Get To Know Get To Know… Planet 1999

Describe your music to us in the form of a Tinder bio.

Zippy: Family band.

What’s your earliest musical memory?

Caro: I remember we listened to a lot of ABBA and Supertramp when I was a kid with my parents. The car was the only place where we’d listen to music so I’d often ask them if we could go for a drive to listen to stuff, and we’d drive for a while, just listening and dreaming about stuff each in our own world. I loved that.

Charles: Moby.

Alex: Pink Floyd, driving across Ibiza.

Who were some artists that inspired you when you were just starting out (and why)?

Caro: It’s hard to say when I started out, it seems there were a lot of different starts. I guess I had lots of different phases, from RnB like Mariah Carey, Ashanti, Usher, to the Pixies or Beach House which I was obsessed with at different times, and then shoegaze and krautrock through the guys. I was listening to lots of bands when we started our own. I’ve also always listened to classical music and I think it’s always in the background somewhere.

Charles: Spacemen 3, The Jesus & Mary Chain, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Cocteau Twins, My Bloody Valentine, Pavement.

Alex: Neu!, Cluster, Galaxie 500, Sonic Youth, Broadcast, Aphex Twin, Boards Of Canada.

You’re from Paris! What do you think of the music scene there at the moment?

Caro: I’m not from Paris actually! I was born in Marseille and grew up further east on the coast. I moved to Brighton when I was 18 and stayed there for a few years. I eventually moved to Paris for a while but I was never really fond of the scene in Paris at the exception of a few people, and that’s part of the reason why we’re in London now. We feel more inspired by what people do over here, in terms of music, fashion and visual stuff.

Charles: Same for me, I find it hard to identify with the music scene in Paris. There are a few really cool projects from France though, but not necessarily from Paris, like Dj Lostboi or Retro X.

Alex: The greatest thing about Paris are the Ina GRM concerts.

Are there any other artists breaking through at the same time that you take inspiration from?

Caro: I really love Palmistry and Organ Tapes. I love their productions and their vocal melodies really move me.

Charles: Triad God, who is one of our biggest inspirations, and who should already be a big popstar.

Alex: Elysia Crampton, it’s so beautiful how she blends digital and acoustic worlds.

Who would be your dream collaborator?

Caro: We quite like the idea to do everything by ourselves musically, at least for now, but visually it was so amazing to be able to work with Leon Sadler, and Aidan Zamiri/Eamonn Freel on the Party video. They really help us build this whole new world!

Charles: It would be awesome to work with a cool film director like David Robert Mitchell or Jeff Nichols on a movie soundtrack or something one day!

Musically or otherwise, what are you most looking forward to this year?

Caro: Going further in what we create.

Alex: To make a Zippy plush toy.

If people could take away one thing from your music, what would it be?

Caro: I think it’s important to try to stay authentic when you create something. It’s easy to pretend to be someone you’re not, and even if there’s always a bit of role playing when you’re making art, in the end the essence has to be true. And what we’re doing with Planet is very true to me.

Tags: Planet 1999, Features, Interviews, Neu, Get to Know