Adèle Trottier-Rivard and Nicolas Basque—the creative partnership that forms Bibi Club from Montreal—recently sat down with us to discuss their highly anticipated album. This conversation comes on the heels of their latest single and video release, “Parc de Beauvoir,” a track from their soon-to-be-released album, Feu de garde, set to drop on May 10th under Secret City Records. The duo had their music video premiere on Brooklyn Vegan, a collaboration between Bibi Club, Gus Englehorn, and Estée Preda. Notably, “Parc de Beauvoir” is one of only two songs in English featured on the album.
Feu de garde offers a deep-dive into Trottier-Rivard’s personal journey as she revisits core pillars that have shaped her—bravery, steadfastness, and the bonds of sisterhood and companionship. As an alumnus of Montreal’s first all-female scout group, Les Guides, she reflects on invaluable experiences in nature and the enduring connections she forged there, all of which have profoundly impacted her artistic expression. Drawing from memories of her youth and pivotal experiences, Feu de garde weaves in ensemble chants reminiscent of those Girl Guide forays into nature that so deeply influenced her.
KALTBLUT: Your new album, Feu de garde, is set to be released soon. Can you tell us about the inspiration behind the album and what listeners can expect from it?
For Feu de garde, there is a certain tension, but with no violence. We live next to a highway. From our window, we can see this solid, big piece of brutalist architecture, and we watch the life and movement surrounding it. Everyday, we have to walk under it to get to our kid’s school. It is our daily path. There is dust, there are cars. There are trees and some people. This was a big source of inspiration. It’s an album about community, fear, love and radicalism in music.
KALTBLUT: “L’île aux bleuets” is described as a danceable single inspired by the minimalism of your main influence, Suicide. How did this influence shape the sound and direction of the song and how does it reflect the overall vibe of the album?
We like the minimalism of Suicide…the drive, the tension and the somehow comforting, luminous aspect of their music. We often think about how they would arrange a song: what can be left behind to preserve the essence of the music, the energy and emotions related to a song? How to be inventive with a minimal amount of gear and arrangements, how to be direct.
KALTBLUT: Adèle, you have mentioned that the album is inspired by your girlhood memories and experiences as a former member of the first exclusively female scout group in Montreal. How have these memories shaped the themes and narratives explored in Feu de garde?
There are 4 other friends who also sang on the record. Eugenie Jobin, Robin Love, Safia Nolin and Emma Broughton. Bringing all these people to sing along with us was to create this feeling of community. My first experience of singing with a group of friends happened when I was in the scouts as a kid. We would gather around the pit fire, and sing all together, surrounded by trees and nature. I spent so much time in the forest learning old, traditional songs and rounds over the years. These moments encapsulate my whole youth. Those feelings and experiences—the determination, the strength, the canoe trips, the strong rivers, the trees—are present all over the album.
KALTBLUT: Could you share with us a bit about the significance of the name “Bibi Club”?
We live with 3 kids. It’s often chaotic and joyful in the evening at home. The concept of family is a centerpiece in our lives. How do you make it magic and weird? One night Adèle realized that a family is kind of a club, in the sense that people are bound by kinship, but also like a nightclub. This special and unique place, away from space and time. A living room full of friends partying, different generations, a community, a beautiful chaos filled with love. She calls everyone she loves “bibi.” So that was her Bibi Club.
KALTBLUT: You have recently toured the US with Blonde Redhead and have upcoming tour dates in France and Belgium. How has touring and performing live influenced your music and creative process?
Touring helped us to enhance our musical personalities and to feel more confident about our musical language. The more you’re being true to yourself on stage, the more you let people in, and invite them to feel something. We’re trying to communicate our music in the most honest way with the audiences, and to push further the humanity in music. When we toured with Blonde Redhead, we were quite inspired to see how non apologetic they were about their performances. It made us focus on the energy and the emotions in the studio, more than anything else.
KALTBLUT: As both artists and parents, how do you balance the challenges of being on the road while also maintaining a sense of family and support for each other?
It’s a real challenge. We’re surrounded with a community of grandparents and friends who help us out. We bring the kids on tour sometimes. In Canada, where we’re from, there is financial support from the government to help parents bring their children on tour. It takes a lot of energy, but children also give lots of energy back and they help you focus on what is important. It takes a lot of patience and, again, it takes a community that believes in you, an extended family. We try to stay grounded and enjoy every moment together.
KALTBLUT: Your debut album, Le soleil et la mer, received critical acclaim and recognition from various sources. How does Feu de garde build upon the success of your previous work and what new elements are you excited for your fans to discover in this album?
After touring Le soleil et la mer, going back to the studio brought us to be more frontal about music. We’re excited to share this more raw aspect of our music, non-apologetic, this tension that connects us all.
KALTBLUT: The themes of community, kindness, parenthood, and strength are central to Feu de garde. How do you hope listeners will connect with and interpret these themes through your music?
We hope it’ll touch their humanity and that it’ll make them feel connected to their own community. People are intertwined, emotions are complex, there is depth in the everyday to be welcomed. We named the album Feu de garde because when you look at a fire, the flames are constantly changing, like relationships, like life. Feu de garde is a fire maintained during the night, something you take care of for the others.
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Feature photo by Manoushka Larouche
