Monami, by Foreign Diplomats

Monami

by Foreign Diplomats

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frognrollff Ils sont forts ces québécois pour me proposer des chansons qui me touchent à chaque fois. Favorite track: Tender Night.

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1.	Road Wage 03:57	lyrics	buy track
I want the night to grow and work Get you cold enough to change your colors Get you warm enough to feel desire Go ahead and wither into something fuller I’ll be somewhere forgetting how to breathe Wondering why I had to leave Getting riled up for nothing more than speed Then calling my girlfriend to whimper uselessly Uh uh uh uh uh Oh oh oh oh oh Uh uh uh uh uh I need some air to fill my lungs I need some air to fill my lungs Road raging in autumn Oh no! I need some air to fill my lungs I need some air to fill my lungs Road raging in autumn Oh no! Lay me down on this cold bed Let me ride your strong freeways As you dream of what you’ll never gain Saviour of the free world, I noticed you need a change Uh uh uh uh uh Oh oh oh oh oh Uh uh uh uh uh I need some air to fill my lungs I need some air to fill my lungs Road raging in autumn Oh no! I need some air to fill my lungs I need some air to fill my lungs Road raging in autumn Oh no! Oh oh oh oh oh! Oh oh oh oh oh! Oh oh oh oh oh! I need some air to fill my lungs I need some air to fill my lungs Road raging in autumn Oh no! I need some air to fill my lungs I need some air to fill my lungs Road raging in autumn Oh no!
2.	City Luv 03:02	lyrics	buy track
So slowly Your arms fold around me So quietly You sing to me And I scream and I fight And I’m scared and I’m drunk And my eyes close and I know I’m done Take me back in Leave me hanging Ohohohoh, Ohohohoh, Ohohohoh Take me back in Leave me stranded Ohohohoh, Ohohohoh, Ohohohoh So lightly So beautiful So deeply You gain control And the drugs of the night And the speed of the ride I want you, I want you, I want you before I die Take me back in Leave me hanging Ohohohoh, Ohohohoh, Ohohohoh Take me back in Leave me stranded Ohohohoh, Ohohohoh, Ohohohoh
3.	Charger 03:20	lyrics	buy track
The noise in my dream Made me stumble out amazed Perfect whiteness Great blanket of cold stillness Hold me closer Hold me and don’t let me leave Hold me lightly Just enough so I don’t leave I love you too much And it makes me want to watch you move around I love you too much And I never want nobody else around This noise in my dreams Made me crawl to find your skin It’s telling me that I already lost my charger in your home Closer to you Wouldn’t want to be anywhere else Closer to you Your voice, your fears, your thoughts, your wool I love you too much And it makes me want to watch you move around I love you too much And I never want nobody else around Is that ok? Is that enough? ‘Cause it is want you want Oh oh, ohohoh I love you too much And it makes me want to watch you move around I love you too much And I never want nobody else around
4.	Amafula 04:08	lyrics	buy track
Tonight the mountains hold A seeping haze, a sleeping ghost It may keep me soon ‘Cause of the blue light of the moon Tonight the children sing With plastic voices, about pretty young, pretty young things With cheap sex and hollow truths They howl at the blue light of the moon Oh I, oh I, oh I, oh I Oh I just stopped Can love be simple and fun? Can I craft it for you? So I, oh I, oh I, oh I Oh I’ll just stop Amafula, I love you Amafula, I love you Ouh ouh, ouh ouh ouh Ouh ouh, ouh ouh ouh Ouh ouh, ouh ouh ouh Ouh ouh, ouh ouh ouh To light this faded voice With overwhelming noise It might, it will die soon ‘Cause of the blue light of the moon Oh oh oh! Oh I, oh I, oh I, oh I Oh I just stopped Can love be simple and fun? Can I craft it for you? So I, oh I, oh I, oh I Oh I’ll just stop Amafula, I love you Amafula, I love you Oh oh oh Tonight the singer rambles He’s been told to please more people He’s wrong but he thinks he’s cool Under the blue light of the moon Ouh ouh, ouh ouh ouh Ouh ouh, ouh ouh ouh Under the blue light of the moon Ouh ouh, ouh ouh ouh Ouh ouh, ouh ouh ouh Under the blue light of the moon
5.	You Decide (The Return of) 03:42	lyrics	buy track
Floating around the phone I’d like to hear your voice I’ll try to come back home But you know I know I can’t kill no demon I just watch them prance I just watch them prance They’re beautiful stallions Eh eh eh! I just watch them prance I just watch them prance They’re beautiful stallions Eh eh eh! Kiss me if I’m wrong But there’s something go-go-going on Kill me if I’m right But it’s fading away, the light Ooooh I just watch you prance I just watch you prance You’re a beautiful stallion Eh eh eh! I just watch you prance I just watch you prance You’re a beautiful stallion Eh eh eh! I don’t know what to say To you, for now, my baby I don’t know what to say To you, for now, my baby I don’t know what to say To you, for now, my baby I don’t know what to say To you, for now, my baby Just watch me prance Just watch me prance I’m a beautiful stallion Eh eh eh! Just watch me prance Just watch me prance I’m a beautiful stallion Eh eh eh!
6.	Demon (Slamador) 04:07	lyrics	buy track
I just want to lie down Watch you smile And know that you’re OK You’re comfortable Sit with me Let’s eat what I burned As you tell me you like it I’ll talk about nothing Push away the demon in you and stay with me Push away the demon in you and stay with me I recall a girl in school Claiming I looked mysterious And how I thought it was cool But was it meant in a bad way? My mom showed me a videotape My baby brother in my arms I’m pushing away my quiet sister I haven’t changed that much Push away the demon in you and stay with me Push away the demon in you and stay with me Should I get baptized? To put all the chances on my side But what is more real? The bloody heat of hell or the Cold White Bliss Of Heaven Push away the demon in you and stay with me Push away the demon in you and stay with me With me, with me, with me, with me If I am not alone in this room (With me, with me, with me, with me) Show me a sign or something (With me, with me, with me, with me) Flicker the light or slam a door (With me, with me, with me, with me) I just don’t want to be alone tonight (With me, with me, with me, with me) I just don’t want to be alone tonight I just don’t want to be alone tonight
7.	Adopted Hometown 04:39	lyrics	buy track
I’m waiting for the moment you tell me: “Hit the road and don’t look back” You’re waiting for the moment I tell you: “I’m hitting the road and won’t come back” But even if the highway is my baby, It wants me dead when I’m riding its back So believe me when I hold you close, I’m not here to quit; I’ve got your back I want to shut up ‘cause I’d rather hear your voice In the darkness of the long long way back home I want to fall asleep singing softly slowly In the darkness of the long long way back home Let’s break everything in our way Just to find more things to break Let’s believe things that don’t make sense ‘Cause love sells as much as heartbreak Let’s have our skin filled with scratch marks And our hearts about to break With our adopted hometown Confining us until we break I want to shut up ‘cause I’d rather hear your voice In the darkness of the long long way back home I want to fall asleep singing softly slowly In the darkness of the long long way back home Ahah, ahah, ahah Ahah, ahah, Ahah I want to shut up ‘cause I’d rather hear your voice In the darkness of the long long way back home I want to fall asleep singing softly slowly In the darkness of the long long way back home Oh oh oh oh, Oh oh oh oh
8.	Frilu 04:28	lyrics	buy track
I’m tired of going through The personal space of my future self Let’s find a place haunted by urban memories Let’s make ours for a while It’s not as bad as I make it It’s not as bad as I see it It’s home Wherever you are We’re swaying kids in the dark We’re scared kids in the dark This town’s a dance floor Let’s praise the dance floor It’ll save us tonight We’ve surrendered our faith The queen’s playing the hits We don’t control the sounds we make We don’t control how we move It’s an out of body experience It’s not as bad as I make it It’s not as bad as I see it It’s home Wherever you are Swaying kids in the dark Scared kids in the dark Create my carbon feel Shape my nylon guts Tell me what you want me to be Taste my cheap skin Take me as I am But first tell me what you want me to be This town’s a dance floor Let’s praise the dance floor The queen’s playing the hits We don’t control the sounds we make It’s not as bad
9.	Tender Night 03:24	lyrics	buy track
Tell me I’m lazy Make me think as I go back to sleep Questioning the value of original ideas But I’m falling apart And I can understand why you want the return of the queen I’m drifting away, drifting away, drifting away Forgetting names Losing face And my crumbling faith Tender night I want you for myself Hold me tight Tender night I want you for myself Hold me tight Go back Running in place, make all your peers wait Go back Soaking up in the slick lives of strangers Go back Amalgamating, consuming Go back Adding too much Add three, add another one Take me Take another one Watch me lure your heart in Tender night I want you for myself Hold me tight Tender night I want you for myself Hold me tight Disappear in the cold of the light Oh oh oh ‘Cause it is too much at the same time Disappear in the cold of the light Oh oh oh It’s always too much at the same time Tender night I want you for myself Hold me tight Tender night I want you for myself Hold me tight
10.	How Cool Is That ? 03:13	lyrics	buy track
I’m getting out of the city tonight Don’t want to get back to war I’ll follow the colors of the sky I’ll follow neon-lit cars How cool is that? Fleeing wealthier men Claiming to be good in bed But can’t fall in love ‘Cause all of it goes into their sweat How cool is that? How cool is that? I, I forget I want to leave Lying in your arms And I forget I want to leave Lying in your arms Ah ah ah, Ah ah ah, ah ah ah ah Ah ah ah ah, ah ah ah ah And now I just want to leave But I still owe my enemies too much They’re in it for the money They’re in it for the brass full of rust How cool is that? How cool is that? I, I forget I want to leave Lying in your arms And I forget I want to leave Lying in your arms Ouh ouh ouh, Ouh ouh ouh, ouh ouh ouh ouh Ouh ouh ouh ouh, ouh ouh ouh ouh
11.	Fearful Flower 06:53	lyrics	buy track
Smoke in the dark Bad breath and thick blood Ahahahahah We listen to your stories As real as they are fake Ahahahahah They scare us to the bone ‘Cause dreaming is a sin Ohohohohoh Get us out of our lives Get us out of our world Flying boat, where will you land? When will you land? Demon, hold us up Take us dancing Take us moving Beautiful story Take me to sleep Save my homeland Ma fleur Oh oh Je t’aime à la folie Mais tu as peur de ton ombre

about

This album is about a lot of things. It’s mostly about falling in love and being scared to fall too much. To fall in love with someone, with a place (home), with a city (far from home). But it’s also about poodles and friends (real and imaginary), about snow and apartment seeking, about mental health and fear.

It has been a long time since we released our first record, Princess Flash, and we had time to tour a lot. Some of the songs on Monami were played in shows many times and got to where they are now because we were able to get to know them. Others were written just before we went in the studio so we had to try stuff and develop them right there. Jace Lasek, who produced the album, helped us a lot for that, getting the songs to where they should be, even if it meant trying stuff that probably wouldn’t work. I’m pretty good at having ideas like that. But you have to try in order to get somewhere.

Monami is a brighter record than Princess Flash. It’s closer to our live shows because that’s what we wanted to get. It was fun to be deep and sad but there was a time when I had to try something else, to change the scenery. Why not? Just to sing about something else than heartbreak. So, I wrote about the road, driving, about eating burnt dinner and about owing money.

We had a lot of references and influences when we started building and recording the songs that we wanted on the album. Swans, for the loudness, the heaviness and how fun it is to just be loud sometimes. The War on Drugs and Animal Collective, because they’re awesome. Bill Callahan, because his words are simple yet reach me so deeply. Jenny Hval, because her music is always new for me. Low, listen to Double Negative, daaaaaaamn. Joni Mitchell, because of the sound and songs of Hejira. The Microphones/Mount Eerie, because controlled chaos is awesome. Peter Gabriel and The Cure (and more), because 80s pop music was great, a gold mine of inspiration. Those are just some of the stuff we wanted to reach (we could never reach those but you know what I mean) with Monami and the way I hear them and perceive them is deeply personal. Maybe you’ll listen to these artists and not feel or agree with anything I just wrote and that’s perfect. You shouldn’t!

credits

released June 7, 2019

We are : Thomas Bruneau Faubert : Sequential Circuits Prophet 600, Korg Microkorg, Moog Sub 37, Omnichord, Korg Poly 800, Roland JX-3P, Casio CZ-101, MPC 500, Trombone, screams, vocals / Tony L. Roy : Bass, Acoustic Bass, Moog Sub 37, Saxophone on Demon, Vocals, Apprentice Engineer / Charles Primeau : Guitar, Pedal Steel Guitar, Acoustic Guitar+Bass on City Luv, Korg Minilogue, Vocals / Élie Raymond : Vocals, Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Pedal Steel Guitar on Demon, Prophet 600, Casio CZ-101, Piano, Acoustic Bass on Adopted Hometown, far away Drums in Frilu  / Lazer Vallières : Drums, percussions.

With : Jace Lasek : Therevox on Road Wage / Marc-Antoine Barbier : Saxophone on Adopted Hometown / Elliot Maginot : Vocals on City Luv, Amafula, Demon, Fearful Flower / Ariel Comtois : Saxophone on Road Wage, Charger & Vocals on Demon, Fearful Flower / Philippe Gauthier Boudreau : Drums on Fearful Flower / Samuel Heppell-Dion : Saxophone on Amafula, Frilu, Fearful Flower / David Aubé : Cello on City Luv / Antoine Gallois : Guitar on You Decide / Émie Leclerc : Vocals on Road Wage, Charger / Ann Provost Richard : Vocals on You Decide /  Guillaume Bisson : Vocals on You Decide, Frilu / Zachary Bleau : Vocals on Adopted Hometown / The “Thursday Night in the Studio” Choir can be heard on You Decide and Fearful Flower: Delphine Lapierre, Delphine Lou Fontaine Picard, Ariel Comtois, Marc-Antoine Barbier, Antoine Gallois, Gautier Villette, Philémon Günter Crête, Tony L. Roy, Thomas Bruneau Faubert, Charles Primeau, Élie Raymond.

Words and music by Élie Raymond / Arranged by Foreign Diplomats / Produced, engineered and mixed by Jace Lasek / Assistant engineer : Antoine Gallois / Recorded in Montreal at Breakglass in June, October and November 2018 and in February 2019 / Except Tender Night : recorded and produced by Ryan Battistuzzi in Montreal, April 2018 / Some of the synths, a couple vocal tracks, the Tender Night piano, percussion in Adopted Hometown and the far away drums in Frilu were recorded at home, February 2017-January 2018 / Mastered by Philip Gosselin at Le Lab Mastering / Artwork by Brice Postma / Layout by Geneviève Baril.

Thanks so so much to Jace for everyyyyything and to everyone who came in to scream and shout, to play, to sit around, to listen. Thanksss to Ryan & Philip. Thanks to Gautier, Franz, Kyria and everyone at Indica. A whole lot of love to our families, our friends and to everyone listening to this record.

Merci mon ami.

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about

Foreign Diplomats Montréal, Québec

discography

][

Jun 2020
Monami

Jun 2019
Road Wage

Apr 2019
Charger

Feb 2019
Adopted Hometown

Nov 2018
Tender Night

Sep 2018
Princess Flash

Oct 2015
E.p

Jun 2013

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