N Nao’s previous album, L’eau et les rêves, explored dreams and the element of water, and this time around, her upcoming follow-up, Nouveau Langage is 10 songs about desire and the element of fire. But for de Lorimier, it’s much more than that—it’s an exploration of romantic science fiction—following the loose, yet intimate narrative of the “birth, life, and death of a star.” 

We spoke with de Lorimier about the new single, her new album (out Jan. 31 via Mothland), and her heated relationship with fire.

“Fleuron” is easily one of your most joyful-sounding songs. What place or feeling does it come from?

I’ve never been happier in the studio with JB and Charles. So yes, I would say that’s true. We were ecstatic, laughing and dancing. I remember when the melody and the text came together, JB had a single happy tear.

There’s a UK ‘90s jungle feel with the drumming on this track. Where did that come from?

I was born in the 90’s and feel very connected to the aesthetics and music of that time, when I was a child. My parents were in their early 20s and huge music lovers. My father was working in a second-hand record store and used to take me with him. I got to discover a vast range of musical genres while my ear was developing. I feel lucky to have been exposed to all those sounds at such a young age. 

How did you figure out the concept of the music video with Charline Dally?

We wanted to explore the themes of the album—fire and desire—within the mystical aura of a cave. I love mixing media. We blended footage from caving with my spy glasses and my documenting of liquid glass that resembles lava with Charline’s analog footage. We both love textures! They give the montage a sensual feel. Charline created a collage with all these elements, as we went through back-and-forth rounds, always driven by our subconscious.

Charline also made the album art. Can you tell us more about that? 

For the artwork, as soon as I saw Charline’s glass piece Le Disque de Poussière, I felt that I was witnessing a new form of language. When I learned where it came from, this mysterious drawing, an abstract script … my mind was blown. We’re seeing a tiny particle from a meteorite under a microscope. This piece is part of an investigation into the origin of astral bodies, its irregular morphology reveals mineral writing older than the Solar System.

There is something therapeutic and transcendental with the glass-blowing imagery in the video. It kind of looks like lava. Can you talk about that?

At first, I wanted to film lava from volcanoes. I was obsessed with this idea, especially after seeing the beautiful [documentary] Fire of Love. I wanted an imagery full of warmth, passion, and sensuality, so I decided to film hot molten glass instead. I called my friend Geneviève Grenier and we headed to Gaspésie in the hot shop, to document the glass-blowing process. I ended up experimenting with the material for the first time and completely fell in love with it. I came back home with a collection of glass pieces, each one shinier and more crystalline than the last.

It seems that with “Fleuron” and a song like “Corps,” the urge is to get people to dance and move. Is that kind of the vibe you are going for with the full album, Nouveau Langage? 

This album is all about desire. An invitation to dance. It’s music from the gut, born from the heat of my core. I was also inspired by the dancing epidemic of 1518 in Strasbourg. Fever and desire. It all started at the Baie-Saint-Paul convent, where I spent time alone with my 4-track recorder. I had to keep quiet at night, so I would gently craft dance music with headphones on. We kept that mood throughout the process.

What themes can we find buried within Nouveau Langage?

It’s a romantic science-fiction, a deeply intimate one … Combustion. I asked myself questions regarding mysterious powers, transcendence and trance. Embodying feminine figures like the nymph echo, the final girl, the witch, and mother nature.

You wrote this album under the “symbol of fire” and believe in the concept of the “harmony of the spheres or musica universalis.” Can you elaborate on this and tell us what this means?

Yes, Nouveau Langage is exploring the element of fire. Musica universalis is the belief that celestial bodies, the moon, sun, and planets are linked in a musical way, but also the force of attraction that maintains everything in place.

Do you believe in a higher power? Celestial, occult, anything like that?

I believe in magic and witchcraft. It’s abstract but I definitely feel something, a subtle energy, like a gossamer luminescent thread running through everything. The earth is a source of sacred feminine power, a guiding force that flows through the natural world. I feel it most deeply in my dreams, music, and nature.