These Go to 11: interviewing The Luxembourg Signal

It's been a little while without our interview series at the Blog. But what a comeback you are about to read! A gifted, experimented musician and (not kidding) a paranormal activity finder: Beth Arzy from the legendary Aberdeen & Trembling Blue Stars, and more recently, part of the great Charlie Big Time and The Luxembourg Signal. So, let's talk about music, supernatural phenomena and guilty pleasures. These Go to 11!

Beth Arzy, The Luxembourg Signal

Beth Arzy, lady of indiepop
& paranormal activities

What a curriculum our guest has! A Sarah Records MUST-LISTEN and criminally underrated band? Check. She was the lead singer of Aberdeen. A wonderful cult group? Check. She was a core member of Trembling Blue Stars. A charming indiepop project, featured in our "discoverer series"? Check. Charlie Big Time. And a exciting, not to miss 2014 new adventure, also praised at Bloodbuzzed, with a flamboyant self-titled album courtesy of our dear friends at Shelflife Records about to see the light of day. Check, check, check. She is part of The Luxembourg Signal. Indiepop, dreampop, shoegaze... plus an investigator & team secretary at the Ghost Finder Paranormal Society, a professional organization reporting poltergeists and supernatural phenomena across the UK. Here we go!

Bowie does Jerry Lee Lewis

1. First record that you bought (be honest)
Well, I guess technically it would be a Leif Garrett best of, 8 track tape that I won at the fair. I paid 10 cents to throw a ping pong ball into a fish bowl so I got the fish and Leif Garrett. The first time I bought records with my pocket money, I bought 3 singles at the mall: 'Queen of Hearts' by Juice Newton, 'Modern Love' by David Bowie and 'Sail On' by The Commodores.

2. First and last concert you have attended (be honest too!)

First concert I went to (my Father took me) to a little festival in Florida to see The Monkees (1985-6?). My last concert was seeing the German band To Rococco Rot here in London. It was AWESOME.

The most beautiful (and shared)
guilty pleasure

3. Guilty pleasure (song/band you shouldn’t like but you do, yes, it’s the embarrassing question)

At the moment, Bobby is saying 'The Beautiful South' to me, but I’m not really embarrassed about any of the bands I love. People make fun of me for liking The Wonderstuff and Pop Will Eat Itself and Jesus Jones, but I tell you what… I went to see them (all 3) last year, by myself, and had a whale of a time!! I love Helen Reddy and I love Skinny Puppy. No pleasure is guilty, just pleasure.

4. Most precious music item you own (collector mode on)
That’s easy. I have a maraca signed by Mickey Dolenz! Bobby played them on his new record! I’ve never let a single soul touch them before.

5. Favorite lyrics (not yours)

“And I need you more than want you, and I want you for all time.” (From 'Wichita Lineman' by Glen Campbell)

Mr. Tweedy, the "coffee guy"

6. Musician/s you would like to meet (should be alive, for obvious reasons, but you can choose a dead one too)

I think I’ve met most of my favourites (some good, some BAD). I’d have to say Jeff Tweedy, as he’s such a great songwriter and seems like a good guy to have a coffee with. If we’re talking dead… I’d love to meet Florian Fricke. WHAT a talent. OH GOD… David Bowie. Nearly forgot. I would DIE, but not before snogging his face off.

7. Favorite artwork album (not yours)
Oingo Boingo’s 'Only a Lad' EP. It’s one of the Louis Wain cats. I’d love to have it as a tattoo but that’s a lot of scraping.

Sebald's on Saturn

8. Books or movies? Depending on your answer recommend us one (trick: you can choose both) 
Depends on the mood. I just saw 'Boyhood', which was great, but I’m reading Sebald’s 'The Rings of Saturn' at the moment, which I’m enjoying very much. I’m normally reading books on high strangeness but need to break away from that every once in a while.

9. Release (of yours) you are most proud of
I’d have to say the Robert Hampson remix of 'The Light Outside' by Trembling Blue Stars. It’s a remix of a TBS song called 'Half-Light' and an instrumental called 'Outside'. He deconstructed the actual song and put it back together with Hampson aplomb. Every sound/note he used, he took from our original track, but put his stamp all over it when he put it back together. It’s beautiful. I cried the first time I played it. He told me “it’s like Big Star in space”. I’m so proud to have something out there that he’s touched.

10. What’s does it mean indie for you? (yes, the “serious question”)
I suppose I think of independent labels. Small labels like Touch Records that do everything themselves and have never sold up to a major.

11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Living in Shetland. Surrounded by sheep and sea and quiet.

Zillion thanks Beth!