Meet Memphian No. 209: Fille Catatonique

Meet Memphian No. 209: Fille Catatonique

365 Memphians - Marcella Rene Simien

The first time I ever saw Marcella René Simien perform as Fille Catatonique, she was writhing around the living room at the Stash House before the Tennessee Tease burlesque troupe's first show. Everything about her performance was mesmerizing. (Here's some video, if you'd like to see a little bit of it for yourself.)

She was kind enough to answer my questions about her hometown, the places she's never been, what she did last night and  the five things she can't live without:

Name: Marcella René Simien

Occupation: Musician/Artist/Server at Café Palladio/Student at MCA majoring in Printmaking, minoring in Art History/ Intern at ArtsMemphis

Hometown:
Lafayette, LA, but New Orleans was my second home for sure.

Neighborhood:
Green Meadows. It's in Lafayette Parish, between Youngsville and Broussard, lots of sugar cane fields, secret trails and coulees.

Last night, I: had an inspiring band rehearsal, heard a really great blues pianist at one bar, enjoyed a glass of bourbon, then heard a not-so-amazing acoustic duo from out of town at another bar, then came home to my apartment and stayed up most of the night listening to soul records with a friend.

The five things I couldn’t live without are:

1. my sense of hearing
2. my accordion
3. tools to draw and write with
4. spices to cook with
5. my Memphis family

My favorite Memphis secret is:
the patio at Mollie Fontaine Lounge on Friday nights.

The strangest place I’ve ever played is: It depends on what your idea of strange is. I've done plenty unpredictable performances on street corners and people's porches. I guess a memorable one would be when my dad and I got up from our table in a fancy dining room on a cruise ship and basically started a surprise second line with accordion and washboard walking through the restaurant. It shifted the stuffy mood, to say the least.  When he and I get together we like to shake things up a bit.

My favorite summer song is:
That's a tough one. I have so many favorites. But as far as a fresh new song for this summer, I'd say Cities Aviv's  unreleased track "Lisbon." It's available for download on his Soundcloud and can listen on Tumblr.

Fille Catatonique means: Catatonic Girl. My interest in catatonia was sparked by a friend of mine about 4 years ago. The "catatonic" name idea originated from a performance art duo called The Confusions of Young Catatonia founded by Derek Joseph and myself when I was 16 in Lafayette, LA. We used to play sets only in abandoned buildings, and at venues with pianos that were old and out of tune. Our subject matter in our material was absurd, obscene, and manic.

When researching Catatonia,I could identify with the words used in the description: excitement, disorder, abnormal, resisting, and delirious mania (to name a few). I can say I have felt absolutely insane in periods of my life in the past. I'm interested in the moment after the catatonia.

Coffee or tea?:
Gotta have both for two different reasons. Coffee when I need a kick, tea when I need to relax.

I’ve never been to: Gus's Fried Chicken! (I'm so embarrassed)

When I grow up, I want to be:
myself, except with more knowledge, more love, more instruments, more stories to tell, a family of my own, living a simple life filled with travel and creativity. Or a lounge singer in Paris.

My favorite thing about performing is:
Performing is one of the only things that I feel the most comfortable doing. Being on stage makes me feel alive. I enjoy the spirituality of the experience of music and how it brings people together. I like preaching my unorthodox sermons. In contrast, I can also appreciate the primitive, spectacle-circus freak aspect of performing.

I admire:
my audience, all the people that make it possible for me to share my music.

I love Memphis:
because Memphis loves me back! The history here is fascinating. The music and arts community here is very supportive and encouraging. I've been lucky enough to have been welcomed here by so many people with open arms after only two years of living here. Memphis is one of these unique cities that still maintains the southern charm and history, while being more progressive than other cities in the south. It has an interesting dynamic, and I like how that reflects on the work I make living here, whether it be music or artwork. And merci beaucoup Memphis for allowing me to run wild with my accordion and holler all around town.

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Caroline Goodell
Miss you Marcella! happy for you darling
July 28, 2011 12:42pm
terrance
Memphis is kind of a sister city to our. NoLa and one if the reasons I think me and my girl feel so at home here. The folk here just appreciate and support all genres of music . The rich cultural and racial diversity here defines the south and our country. Your music historyand heritage makes Memphis one of the worlds most important music cities and I want to personally thank Memphis for loving my gurl back.
July 29, 2011 7:53am