Before the presentation of the album BORIS BARABANOV met with Tatu in the office of the company Universal. YULIA VOLKOVA told the correspondent about the subtleties of management. The second participant of the duet, LENA KATINA, tried not to interrupt the friend.
- You say that you've become producers yourselves?
- In the past Vanya Shapovalov was with us who solved both political and creative questions. Now that Vanya is no longer there, we certainly have a manager, I'm not gonna negotiate with tour organizers about how much our concerts cost, or carry on negotiations with our record-label. There is the company T.A.Music, which Boris Rensky (co-producer and the first investor of Tatu), and Lena and I belong to. We have a PR-manager, we have a secretary, we have a heap of people, but nobody makes any decisions without telling us about it. Everyone consults us. We also began to work in sound production ourselves.
- You turned buttons in the studio?
- Yes, we supervised the vocal recordings ourselves, selected parts for the album. Vanya did this before.
- Let's talk about those people who helped you. The manager of the company Interscope Martin Kierszenbaum brought Sting to the studio.
- Not just that. Martin also helped us with pronunciation, he generally conducts negotiations on behalf of Tatu on the international market. Together with the label, he involved Dave Stewart, Richard Carpenter in the record. In this case, Sting recorded in New York, and we in Los Angeles, therefore the bass-guitar in the song "Friend or Foe" was recorded separately.
- As I understand, he was involved for publicity purposes?
- No, that's not true. We did not really choose Sting, we were simply asked: "Girls, do you want Sting to play for you? " Why not? He could in fact very well have said: "Why should I help these girls? Who are they anyway?" No, he did this with pleasure, said that he wanted to get to know us in the future. Now we have recorded a clip for this song, but Sting is not present in it, our new musicians are filmed there: the drummer, the guitarist and the keyboard player.
- Are they Americans?
- They from are Slovenia, Germany and Australia, but everyone has lived and worked in Los Angeles already for many years. Roman, Sven and Troy, very professional guys. Each of them has their own group. We hired them ourselves, they are completely ours, we are together every evening. Despite many castings with musicians in Moscow, we couldn't find their equals.
- In what way are our musicians fundamentally different from the ones in the West?
- In the desire to work. These guys want to work, they are professionals. Each day they have rehearsals. They want that everything will be better. But Russians, what is it with Russians... Russians need to booze, Russians need to party...
- As far as I know, a photo-session for your album was made by singer Bryan Adams.
- Yes, he photographed us in his house in Paris. As a photographer, he is very professional. The photo-session was trash, half-dirty, half-tattered. That was his idea. I think, of all who photographed us, he is the best.
- Did you talk about musical things with him?
- We sang, danced with him, jumped, shouted, laughed...
- From the Russian authors who recorded the first album with you, now, as I understand, Victor [sic!] Polienko and Sergey Galoyan worked with you again?
- Polienko - our most favourite writer, there is no other like him, we cherish him very much. Galoyan also made some tracks.
- He is probably an expensive writer now. He lives in London, he says that he writes for Jennifer Lopez...
- Oh, who does he write for... He does not write for Jennifer Lopez.
- Did they agree easily?
- Well, how else? It does not happen any other way with us. You do not want it - good-bye.
- Tell us, please, what Russian now remains in Tatu?
- We are Russian, we speak Russian. For us Moscow is always on the first place. Families are here, friends, my daughter is here.
- When you appeared at the MUZ TV Awards this year, I have to admit, I had the feeling that you did not care at all for the local public.
- We had arrived from America one day before. We were tired, besides the time difference affected us. We did not wish to perform anywhere, neither on the "First Channel" nor on "MUZ TV", nowhere. But they simply begged us. Everybody called.
- Will you tour?
- Yes, in the spring. It will be the big show with which we shall tour across Europe, to America. And we will perform in Russia.
- Where?
- We want Red Square.
- You are rather young girls, but around you so much has happened in the last five years... Is there something you regret? Maybe the story with the image of young lesbians?
- We don't regret anything. In general, it is never necessary to regret anything, whatever happens. Whatever you plan, things turn out differently anyway. It is simply not necessary to make illusions for yourself. There was no image. We always behave the way we want to.
- Is it possible to replace one of you in this project?
- If one of us is replaced, this will no longer be Tatu We are irreplaceable. And besides the name Tatu belongs to our company. Everything is serious with us.
Kommersant, Russia
No.205/П (No 3289)
Translation: xena225
31.10.2005 |
