R. MISSING
Propos recueillis par Christophe Labussière en octobre 2024
Version française de l'interview
Sharon is a young New Yorker whose music leaves no one indifferent. Her singles are like shooting stars: short, fast, and released erratically, without any apparent logic, yet always crafted with meticulous attention to composition, production, and visuals. Each melody flirts with the essential, leaving a lasting impact on listeners, with every track offering a subtle, addictive imbalance that evokes a compelling tension between satisfaction and frustration.
We wanted to learn more about her project, R. Missing, as we occasionally do in our pages, driven by our usual motivation to interview artists purely out of interest, never yielding to the dictates of "promotion" or other rituals and constraints of the "industry". We ask questions, we wonder, we want answers. That’s our freedom. Our passion. It’s then up to the artists to decide whether they want to give us a bit of their time. These questions may be artistic in nature, naturally, or personal, perhaps; we might delve into specific details or more general ideas, ask about their opinions, their dreams, or simply their experiences. We ask these questions because we’re interested in them, as much as we are in their music.
This is what led me to contact Sharon. Simply. But the young artist doesn’t care much for "big blocks of text". Her responses, no matter the effort it took to get them, invariably remained laconic. Despite my persistence, some of my follow-up questions to extend the conversation went unanswered. This approach, which she claims to be intentional, didn’t, from my perspective, necessarily add to the mystique she carefully cultivates with each single; instead, it came across as a little less spontaneous. Perhaps I should finally invite you to skip this interview and simply take the time to listen to her very lovely music.
#1
Could you introduce yourself? Who are you, where do you come from, and what do you do?
I'm Sharon, half of R. Missing and that is what I do. I'm from nowhere in particular, although I wander a lot.
#2
Why did you choose with R.Missing this "model" that now defines you—releasing tracks one by one sparingly? Why not keep them to yourself and later compile them into an EP or album?
Real-time feels free and nice as I have no true interest in any recent past I know. I should sign up for a fanclub for tomorrow. Despite that, I'm not against lengthier releases like we've had before.
Do you release them as you write them, or do you compose several and then release them gradually?
It happens in those two ways.
#3
Each single comes with its own artwork, and you seem to take great care with each. How do you choose these visuals?
They often seem to select themselves. Sometimes they're miscellaneous phone images, sometimes they're sketches by others with more talent, etc. etc.
#4
The latest tracks seem shorter and shorter to me—maybe I’m wrong—but do you think you would have trouble holding the listener’s attention over a longer duration?
Our tracks have always been on the shorter side. Nothing has changed in that sense. I really like conciseness. William Somerset Maugham (British writer -ndlr) said something about "things of beauty and the mind wandering", and I understood it (hopefully).
#5
Do you imagine compiling all these tracks one day into a "record," even if only in digital form, so they exist as a single entity?
Yes, that's certainly a part of the plan.
Or are you preparing a full album with new tracks, ones we haven’t heard yet?
That's also a part of the plan.
#6
Artistically and musically, what are your influences?
At this second - the Modern Breakthrough, Viennese Modernism, Arte Povera, Marie Laurencin, French yé-yé, Scottish New Wave, sounds from Bristol, Future Sound of London, Inner City, Euro disco and others…
#7
What is the music or thing that, if it didn’t exist, or if it hadn’t existed when you were a teenager or when you started, would mean R.Missing wouldn’t exist?
Nouvelle Vague. The window scene in "Le Feu Follet" (film by Louis Malle, released in 1963 -ndlr). Young Vienna ( "Jung-Wien", Viennese literary and artistic movement of the late 19th and early 20th century -ndlr). Certain train chimes. Midnight to 6:00am.
#8
What does "R. Missing" mean? What word is the "R" missing from?
The R is short for a word that will stay unknowable because it is unknowable. It has nothing to do with the actual 18th letter.
Are you interested in Oulipo? The idea of writing, for example, without using a particular letter like Raymond Queneau played around with in the 1960s?
The idea of constrained writing is pretty but doesn't sound easy. Someday I might try to write a snowball poem (I will not) (a "snowball poem" is a type of constrained-form poem, typical of literary movements like Oulipo, where each successive word contains one more character than the previous one -ndlr).
#9
I read that you're interested in automatic writing in the style of André Breton or Philippe Soupault, and, I’m not sure how to explain it, but I feel like I could sense that in your compositions. Can you tell me more?
Automatic writing is aspirational. Unlike Breton or Soupault, I cannot do it. I appreciate "Les Champs Magnétiques", nothing more and nothing less.
So, you don’t write your lyrics that way? Nor the track titles?
Those processes aren't necessarily automatic. They're only close to "automatic" when a natural thought or sentence in conversation turns into a lyric or a title. Actually, that happens quite a lot.
If so, do you still revise and edit your texts, or do you keep the raw first draft?
Again, it happens both ways.
#10
After preparing this interview I glanced through some of your past interviews and noticed that, unless I’m mistaken, your answers are often quite short. I’m noticing it today with my questions. Are my questions not of interest to you? Or is it that the automatic writing principle drives your answers and sometimes it’s difficult to trigger a response when reading journalists’ questions ;-) ?! Or is it simply a desire to remain mysterious?
Simply shyness and avoidance of dreary blocks of text. I liked all the questions and found them valuable and interesting but prefer to stay concise. Perhaps more accurately, I can be no other way but concise.
Do you think this "reserved" approach could be counterproductive?
No.
#11
What are your plans for R.Missing in the coming months? Concerts? An album?
Concerts, certainly. More releases of varying lengths as well.
How do you envision, or wish, R.Missing to evolve?
Mirror the answer to the last question. Might be better to metamorphose than evolve. Is it?
R. Missing
"Party Fade Into Air"
sorti 25 octobre 2024
