Hugo Manuel, a.k.a. Chad Valley, makes mesmerizing synth pop that is as danceable as it is fixating. Manuel, an original founding member of Blessing Force, released his first album as Chad Valley last year. Young Hunger is an electro-pop spectacle that is sure to delight an eager audience at the High Noon Saloon tonight.
The Oxford, England native spoke with us this weekend about his definition of pop music, dream collaborations, and how he chose his stage name.
You’ve described your music as pop in terms of sound and genre. How do you feel about the state of pop music today and what exactly does “pop” mean to you personally?
“I like to separate what I listen to as pop music from what I listen to as ‘everything else,’ I guess. Pop music is commercially-minded and while I think that that makes for a very interesting type of music, I don’t think that it should be considered on the same level as something that is written with no commercial intention whatsoever. I think right now there is a good scene in the pop world — Ke$ha’s last album was fantastic and Katy Perry is always amazing. There is some great pop music coming out of the far east from people like Kyary Pamyu Pamyu and 2NE1, too, and that stuff for me is on a whole different level because I can’t understand what they are singing, so I can be removed from it in a way that is pretty nice.”
What was the biggest challenge you faced recording your most recent record, Young Hunger?
“Just working with other people, which was something I hadn’t done before at all. My first two EPs were entirely solo efforts, from the writing, recording, and production, and this album was all about collaboration. I like to set myself a challenge — collaborating is not something that I do naturally. I am a loner in a lot of ways and I wanted to set myself the challenge of doing something out of my comfort zone. What I came out with in the end was different and better than anything I had done before.”
You’ve got a great collaboration with Twin Shadow on “I Owe You This.” If you could work on a track with any other artist right now, who would it be?
“Kyary Pamyu Pamyu would be amazing. She is an incredible Japanese pop star who uses very bubblegum melodies in a really cool way. She is perfect. Joni Mitchell is a hero of mine and she would be amazing to see at work.”
Is this your first time touring in the U.S.? What’s been the best stop so far?
“I’ve been over here for gigs a few times already — mostly for SXSW or CMJ, so I feel like I know New York and Austin pretty well but I am enjoying the more esoteric places like Richmond, Virginia and Jacksonville, Florida on this tour. I come from a small city so I feel more at home in the smaller places.”
How’d you choose the name Chad Valley? Have you spent time in that part of Birmingham, England?
“No, I have never been there — but I am planning a pilgrimage. I knew the name because a friend of mine used it as a pseudonym in a punk band and I basically stole it. It’s cool; he’s my manager now.”