Les Chausettes singer Jovana Golubovic goes solo on the side with new single “Where I’m Going”
Kristi Alexandra
@kristialexandra
One might find it surprising that Les Chausettes frontwoman Jovana Golubovic doesn’t have a natural propensity to perform. The 27-year-old musician’s direction and songwriting is, after all, what carries the Vancouver cinematic rock quartet.
She breezes into Loose Lips Magazine’s office donning a fringed leather jacket and an air of artistic authority that’s simultaneously intimidating and inspiring.
Thirteen years ago, when the budding guitarist was still in high school, it was a much different story.
“I was pretty shy back then. I didn’t have any desire to perform,” Golubovic admits. “I didn’t even play with any friends. I’m notoriously such a loner when it comes to music.”
Two 7-inch records and three band members later, Golubovic has learned to be less of a loner, musically.
“I forced myself to go to open mic [nights] even though I never really liked the atmosphere,” she reveals.
“People are just too encouraging. You can play the shittiest possible song and they’ll be like, ‘That was great’ and you’re like, ‘No, it wasn’t.’”
She formed Les Chausettes—translating to ‘the socks’ in French—in 2013, and has since gone on to front several shows, including snagging a coveted spot at North by North East (commonly known as NXNE) in Toronto. Her bandmates are perhaps more discerning than the open mic peers of the past, challenging Golubovic to write songs outside of her comfort zone.
“When the band started, I was like, ‘How do I write for a rock band? How do I figure that out?’” she recalls. “A lot of the songs we do now, they started more ballad-y and then we got them more up-tempo.”
Joined by bassist Maria Turner, guitarist Alex Monders, and drummer Felix Fung, Golubovic and Les Chausettes have released two 7-inch records on Punk Fox Records, a vinyl-only label based in the UK. The latest is Triple Water/Russian Boy, released on cassette with a digital download on Feb. 20.
The inspiration behind her writings? She won’t come out with any names, but romantic misery plays a crucial part in her creative process.
“The subject is usually relationships. I find people very interesting. I think almost every song is about a person…. Usually exes,” she laughs.
“It’s hard now because I’m in a nice relationship for once in my life so it’s like, ‘Can you just piss me off? I have nothing to write about anymore!’”
Even that seems a stretch too modest, as if releasing one album wasn’t enough, Golubovic also recently released a solo single as Jovana.
“I have all day, and the band only jams once a week so I have more stuff than we have time to do, but also the style is a bit different,” she says of her solo venture.
“When this band started, I had to adapt to that kind of style which was strange cause the style didn’t exist yet. I hadn’t been in a rock band before and before this, I had much more down-tempo, ballad-y, fancy chords.”
“Where I’m Going” was released on Feb. 15, produced by Les Chausettes drummer Felix Fung.
Guitar: Cody Andrusko, Bass: Max Sample, Drums: Salem Brownhttp://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3130242131/size=small/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/transparent=true/
Les Chausettes perform at Red Gate for International Women’s Day on Tuesday, March 8
Kristi Alexandra is an unabashed wino and wannabe musician. Her talents include drinking an entire bottle of cabernet sauvignon, singing in the bathtub, and falling asleep.
