French for Rabbits a rare breed
Rmike.alexander@fairfaxmedia.co.nz THEY say that every picture tells a story. If that’s the case, then the cover artwork of the muchheralded Wellington-based French For Rabbits’ second album The Weight Of Melted Snow has a lovely tale to tell.
It is a stark image of singer Brooke Singer’s youthful, full of aliveness and gentlemanly 70-year-old father holding a bouquet of flowers, his piercing eyes full of mystery and nostalgia, as if he was attending the funeral of a loved one.
‘‘The main image of the album artwork is of my father,’’ Singer confirms. ’’He came down to Dunedin when we were filming the music video for the title track of the album. The song was written in Dunedin and he lives at Waikuku Beach [about 35 minutes north of Christchurch], which is where he and I are from. It was really lovely because he is not normally a very public person. The photograph is a still from the video where he is looking at me and I amin a glass-casket full of flowers. It’s very much like a funeral but, of course, I amnot really dead.
‘‘When I was looking at the video, directed by Mimsa Andrews, whom I have worked with before, I told my dad I would be using an image of him on the front cover of the album. He said, ‘I don’t know if I want to be on the cover, but I guess it is too late’.’’
It’s an appropriate image that reflects some of the content of The Weight Of Melted Snow, which partially reflects on the ending of Singer’s romantic relationship with John Fitzgerald, the other core member of French For Rabbits.
‘‘John and I started French For Rabbits after we had been together for five years,’’ Singer says. ’’When we initially began writing for this album, it was going to be an EP. Then we decided we didn’t want to be in a relationship, but we still wanted to play music together and so we finished the album.
‘‘I think we are the perfect example of an amicable break-up. We broke up, went and ate nachos and then went for a bike ride. That was that. Now that the album is finished, the songs certainly reflect the relationship we had and how I felt.
‘‘The only thing I amstill unsure of is that there are a couple of songs that are extremely personal to me that we haven’t yet played live together, so this tour [March 10 in Gisborne to April 9 in Leigh] will be an interesting experience. John has been a great muse in a lot of ways. He has helped me write a lot of good songs.’’
Another source of inspiration has come from Singer’s fundraising at the Mary Potter Hospice in Wellington, where she now lives.
‘‘I started working there last year while I was finishing the album,’’ Singer says. ’’When you are touring, it’s full-on, but I had some downtime. It’ has been an interesting influence in terms of the impact it has had on me. The end of a life is an interesting thing. It brings up a lot of emotions and feeling for all of the people involved.’’