Start Listening To: Alix Fernz
Alix Fernz on bedroom pop chaos, barstool stories, and why Bizou is like ice cream with Oreos in it.
Alix Fernz makes music that’s messy in all the right ways. Hailing from Sainte-Thérèse, just outside Montreal, the French-speaking multi-instrumentalist crafts a frenetic blend of synth-punk and lo-fi pop that feels equally theatrical and diaristic. On Bizou, a debut album shaped by pandemic parties, park-side introspection, and late nights in Montreal’s Mile End, Fernz explores themes of self-acceptance, queerness, and creative duality with equal parts grit and glamour. With a UK debut set for Quebec Spring, we caught up with Fernz to talk chaotic contrasts, lipstick punk, and why being a bartender is great for songwriting.
For those unfamiliar with your music, can you tell us who you are, where you’re from and about the music you make?
Im a bleached hair, multi- instrumentalist from a small town next to Montreal called Sainte-Thérèse! I make freakky synth-punk with a touch of lo-fi pop and i sing in french!!
You’ve described Bizou as a representation of self-discovery. What surprised you most about yourself in the process of making this record?
How hard it is for me to right lyrics in french without sounding cringe.
Much of the album was recorded in your bedrooms across three apartments. How did those shifting spaces shape the atmosphere or direction of the songs?
The first appartement i wrote songs in, was more of a frat party house in deep Est of Montréal where i spent most of the pandemic in! The uptempo ones were wrote there! And then i took a long year break and then mooved with my parents in quieter spot in front of the biggest parc in Montreal « Parc Lafontaine » that space was when i started to right again slowly but in a more soft vibes, i was listening to a lot of Rowland S howard and Brian Eno’s ambient stuff back then!!
And then i mooved to the Mile end where i got introduced to the night life! I finished the demo versions of everything i did in the last 3 years and made Bizou!!
There’s a clear balance between chaos and melody throughout Bizou. How intentional was that contrast, and where does it come from creatively?
I just really love seeing constrast in every form of art. I think its a good representation of what a perfect balance world should be! Too much of ordinary is boring and too much chaos is overwhelming! Both together is like ice cream with oreo in it!
You’ve worked as a bartender and tattoo artist. Do either of those jobs feed your songwriting or sense of character in any way?
Being a bartender definitely help a lot in the righting of this record! Most of the ideas i got were from stories i heard at the bar and switch them in my own way!
“Rouge à lèvres” feels both menacing and strangely euphoric. Can you talk about how that track came together and what it represents to you?
Its funny cause this song is litteraly just a mash up of thow songs a wrote in that first appartement! The chorus like more popy vibe was an old song i wrote about the pandemic with my old project « Blood Skin atopic » The song is called « Service à domicile »
You’ve mentioned influences like Osees and new wave, but the sound on Bizou also feels very much its own thing. Were there any non-musical inspirations that guided the record?
In that time i was really fascinating by the drag world!
There’s an almost theatrical quality to the project, both in sound and visuals. Do you approach Alix Fernz as a persona, or is this just you unfiltered?
I wouldn’t say a persona but definitely a spikey version of myself
You’re performing at this year's Quebec Spring in the UK. Can you give us a few words about Quebec Spring and what it means to be part of this year’s addition?
I didn’t heard of Quebec Spring since two weeks ago!! But im really excited and always honored to be part of M for Montreal events love those people!
What are you looking forward to about performing in the UK?
Definitely hoping people are gonna get along to it and understand it! I feel like there is no language barriers anymore! Honestly just being in the UK was always a big dream for me and being able to perform is insane!
What can British fans expect from your live shows?
A fucking party.
What do you love right now?
My girlfriend.
What do you hate right now?
Choosing a new album name and the american democratic system.
Name an album you’re still listening to from when you were younger and why it’s still important to you?
I still listen to Kiss’s first album cause its freaking good! Glam all the way!
As someone who’s moved from punk to something more synth-driven and exploratory, where do you feel your sound is heading next?
Im going back to the roots a little bit more for the next album and definitely more of a raw sound
You’ve said this album advocates for self-acceptance amid doubt and chaos. What do you hope someone listening to Bizou alone at night might take away from it?
What you just said!
