We were recently approached by the band Ménage Détroit from Detroit, asking if we could write about their debut single. What we also wrote about >> HERE << in fact, we liked those two songs so much that we thought we would do an interview with them. Here it is:

What does Ménage Détroit mean? How to pronounce it exactly?

Ménage Détroit is pronounced like „ménage à trois.” Détroit is pronounced like „day-trois,” which is one of the nicknames people from the Motor City use for Detroit, which was settled by the French. We thought it was clever to loan that term from the French because it’s a bit tongue-in-cheek. It’s a little discreet for people who aren’t from here, but we don’t mind explaining it!

Looking at your Instagram pages, you are very into fine arts and DIY things. You learned this in school, or it comes from you?

We both really love when we can make something strictly by ourselves. It’s such a rewarding feeling when a project turns out exactly as you intended, and it makes us take peoples’ responses more to heart. We both grew up learning how to do things ourselves because neither of us had many resources to create in a traditional sense. Our only resources were art and music, so we take these influences and blend them with our own vision for this project. As frustrating as DIY can get, we like to still embrace mistakes that may occur.

Was Ménage Détroit always a two-member band, or did it just happen that way? I’ve heard a story the members of a 6-member band dwindled until two remained and that was the final line-up. Or another story when the bass player left and they realized that he was never really needed.

We actually started as a trio! Hence our play on „ménage à trois.” Our former bandmate played keys, as we were really going for the same sound as Coachwhips. Scheduling and life just got a little complicated, but we’re happy to do this project as a duo. It’s easier to get our calendars to match this way, and we split stuff 50/50. With this said, we are still trying to compensate for only having the two instruments. Maybe a bass player would help, or we could just make our sound even louder!

The sound is very unique, what is the reason for this crackling sound? Is there a trick or is everything just turned up to ten.

It’s a little bit of everything, actually. There’s a bit of technique, but there’s also accidents we like to embrace. This duality of DIY is such a driving force for us, as one of our intentions is to make palatable music- or music everyone can find something they like about it. The sounds we got on our recordings are a mix of deliberately turning everything up and inadvertently not cleaning the dust out of the four-track! We just want our sound to be authentic as possible.

This may be a naive or stupid question: You are from Detroit, which is an RnR / Rock city. Can you meet random famous musicians on the streets (forexample, somebody from The Gories or Wolf Eyes, some one from Kiss maybe hahaha!) ?

Not a stupid question at all! Detroit is a small town, and we’re fortunate to know, collaborate, and be supported by musicians we look up to. For instance, our favorite bar is owned by Johnny Hentch from one The Hentchmen. Joey’s recorded some demos with Timmy Vulgar, and we’re always looking for advice from the musicians who did and are doing exactly what we want to do.

Painters Tapes  has been one of the best casette labels for many years, their last years was particularly strong. How did you find each other?

Chuck from The Stools has always been a good friend. We both remember seeing The Stools really early on, and Joey’s other band, Toeheads, has gone on a couple tours with them. He’s been supportive from the start, and we’re happy to collaborate with him any chance we get. Painters Tapes is incredibly successful, and we’re proud to be friends with such a staple from Detroit.

Have you heard Klazo’s album ‘ Demik Dementia‘ (Big Nec Rec, 2022)? Also a guitar/drums duo like you, but the music  is completely different.

We just listened, and it rips pretty hard! It reminds us of some locals from Detroit, who are often compared to The Cramps and Jay Reatard.

Are you planning to tour Europe in the near future?

We would love to be able to tour Europe. We always say we’re willing to do anything to make it happen! It would be the best opportunity for us to reach more of an audience and get to meet people with the same taste and influences as us. Not to mention, hear more bands!

Your musical influences?

Both of us regard The Beatles as the most impactful band. For this project, we took influence from bands like Coachwhips, Oblivians, Jay Reatard, and The White Stripes, specifically. Local bands are always changing our style, too.

Current favorites?

We’ve been listening to a lot of The Kinks and CCR lately, and we’ve been introduced to a lot of cool bands on tour like Hell Tùpét and Delta 8! So many   bands put on great shows in the South.

Favorite horror movies?

Only Tex loves horror and slasher movies because Joey’s too scared hahaha. Her favorite is Nightmare on Elm Street, but some of her picks include Cape Fear, Midnight Lace, and I Know What You Did Last Summer.

Have you seen ‘ Golden Glove ‘ french/german drama-horror movie (2019)? Very good movie, but fuckin brutal. Be carefule with it.

We’ve not! Not surprised it’s a brutal watch, though. I’m familiar with The Hands of Orlac, and that’s as wicked as it gets! I definitely need to explore some more German horror films, and I’ve yet to see many French films at all, actually.

How was the concert with French band Les Lullies?

Les Lullies was awesome. Those are guys who get on stage and do it right every single time. They’re such seasoned musicians, and we’re appreciative our local friends, Sugar Tradition, introduced us to them. It was one of the best shows we’ve played, and we learned that night even we can’t drink or smoke as well as the French do. Rock and roll is natural for them, and it was a pleasure to play and hang out with them for the night.

Do you know any Hungarian bands?

We’re familiar with Omega and The Moog, which are from the exact eras we try to emulate and derive our songs from. The 60s and the 2000s garage rock scenes are beloved by those of us in Detroit.

Please recommend new Detroit bands to RNR666 readers.

Detroit is rich with people who commit themselves to our music scene. As for our some of our favorites, Day Residue, Werewolf Jones, H8 Mile, and Tin Foil always put on great shows, and we have the pleasure of getting to see them on a real regular basis. There’s so many great acts in the works, too. Many Detroit bands are in two or more projects at once, which illustrates how much everyone’s willing to collaborate with one another. We value the camaraderie, so keep an eye out for them!

You’ re on tour now. how is going? Everything cool?

Tour has been going extremely well. We’ve seen a lot of old friends and made many new. Musicians are some of the most welcoming and supportive people, and we’re grateful they’ve let us stay with them, taken us to some of their favorite bars and restaurants, and shared music they dig with us. They’re the ones who are most into our sets, and it’s special when they share their music and their towns with you for a night. We can’t wait to hit the road again.