry sense of humor.
Phoning from Portland, Ore., Foo chatted about being polylingual, her favorite groups and what her band likes to do on the road.
Languages you do speak: Danish, English and a little bit of German. I don’t feel that my English vocabulary is that good, but we learn it from the third grade on in Denmark. I’ve never been too motivated to learn German better, but I understand a lot of what is being said.
Why everyone other than Americans seems to be bilingual: Well, for us, we’re a really tiny country and we need to be able to communicate or we’re going to become isolated from the rest of the world.
Last good movie you saw: “Lost in Translation.” It reminded me of being in Japan when we toured there last summer. It’s such an accurate image. The [film] had a lot of sweetness to it.
Best rock ‘n’ roll film you saw: “Dig!” a documentary about the Dandy Warhols and the Brian Jonestown Massacre. It was absolutely amazing because it was so wild. There was a lot more drama in their band than in ours. We’re not a very dysfunctional group.
CDs you’re listening to: We all have iPods and listen to tons of music. Right now, I’m into a bunch of old stuff — the Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly and the Rolling Stones.
What vintage artist the Raveonettes like to cover: We love doing Hank Williams’ “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry,” only we do it in minor [key]. It was written in major.
What you like about America: When you’re used to living in a small country, it feels really great to drive around in a tour bus and end up some place that you’re not expecting. We love the weather changes and the seasons. Diversity is nice.
Worst advice you ever got: Someone told me that if you wanted to remember someone’s name, you need to repeat their name five times while you look them in the eye. I’m so bad with names, and people get offended when you don’t remember who they are. Anyhow, it didn’t work for me. I’ll try it a couple more times before I let it go.
Worst job you ever had: I’ve had a lot of horrible jobs, actually. But working at the cash register at a grocery store was really boring. I just sat there.
Touring: We can’t write songs on the tour bus. It’s not very glamorous, but it does become like one big party sometimes. We try to concentrate on the live shows. We watch a lot of movies and play music and try to see our friends, which we have in many cities. We know a lot of nice people. I might go shopping or have lunch in town. It’s different every day.
What you’d like to do while in Chicago: I want to go to some vintage stores. I also heard there are some really good studios there, so I might go and check out some recording studios. We’re always looking for places to record our albums.
