Morgane Lhote aka Hologram Teen creates atmospheric electronic music that is equal parts dystopian horror movie soundtrack and disco dance banger. A French expat, she now lives in Los Angeles, after stints in London and New York City. Hologram Teen’s newest record, Between The Funk and the Fear, released by London label Polytechnic Youth, is a tribute to the places Lhote has lived, as well as her love of cinema, video games, and a full spectrum of pop music. After decades as a professional musician, recording and touring in bands including Stereolab, Hologram Teen is Morgane’s first solo record. It is a project that embraces her diverse musical influences and a dark, futuristic, queer aesthetic.
Morgane and I first met in Brooklyn in the late 00’s, when we bonded over our mutual love for the ridiculous elements of 60s French yéyé music and style, Feminist theory, over-the-top sci-fi thrillers like Escape from New York, and the “classic” 80s French teen melodrama La Boum. Between the Funk and the Fear brings together these influences to create an album that rides the line between danceable and experimental. I had a chance to catch up with Lhote over email about her record, and the experiences and pop culture that have influenced it.
*
Eleanor Whitney: You’ve been playing in bands for decades. How did you come to play music and, specifically, electronic music? What were some of your early musical influences or inspirations?
Morgane Lhote: I was really lucky in that my parents gave me a turntable and some of their records when I was 4 or 5. The two records I played constantly were the soundtrack to Grease and Breakfast in America by Supertramp. They also gave me this really weird record by Guy Béart, Futur Fiction Fantastique, which had this amazing futuristic cover by French cartoonist Mœbius.
When I was a teenager, I already knew I wanted to be a professional musician and at that point in time I really loved the Bangles, the B-52’s, and new wave bands in general like Talking Heads and Tom Tom Club.
I started playing in bands from the 1980s, but nothing serious, it was more like jamming with people from high school and I played drums back then. A couple years later, I also started playing guitars in local Paris bands with friends. It was nice to get that experience and learn to play with other people.
I didn’t start making electronic music until 5 years ago when I bought [the music-making software] Ableton Live 9 and suddenly I was like: I can do this on my own!
