INTERVIEW: CSS

Harvest Festival have already announced their line-up and it includes some of the best names in music such as MASSIVE ATTACK, PRIMUS, EELS and CSS. We couldn't be happier!

Our writer Hannah Galvin had the chance to have a chat with Luiza Sá, one stunning member of CSS, about life on the road and how excited she is about coming down to Australia to play some good music and drink some of our tasty coffee.

CSS is an acronym for Cansei de Ser Sexy, which translates to “tired of being sexy”. Who came up with the name and why was it chosen?

Lovefoxxx saw that on the hotmail front page. We needed a name fast because we had a show. She thought it was really funny that it was a Beyoncé quote, it was like reading something like Donald Trump saying he was tired of being rich. There was not a lot of thought, we all liked it and we didn't think it would be the most asked question in interviews forever, we didn't even think the band would last.

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I'm aware that some of your songs are sung in Portuguese. During the song writing process, what makes you decide whether or not a song is to be recorded in a certain language; is it just a gut feeling or something deeper than that?

There's no concept. Portuguese is a hard language to work for pop music, it's almost too beautiful. Growing up we heard American and UK music so English although is not our language, was the language we heard the most. But whatever suits the song, there are no rules.

You directed the official video to 'Off The Hook'. What was it like filling such a different role to usual for the whole process?

You have to ask Ana about it but she went to film school so it's not such a stretch for her to do something like that. Also she came up with the concept and the storyline and it was a combined effort. It wasn't like she was sitting on a chair that said "director" and she was screaming "cut!". At that point we just did everything ourselves, even recording cd-rs with our eps, silk screening t-shirts, etc.

You released your fourth record last month titled Planta. What was the most rewarding experience whilst working on it?

I think we discovered more about ourselves because it was a very collaborative effort. And David Sitek was wonderful to work with.

What is your personal favourite record of all time?

I don't think there is such a thing, that's an unfair question. I really like The Velvet Underground and Nico but life is way too complex to have only one favorite record.

What's the strangest thing CSS have ever experienced on tour?

Once we had a really scary driver that talked to himself and had all the traits of a serial killer. He was truly scary and we called him Freddie Krueger. Eventually we changed drivers on that tour but I used to go to bed thinking he was going to murder everyone.

CSS will be hitting Australia this November for Harvest Festival. Who are you most excited to be sharing the bill/hanging out with?

Massive Attack, Primus and Eels. Never seen any of them so it's exciting. It's also nice to see things you don't really know in festivals. I've been hearing this is one of the favorite festivals of Australian people for years.

For those yet to see you, explain what we can expect from your live show at Harvest.

New songs and a little bit of changed dynamic onstage with the instruments.

Is there anything in Australia you're looking forward to seeing or visiting in your free time?

We love Australian coffee and the beaches in there. We also have lots of friends so we'll make the best of it

Any other plans for 2013?

More touring!

Catch CSS at Harvest Festival 2013 from November 10 -17.

Words By Hannah Galvin