INTERVIEW: Lucia Cifarelli

As the co-vocalist for the legendary industrial band KMFDM for all twelve albums they’ve released since 2002, Lucia Cifarelli is revered around the world for her powerful vocals and commanding stage presence – but there’s much more to her as an artist, as she proves on her entrancing third solo album, No God Here, which was just released in October. These ten tracks range from post punk to indie rock, proving that Cifarelli has a much wider range than KMFDM fans may realize. Over Moroccan food at Café Mogador in New York City’s East Village neighborhood, Cifarelli tells The Big Takeover about creating this album, the ups and downs she’s been through in her remarkable career, and why every fan she meets helps her evolve.

How did this new album come to be?

LUCIA CIFARELLI: When KMFDM were out on tour in March, I did a Kickstarter for a solo album. I set all sorts of unrealistic expectations because I wasn’t sure it was going to go through – and then it happened, and I was like, “I’ve got to really do this!” I had been writing for about a year, but then I had to really get moving. It’s the first record where I’ve written all the songs on my own. I usually collaborate, but for this one, in order to set it apart, I decided to write all the songs myself, do all the artwork, and co-produce it.

If people are expecting you to sound like you do with KMFDM, they might be surprised by this album. So how did you know what you should sound like as a solo artist, as opposed to being a band member?

LUCIA CIFARELLI: When I originally connected with Sascha [Konietzko], who is the founding father of KMFDM, he had [another] band named MDFMK, and they were looking for a female vocalist. So I was walking into a situation where they had an established sound, and it was more about, “Am I a good fit for this sound?” And I did everything that I could to show that I could translate my talents in that genre, which I’m familiar with and I love. At that time, I had a solo album that I was trying to get out, but I’d like to think I’m good at what I do and it’s translatable into other genres. But myself as an artist, it’s much more personal. So how do I know who I am as an artist? It just comes from inside me. So instead of trying to use my talents to mesh with another band, I’m channeling what is in my own heart without taking into consideration what I need to be to fit in with something else.

These songs really showcase your voice in a way it isn’t in KMFDM, where there’s a wall of sound. With this, your singing is really the focus.

LUCIA CIFARELLI: That was intentional. I was very focused on the songwriting and the vocals, and I wanted the music to leave room for that.

When did you first realize that you should become a musician?

LUCIA CIFARELLI: I always knew. It’s the only thing that I’m good at. I didn’t do well in school. I didn’t have a good voice, but I always heard music in my head. It spoke to me every day. It’s the only thing I’ve ever thought about. It’s crazy and strange and weird and it lights me up in a way that nothing else does. So I knew that I needed to go in that direction.

You mentioned that you didn’t have a good voice – but you do…

LUCIA CIFARELLI: I worked hard for the voice I have. I grew up on Long Island. When my parents split up, I was just turning fifteen. I got my first voice teacher, and I started taking the train into Manhattan to study with her. It was not easy. I was insecure and had a lot of emotional baggage from my family, so I couldn’t settle down and learn techniques. So I just had to practice, practice, practice, practice my vocal exercises. Then she introduced me to some people to write with because I didn’t have any real kind of voice at all; I was so average and awkward. But the songwriting, that was obvious – the melody, the lyrics. Even though they were underdeveloped, it was clear that I could write. So I was able to connect with a lot of songwriters in New York City who were coming up at the time who went on to become very successful. Then I went to North Shore High School, and I met a teacher there who changed my life. He was my English teacher. His name was Howard Ludecker. I was the new kid in school, and he was very kind. He was like, “You’re a really good writer. Your grammar is shit, and you really need to work on punctuation, but you have an interesting way of writing. Is that something you’re interested in?” He was [also] developing an internship program. I got accepted into the program and did my internship with a studio called Cove City Sound in Glen Cove, Long Island. I was there when Taylor Dayne was making her first record. It was intimidating as hell. I watched her sing “Tell It to My Heart” – she did it in like one take. This is the quality of what was coming out of that studio. I had a long way to go.

What made you stick with it instead of getting discouraged?

LUCIA CIFARELLI: Because I had to. It was the only thing I thought about. So I graduated high school. I left the studio. I had a bunch of crappy jobs working in restaurants, catering, anything I could do. Then I started working for a management company called Legend Artist Management. They managed Lynyrd Skynyrd and Ritchie Blackmore. I was an assistant to one of the people there. I [also] was writing with everybody in New York City. I was connected to people who were making massive records, so I was really focused on learning how to write a great song. In the Village Voice, I found my first guitar player, and we started a band called Drill. We started writing, but it was all really crap. At the same time, my favorite sister was diagnosed with HIV. That was hard. They were just giving women the same dose of medication they were giving men because it was so early [in the epidemic]. It was horrible: if the disease didn’t kill you, the medication would. She was always my biggest champion, so it was hard. There was one particular day where I had to insert something into a port that had been put in her chest, and it was a moment where I knew shit was really heavy. On that same day, I had a studio session with my guitar player, and I said, “I’m really not in any condition to work. I’m shaking.” He said, “Go into the vocal booth and just let it out.” And so I started screaming my head off. Sounds came out of me that I’d never heard before. I was howling like a wounded animal. The next day he said, “Don’t freak out, but I put music to that. What do you think of this?” And I heard a song. That was “Go to Hell” from our first record. I found something that day, inside. I kept trying to develop this: “How do I stay focused and connect with what’s going on inside, and try to write songs around this authentic rage that’s inside?”

And then Drill ended up doing well. You opened on tour for Stabbing Westward, which was no small feat at that time.

LUCIA CIFARELLI: Yeah, and Marilyn Manson, MC5, Gang of Four, Genitortures, and God Lives Underwater. We toured in Europe and around America. It gave us an opportunity to make a second record, but then a merger happened and the [record] labels consolidated and we got dropped. My boyfriend and I broke up. Then the band broke up. I was like roadkill. I lost every friend that I thought I had, because when you can buy people dinner, they always take your call. Once that was over, I didn’t hear from anybody. So I was scrambling. That was a bad time.

So what did you do?

LUCIA CIFARELLI: The phone rings and it’s Sascha from KMFDM. Drill opened for Sister Machine Gun, and when we played Seattle, Sascha was there that night, and he did a remix for our band for a movie soundtrack for Empire Records, but we never met. Nine years later, he remembered me when they needed a singer for MDFMK, and he gave me a call. I flew out to Seattle [to audition] and immediately blew up the $5000 microphone with my screams. They were like, “Oh my God, what did you do to the microphone?” And then I was hired.

What made you decide to join them?

LUCIA CIFARELLI: I had nowhere to go, and I needed a job. And I liked the music. So I thought, “OK, it’s not my band, but I’m still in the business. I’m going to do it.” Then they said, “You want to take a shot at writing something?” I co-wrote “Rabble Rouser.” I worked really hard to impress them. They loved it and were like, “Here’s some more tracks.” Then they took me out on tour.

And you’ve been with for almost a quarter century now, which is remarkable. What do you think it is about KMFDM’s music that makes it so enduring?

LUCIA CIFARELLI: Its authenticity. It’s not contrived. Even if it’s tongue in cheek, it’s still coming from a very real place. We’re not sitting in the studio trying to think about what other people want to hear. We’re just doing what feels good to us, and I think listeners respond to that.

Do you find yourself returning to any particular themes with your songwriting?

LUCIA CIFARELLI: With KMFDM, it’s tongue in cheek, but it’s very politically minded. We didn’t really speak politics when I was growing up, so before KMFDM, my topic base was very narrow. Then when I joined KMFDM, I had to do my homework and listen to what was going on. Sascha would say, “Well, don’t you know about this? Don’t you know about that?” I felt rather stupid. But he never made me feel stupid; he was always like, “You should read this, check this out, what do you think of that?” It’s like my whole world opened up about what’s going on in the world politically and socially, and I started widening my scope of subject matter. And then we started going out on the road and I started meeting with the fans. You just connect with people and realize how hard life can be. I’ve learned from everybody I’ve met on the road. Every fan I ever met has been a part of my evolution because they have encouraged me to be truthful and honest, and every time I meet somebody, it’s like we’re helping each other along the journey. We’re all lifting each other up a little bit higher. I just want to shed light on the darkness, whether it’s being strong and fierce and maybe a little bit menacing because I’m a little bit angry about a lot of things, but also bringing light and healing and faith. Keep going – don’t give up. Don’t kill yourself. Speak up. Say this is wrong. Be a voice. Be empowering. Don’t shoot people down, literally or figuratively. Embody what you believe. That’s it. I’m not a highly educated Columbia grad. I’m just a regular person, and this is all I have to give to the world, and I just hope I can keep going.

Order No God Here via Lucia Cifarelli’s Bandcamp page: