Interview with Nona Invie, front-woman of Dark Dark Dark

DARK DARK DARK . SEPTEMBER 24 2011
Iron Horse Music Hall . Northampton, MA

A few weeks ago DJ Chive (Sophia L.) and DJ Thundercat (Dora N.) sat down with Nona Marie Invie from Dark Dark Dark before the bands show at the Iorn Horse. This is what happened:

We arrived at the Iron Horse and walked up to the cluster of blue jeans, beards, cigarette smoke, t-shirts, and glasses. A retro yellow sundress stood apart from the crowd. The woman in the bright yellow dress was Nona Marie Invie, the frontwoman of Dark Dark Dark, a collaborative eerie folk pop group based in Minneapolis. She quickly proved to be sweet, confident, free spirited, and clearly a strong woman full of grrrl power. Their show started with two hours of opening band cacophony, experimental sets, and Romanian folklore. Then it was Dark Dark Dark. While on stage, Nona drew the attention of the audience with more than just her yellow ensemble. Frontman Marshall LaCount and Nona’s chemistry took over the room. During the show Marshall’s presence was mischievously charismatic, with his brightly colored snapback cap, and many bracelets, his banjo provided the dance to Nona’s voice. When an audience member requested they play “Daydreaming” from Wild Go, Nona said, “we don’t play that one a lot anymore.” But with a shared look from Marshall they performed the hit and many in the crowd sang along, their two voices resonating nostalgia in the small venue.

S: So Nona, how did you start playing music and picking up instruments?
N: I started when I was pretty young, it was sort of a musical household. My mom played piano just for fun and played guitar for fun. And we would sing a lot, sing along to the radio. That was it.

S: Did your family go on road trips ever?
N: We did, I remember going on a trip to South Dakota. I remember picking out CDs. We were with our grandparents and had to pick out CDs that everyone would like. So I think I had a Boys to Men CD and Ace of Bass. And I was listening to En Vogue back then and I remember singing in the back seat with my sister.

D: Do you have a big family?
N: No. Just my sister, my mom, and I…I guess I have a big extended family

S: What was the first instrument that you took up?
N: Well… I started getting piano lessons when I was really young and liked the piano and I sort of… veered from there to the guitar and taught myself how to play the guitar.

S: So did you like structured practicing?
N: No… Well for piano I did. I was really serious about the piano growing up, cause my grandpa was like paying for piano lessons and I wanted to do good. But, guitar was just a fun thing to play. I played it all the time.

D: You guys have so many people in your band! What’s it like working as a collaborative of such geographically diverse musicians?
N: Yeah! It’s really great. A lot of the perspectives from all over the country are really nice, with people and their different musical communities in New Orleans, Chicago, and New York. It’s really fun to come together and play.
S: How would you define a collaborative?
I guess… for us… a collaborative means that we all have a similar sort of goal about playing the kind of music we want to be making and the feeling of the music. Then we come together and share our ideas.

S: If you could be one of the seven deadly sins which one would you be? Which one embodies you the most?
N: Ha…. Oh man. What are they again? Sloth, Wrath…
[She asks a bandmate, Josh, to help us remember all of the 7 deadly]
N: Ok I think maybe my biggest fear is about being sloth…or I always find that I get nervous because I like to take things slow and I do a lot of sitting and observing and absorbing of what’s going on around me - I like to think of it as a proactive, interesting process but I worry that sometimes I’m actually just being totally lazy. Haha. I hope that sloth doesn’t embody me the most but I don’t know hah.

S: What do you love most about being a woman?
N: Um…what I love about being a woman…Well, I think it’s a really special thing to be traveling around and sort of fronting a band and being a spokes person for this community… feels really lucky. I love that it comes from the perspective of a woman, I guess. It feels important.

S: Is it hard being a woman in the music industry?
N: I think in general its great to be a woman. I don’t think that it’s any more difficult. But I find that some times people might treat me differently because of my gender. I dunno, sound engineers and those kinds of people maybe. What I’ve noticed the most in performing is that there are not a lot of other women. As many woman as I know who are performing in Minneapolis and everywhere, when we play shows there are hardly ever women sharing the bill with us. Which is kind of crazy.
D: Is it something your aware of on a regular basis?
N: Yeah, totally! Its crazy sometimes to be the only woman on a three of four-band bill, because all of my female friends play music you know? So I’m like, where are you? Where is everybody?

S: Where you ever part of a girl band?
N: I was…when I was like 15…haha. I played bass in a girl band. We played a lot of Hole and Babes in Toyland covers and stuff, it was awesome.

D: Do you have any Girl Power advice?
N: Yeah, just do it. You can do anything. That’s my new idea. I can totally do anything. I think that’s true.

D: So, do you know what you want to be for Halloween?
N: I was actually thinking about that cause I saw that there are costumes everywhere. I am going to be on a little trip with a couple of my friends in the southwest during Halloween. I think that we are going to just be camping in the dunes so I’m probably not going to dress up I’m guessing.

S: Do you think the world is going to end in 2012?
N: Um, the world as we know it? Sure. Why not?
S: So do you have any hopes and dreams for the new world of 2012?
N: Haha. I hope that… I have a nice luxury boat that I know how to sail for the rapture.
D: Cause the world is going to be all ocean?
N: Yeah! I hope I find some cans of Tuna

S: What’s your favorite pizza topping?
N: Ok, I better think about this…do I have to pick just one? If I could eat a piece of Pizza right now I would want to eat a piece of pizza with tomato sauce and light mozzarella cheese and then like chunks of goat cheese and olives and maybe a little bit of smoked salmon or something like that. I like…I love food. Food is the most important thing after playing music.
S: Yeah, what do you guys normally do after you play?
N: Go get a slice of pizza, haha.

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