“Hot Topic” offers some important commentary on toxic masculinity. Is it intended to be angry or more liberating?

Not angry but firm. Pointing out problematic behaviour. And yes, liberating.

Where did the initial idea for your video come from and what was the process like adapting it to be a music video for “Hot Topic”?

I wanted to experiment with choreography in a video format. This was filmed in the summer of 2021, so I had access to this nightclub because it was still closed due to the pandemic. My starting point and motif was: what if the inspiration for the movement and general vibe is the riot grrl ideology, without spoon feeding the audience obvious elements. It kind of evolved from there, being able to use up all the space in the club was a huge bonus. Once we had a structure, I asked the band to help me with the score. We had barely just gotten together at that point. I then fine-tuned the dance piece on the score and filmed it with the help of Gabriel Lapierre in a one-shot sequence. 

While we were writing the album last winter, we revisited the score and reworked it a bit to turn it into a song. I kept the name of the piece, “Hot Topic,” and wrote the lyrics by watching the piece over and over, putting into words what their movement and body language is saying. It only felt natural to remix the piece to accompany the song for the music video. It was interesting to detach myself from my original idea and let it evolve.

I wanted to ask you about your relationship with dance. You seem to go into a trance when dancing and playing live. Are you using dance as a way to work through some melancholic memories on the album?

I never thought about it that way. Though kinda makes sense (laughs). Dance is my first love. I’ve been doing it pretty much as long as I have been walking. It’s also the way I was first introduced to being on stage. The band’s playing is so groovy, so I just can’t help it. And yeah there’s this empathetic way of getting thought and emotions across through movement. Also, If I didn’t dance I would just be standing there, which would be kinda awkward (laughs).

The bilingual aspect to La Sécurité is something that gives your band an advantage; being able to play in France and other Quebec cities, and then having a more anglo set in other parts of the world. How important is this to you?

We initially thought about choosing a side but with both anglo and franco members in the band it just made sense to be bilingual. It was worth respecting the creative vision of each song accordingly. Some themes seemed to need French and others English to paint the picture, tu sais? 

How have the Stay Safe! songs changed in a live setting?

Well, actually, lots of the songs were composed in order to have a set to play live. We then figured out the concrete details for the recording. I guess once the record is out there will be less wiggle room for messing up parts (laughs).

What’s next for La Sécurité? Are you already thinking about the next project?

Not for now! We’re just looking forward to the songs being out. We have about six festival dates this summer and our official record release in August. We wanna just have fun with that and eventually start working on new jams when we all have some time.