Debbie Christ - Tower (2024)

Montreal indie-rock outfit Debbie Christ, masterminded and fronted by singer-songwriter and guitarist Clara O’Page, drops their debut long player, Tower,

Talking about music, O’Page explains, “I’m the youngest of six, so I was encouraged to be funny and outgoing — I love to be goofy and make people laugh — but vulnerability was foreign to me. I grew up in an Evangelical household where you just don’t talk about the icky bits. You save those for God. On top of that, my dad’s side is English. It’s a very repressed cultural mindset. So, where I’m typically a clown day to day, music is my place where I can be more serious. Getting into punk music, I gradually got more comfortable disclosing my feelings. I learned that it can be revolutionary just to simply say what you’re actually feeling. That’s very profound for someone like me. Like I’m not someone who cries very easily, so music is how I do my crying. And it evolved to the point where there’s now a definite shock-value element.”

Debbie Christ’s sound blends elements of surf, garage, psychedelia, shoegaze, glam, punk, folk, and spoken word into an assertive art form ranging from stylish minimalism to avant-glam to art-pop experimentation.

The video for the single “Lust!” attempts to portray physical violation as a metaphor for addiction, O’Page clarifies, “I’m not trying to piss people off, but I feel like people need to be shaken up. There are too many ways that we’re all just so… bound up. And it would benefit us all to just be able to break free and have room to breathe. My favorite photographer, for example, is Robert Mapplethorpe. I’m really inspired by his ability to make people question what art is versus what’s just vulgar and over-the-top. And I like dwelling in that place where you’re kind of squirming in your uncertainty. If you do that with a conscience — if you actually have a point — I feel like that can be very useful. Especially if the music underneath really grabs you. And that’s where all the different styles come in. We’re trying!”