Jacques Renault, NY North Star

What does it mean to be a New Yorker when you spend much of your time traveling out of the city? And would you call yourself a New York artist when your teenage years as a punk rocker in DC, or your twenties as a raver and record-digger in Chicago, might have been as influential as all the years you spent in Manhattan and Williamsburg? Until Jacques Renault settled in New York in the early 2000’s, the City had stayed in his life’s background. But one day it was time for him to move there, “to try or die trying”. He did try and he made it. As he celebrates the release of his third album “Sky Islands”, Jacques tells us what it is to be a New Yorker: it’s feeling at home every time you come back.

NOUVEAU YORK: When did you come back in the city?

JACQUES RENAULT: We just got back from the beach this week! Feels good but weird to be traveling. To be honest I haven’t found my comfort zone after all we’ve been through this past year.

NY: I heard you spent some time in Europe during the pandemic.

JR: We went to Austria in August and returned in November before Thanksgiving. My wife, our 4 month old daughter and I leaving Newark was super stressful considering how cautious we had been up to that point. Being isolated and keeping close for months we hardly saw friends or family, so to prepare to be in a plane being close to people was nothing we were ready for. While we were there we stayed mostly in the mountainside, isolated again and felt safe but we didn’t know how long we’d be away from home.

NY: Taking some distance with New York, what did that make you realize about the city?

JR: We missed New York, our friends and our ways, but what it felt like before the pandemic so kinda unsure what it would be like when we went back. Then we were ready. Our return flight was out of Munich and we were 3 of 21 people on the plane so that was entirely different. Much safer looking back at it but from someone that’s been to airports often for the past 10 years it was nothing like I’d felt before. The terminal was almost empty and with obvious travel restrictions we were only of a few that could return to the USA.

NY: You’re from Washington DC, studied in Chicago and ended up in New York in the early 2000’s. You’ve also been traveling a lot and sometimes spend months living in London, Vienna, Berlin… Would you say NYC is your final, ultimate home base?

JR: I worked hard to be traveling with music, so I spent a lot of time away but I always felt that New York was home. Living in other cities felt temporary because I treated that way. I’m sort of loyal to my routines and where my things are at. I didn’t accept that I was a collector for years but what I’ve acquired over the years is my timeline. Digital things don’t replace physical so sure my piles of T-shirts are important but honestly I don’t know where I’d be if I didn’t have my friends and my music, that’s for sure.

“The Statue of Liberty seemed like the biggest place ever and I was the smallest person to be walking up those steps.”

NY: Do you definitely feel like a New Yorker?

JR: Coming back to New York or living here is a feeling I can’t quite put into specific words. Maybe it’s the rushing from place to place with the late nights along with the travel, so when you’re back, you’re back. It always feels like home. There’s a pace that comes with it all, something I share with friends. I don’t know many native New Yorkers, so we’re all kinda transplanted here because it’s a choice we’ve made to live this way.

NY: Let’s go back to your teenage years in DC. We’re in the early 1990’s. You said you were a “post-punk”, at a time when Nirvana was the biggest band on earth. Does that mean you were looking to Seattle more than NYC at that time?

JR: I honestly was a proud DC kid so I was loyal to the bands that were from there. Nirvana or whatever was from Seattle sounded like outsiders to me. They had their own scene, but I was into my scene. Spoken as a teenager, so whatever that means! My number one band was Fugazi that introduced me to the loyalty of anything Dischord and everything that came with it. I went to shows almost every weekend starting with straightedge hardcore bands to eventually The Make-Up. It felt like a scene because it was and if you paid attention you knew where to go. I was in a few bands too and The Black Cat was the club I frequented the most and always wanted to play at. I’m not saying I didn’t like bands from other cities or countries, I went and heard plenty of them and bought their records. It just felt like DC was the coolest place on earth and they all wanted to be a band from DC.

NY: Before those teenage years, as a child, do you remember some kind of first connection with NYC?

JR: The first trip to New York that I have memories of was when I was 7 or 8 to play the violin. My instructor was giving a class and I was one of a few of her students that performed. I remember that drive up like it was yesterday and entering the city being completely overwhelmed. My whole family took the trip and we stayed a few days hitting all the sites. My parents bought me John Lennon sunglasses and we had a family portrait with the Twin Towers in the background. The Statue of Liberty seemed like the biggest place ever and I was the smallest person to be walking up those steps.

NY: Your partner in Let’s Play House, Nik Mercer told us about being at first more interested in Japanese culture, Tokyo and the West Coast than in NYC. But it’s his love for Japanese culture that brought him closer to New York. Did you have the same kind of ‘cultural’ bridge to New York?

JR: I think it’s the attitude I fantasized about New York that brought me here. I wanted to give this city a shot. I felt that NY culture was try or die trying and I wanted that challenge. It was sort of getting out of my safe zone. When I left DC, I didn’t want to move back, I felt like I grew up there and as much as I loved and learned as a kid I wanted to go to more places. Chicago was perfect and completely different so after school, when I had the opportunity to move with a job to be here, it felt like the time was right. Being in your 20’s living in New York is the dream I had being in bands, getting in a van to drive up for a show and head back. Only this time I wanted to stay.

“I felt that NY culture was try or die trying and I wanted that challenge. It was sort of getting out of my safe zone.”

NY: You moved from DC to Chicago in 1997, discovered the rave scene and started deejaying. You got hooked on dance music and started working at the Gramaphone record shop. You said you were a bit late, “that was the end of an era.” Still Chicago was obviously a great place to fall in love with house music and was still one of its centers of attraction. Did you pay attention to which cities the music you fell in love with was coming from?

JR: When people start saying how things were before, I would constantly think how things are getting started. New to me music was something I wanted to hear and I was just starting to go out so it was fresh. The few raves I went to were epic and they just got less attended and uninteresting as they went along. I wasn’t participating in many ways but was so focused on what DJs were playing and fascinated with the sound. I was buying a lot of records from the UK and learning the differences of house in cities like New York. When I figured that out and heard producers like Metro Area my attention turned to what they were picking from. I was then finding a lot of gems that people were not interested in that were cheap, rare and often garbage. I liked stuff others thought was old news and began to curate my own sort of sound.

NY: You started being serious at digging records, new and old. Did that quest make you also connect with New York through label credits, producers, anything you would connect back to the city?

JR: I was trying to pick up on people and places from the labels. I wasn’t so particular but paid attention, took a lot of notes and made lists. Plenty of records don’t give you enough info, so I also just grabbed things that caught my eye. Could even be something written on it with a pen or the easy or more obvious way was to see if there was dub or instrumental. I was kinda turned off by full vocal tunes for example and if that Italo record had a dub I’d play that side.

NY: You once said Phillip Glass was the single biggest influence on your musical career. How does Glass fit in your New York mythology?

JR: I thought Glass was the punk rock of Classical. So much counting, intricate rhythms and arrangements I knew he came from another world. I’d sit and listen to his ‘North Star’ album over and over just trying to wrap my head around it. I put him under the umbrella with a few other artists from New York that clearly were doing their own thing and had a mystical global following. He was underground to me and I know it was on a major label but his work was sort of what I thought bands like Stereolab were pulling from. The melodies were all perfect and even the breaths of the vocalists or his keys were so spot on. Listening to it again, I still think it’s some of the most beautiful music I know. I’ve seen him walking in Manhattan and heard him speak at BAM around a book tour. I eventually did see him perform live at the Hollywood Bowl in LA and met him after as well. Not much of a chit chat kinda guy, but that went with the environment.

Jacques Renault playing at Carnegie Hall (1997)

“In 1997, I went up a few times including performing Shostakovich with an orchestra at Carnegie Hall. I just thought the city was going to be packed with inspiration and when I arrived it was. It still is.”

NY: Speaking about NY mythology (or fantasy), could you describe it in the very early 2000’s right before you settled in Brooklyn?

JR: I still had the glimpses in mind of what I saw when I was younger along with the books and magazines you’d read and see things. In 1997, I went up a few times including performing Shostakovich with an orchestra at Carnegie Hall. I just thought the city was going to be packed with inspiration and when I arrived it was. It still is. Everywhere you look it’s something. That old storefront, your corner bodega (not that one, the other) or the neighbor that has been there for 30+ years are all part of this. My move into a neighborhood of people that had a building history that was also now a part of mine.

NY: What brought you to NYC in 2002? What do you remember of your first couple of months as a New Yorker?

JR: I moved with a job I had in Chicago to New York which was fortunate. I was an art school graduate building things, so I worked in stores to galleries to photo sets to making floors and walls in lofts. I only knew a handful of people, but that community opened me to tons of people. I was eager to meet new people and I did, going to different record shops daily or nights out and neighborhood shops or hangin in the Lower East Side. It was a slow build but I eventually had a solid crew for years that I think very fondly of. I was such a typical newbie, I didn’t want to miss anything. I never left the city and if I did I had major FOMO. I wanted to learn and hear and see everything.

NY: Musically, the early 2000’s in New York belong to The Strokes and DFA. What kind of long term influence that decade had on you?

JR: When the release of Arthur Russell’s “Calling Out of Context” compilation came out, that defined New York to me. I know it’s not current but it was. There were a handful of new releases I’d pick up but I was basically digging for older records all the time. They were sort of marks of New York history that I wanted to discover and make my own story in a way, but I guess I’m just like anyone else. But this compilation of these songs was something that as a group we could all listen to and relate to. It felt like he was my friend and in a band with my friends. “That’s Us/Wild Combination” is still one of my favorite songs, like ever. It’s safe to say what I create tries to capture nostalgia and newness like this. Rough, from the heart and arranged in a way that I want to hear it from start to finish.

“I guess I’m a New York artist, but I’m more of a born in DC living in Brooklyn guy.”

NY: In the 2010’s your path is similar to Nik’s, it’s a “wild but defining ride of free-wheeling parties and record releases” with your label Let’s Play House. What would be one of the decisive NY moments for you during that decade?

JR: Moving into my own apartment without roommates? That was a grown-up decisive moment [laughs]. Nah, Nik and I have shared so many memories over the years and while it’s been a wild ride there have been a few do it now or never times. I’d say our first warehouse party on Kent ave was a dive I realized after had to happen. There’s parties and then there are parties, right? Sinking in and investing effort in something you’re passionate about means the most. I don’t want to come off silly here, I mean it. That was a liftoff for me. When I had the opportunity to record at Red Bull Music studios and record my first album inviting musicians to collaborate with was an opportunity I embraced. Celebrating our 5 year anniversary at Rough Trade meant a lot for me, too. I’m sentimental but I continue to live in the present while looking ahead to the future. Ten years we’ve been working on Let’s Play House and that means more than most things these days.

NY: It’s July 2021, you’re releasing your third album, with an audacious format inspired by the late night radio megamix. I believe the latest single Larry Lenore sampled NY trio Sinnamon’s “I Need You Now” (1983). Do you consider yourself as a New York house artist, or do you have a more global vision of your craft?

JR: I’m coming up on 20 years in New York so I guess I’m a New York artist, but I’m more of a born in DC living in Brooklyn guy. It’s an album that’s kinda like a capsule of what I’ve been working on since I’ve been here. Eclectic but focused, unique but obvious, for the club but for your home. I don’t think I’m a “house” artist but more of a music maker that’s creating from what he’s surrounded by. I wouldn’t have made this if it wasn’t for what I’ve been exposed to all these years. I’m lucky to have seen and heard many people and places and then turned it all around in a way. My timeline is what I value the most, all the twists of this rollercoaster is what comes out. I’ve taken musical parts or samples of that journey to make this album.

NY: The format of the album reminds me of J Dilla’s ‘Donuts’, because of its short tracks, with a house twist. Does that make sense? Tell us about its creation process, how did the lockdown affect the way you produce and approach your own music?

JR: Wow, I appreciate that. This all kinda started while we were in Austria for 3 months. I had an hour or two after our daughter went to sleep at night to work on music. I sort of put a clock on myself to finish a track a night to the point where it’s worthy of a bounce to share. Sometimes I bounced two. I was going through older sessions and making new ones and picking through hours of samples and stems I have recorded over the years. I rediscovered things I forgot about or finished things that needed finishing. Some were close, some ended up nothing like where it started. I was getting up to 50 tracks or so and there was something building so once the idea of doing my third album with Nik came up I knew the time was right.

NY: What’s your big expectation for the summer?

JR: Oh man, I hope my family continues to be healthy and safe! Our daughter has my undivided attention right now so all our focus is on what’s best for her. My time is hers. I’m 42 but feel better than I did when I was 32 so I’ve also got that, my incredibly supportive wife, our like minded friends and there’s always music.

NY: What’s coming next in New York?

JR: I’m eager to know what will come next. NY feels different but the same. We’re easing into this next chapter step by step.

Jacques Renault’s new album “Sky Islands”
is out on Let’s Play House.

MUSIC
Soundcloud. Spotify. Bandcamp.

Jacques Picks Five New York Classics

Morgan Geist “Lullaby”
There are plenty of tracks that I call my “NY tunes” but Morgan Geist’s “Lullaby” from his “Super” EP is one of those that I picked up before moving here. This and “Miura” on “Metro Area 4” was another current jam of 2001 that I fell in love with and watched hundreds sell at Gramaphone while I was working there. They kinda capture what I fantasized about music in this city and they still remain favorites since they define the period of music at that time to me. Start to finish the arrangements just sit right. They are songs, so they stand out in the club, at home and pretty much wherever. Not too many producers have done this for me and I’m not alone with that thought. Thank you Morgan and Darshan.”

Donald Judd Foundation 101 Spring Street
“I went to The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and if there’s 1 artist I took away from it all it was Donald Judd. I studied graphic design and in my final year I focused on working in the wood shop. His work is centered, specific and consistent. Maximalist. Someone to look up to when you’re building with plywood for a few months and eventually I did that for years in New York while working in retail stores, building sets and lofts. I bought the “Donald Judd Selected Works 1960-1991“ book as a graduation present to myself and his foundation on Spring St. was one of these buildings that I was fascinated with when I moved here. It was closed off from the public for so long, covered in scaffolding and nothing to see through the windows for years. Soho was still a mysterious place and I didn’t think anyone cared about this building but you’d pass it and wonder if there's ever a moment to go inside. In 2019 it did reopen and when I finally had a tour it made me feel like how I did when I went to FAO Schwartz as a kid in the 80s. Beautiful.”

Roberto Clemente Ballpark, NYC
“There are a few staples in the city I can’t go without: The East River ferry, the subway and NYC parks. Before DJing, punk rock and art, I was obsessed with baseball. The late 80’s was the baseball card craze and my father and I went to baseball card shows every weekend for a few years. One of my favorite players was Roberto Clemente since I had this fascination with his stats and just how he was a legend. Living in South Williamsburg there are a couple parks that stand out, so when I discovered the one closest to me was named after him it became my go-to spot to take a break. It’s a little league baseball park and I’d go there mostly to run in the morning but eventually watched some of the games in the afternoons. I brought back my baseball card collection from my mom’s house to relive the moments of when my dad bought me cards. I still have his cards, of course. Jacob’s Ladder park is close too and I thought that was the scariest place ever only because of the movie, not a plant. Whenever I can I skip to the ferry next, since that’s my #1 view of Manhattan on any day and my suggestion to people from outta town or here to take anywhere for a few bucks. Better than the subway since it flooded after it rained today.”

Diner / Marlow & Sons & Daughters
“I like diners and Diner is like no other diner you’ve been to before. It was my first neighborhood hot spot and I’ve grown up with it. I didn’t know what comfort food was until I started eating there. Weird but true, they source the best ingredients that make everyone come back time and time again. It was a joke, do we try a new restaurant or just go to Diner? Marlow & Sons (& Daughters) has it’s charm and a steady menu and Diner does too but the specials were what you were interested in. I made friends with some of the chefs and staff over the years and it’s that one neighborhood place I continue to go to over and over to see friends for a bite or just to hang out. It was the first restaurant we brought our daughter to when we started feeling comfortable going out again after staying clear during the Covid hibernation.”

Nightmoves / Daymoves
“Nightclubs are places I frequent the most, but day clubs are something I want more in my life. This building was unique for the neighborhood as a special spot when Larry Lawrence [bar] was there, it looked so cool and it had this hidden entry. There was a restaurant in the front that closed and then a solid crew (including James Murphy) took it over and The Four Horseman was born and eventually Nightmoves in the back. It’s a coffee shop during the day and a night club at you know when. That’s modest. It’s like the perfect rec room you always needed. Did you ever want to play a house party at your house? This would be it. Perfect sound, meticulous decorations, incredible menu, rad staff and a crowd that knows it. It’s a place you respect and that’s because it feels like home. Not many places feel that way to me but there’s a charm and character that makes you treat it that way. I like to play there because I’ll play like I would at my own house party. Not your typical bangers or big drops or a light show (with the exception of the lit up disco floor) but smooth mixing and disco songs I like to hear for a dance with a friend or two. Maybe you do too. In a way, Nightmoves/Daymoves like Diner are sort of the same being #1 out of 100. I admire their focus and confidence backed by their passion. They define NYC to me with those traits.”