STACK July 2017 Issue 153

86 / 107

06 JULY 2017
continued
visit MUSIC NEWS
As the front woman of The Gossip, Beth
Ditto projected something – 'be yourself,
and only yourself 24/7.' She was undeniable,
on stage, on record, in person. In the five
years since the group ended, Ditto has been
seen on runways modelling for Marc Jacobs,
and started her own self-titled clothing line.
Her debut solo album Fake Sugar
started as Gossip record, sans
long-time collaborator Nathan
Howdeshell. Recording. It became
apparent the project would be Beth
Ditto solo; the idea of The Gossip
dissipating into history with the
guitarist's departure. "It just felt...
damp. Heavy – not the good kind
of 'heavy'." she tells STACK. "But
like we were in the rain wearing
cover-all suits made of sponges. The
light hearted approach was always
our happiness. When that was gone, the light
was out."
After a few years figuring out post-Gossip
life – including marrying partner Kristen
Ogata – Ditto again felt the pull of music,
of unfinished business. She also felt she
needed a sounding board, electing to work
with established LA songwriter/producer
Jennifer Decilveo – although this too was not
without its sparks and hiccups. "It takes a
certain skillset to argue without a fight. And
she and I did it almost everyday!" says Ditto.
"I need that kind of honesty! Someone who
will go to the mat for their opinions. Because
I would. Yes, people are difficult for me to
figure out." Inevitably, life's events – both in
her own, and in the wider sense impacted on
the music. Go Baby Go is dedicated to late
Suicide vocalist Alan Vega (a reference to his
Dream Baby Dream), while In and Out delves
into the vagaries of relationship dynamics
when the stakes are high. But Ditto says its
general, rather than being about one specific
person. "In the way when you're devoted to
someone for life, you made a commitment to
good days, bad days, good weeks bad weeks,
good years , bad years." she reflects " As with
anything there's an ebb and flow, and that's
normal. I wrote it off the top of my head, but
in retrospect it's certainly about marriage or
LTR, or anything you've signed onto for the
long haul. We go 'in and out'."
With Ditto, what you see and hear really
is what you get. There's little artifice or
construction, and she just can't be anybody
but herself. Emotion is very much on the
sleeve: Lover is a case in point. "Make me
believe/ because I want to believe more
than anything." she sings. Is it an exercise in
pulling the wool over her own eyes? ! "I have
a tendency of pulling off the wool too much!"
she counters " I can be very suspicious of
everyone! Travelling, being left to your own
devices alone on a bus at 3 am... your mind
makes you feel crazy. It's funny how you can
be surrounded by so many people, and still
feel so lonely! "
Indeed, Ditto – at the height of The Gossip
a globally famous figure, and still a highly
recognised individual – is all too aware of the
power and price of high visbility. She recently
said that Standing In The Way of Control, was
more relevant in 2017 than when she wrote
it 2006. "I think the internet is more powerful
now than it was then." she muses. "So that's
one way to use your voice, that wasn't as
much 'a thing'. 'Social media', if you will I'm
still very overwhelmed by this administration
and its effects on the entire world and
sometimes when I'm asked I feel swamped
with words, negative feelings and emotions.
Mostly angry, outrage , disappointment
and fear."
But Ditto's world isn't world weary angst
and dismay at the swifly unravelling world.Oh
La La invokes the children of Sesame Street
skipping double dutch, chanting 'let's get the
rhythm of the hot dog', while Love in Real
Life opens with a thumb piano. If anything,
Fake Sugar has playfulness in spades. And
Ditto's own visage remains spectacular:
she was recently photographed wearing a
white silk suit with red flames, flowers and
embroidered eyeball on the sleeve, created
by London designer Dilara Findikoglou,
"Google her: she's a force of nature." Ditto
exclains. Ironic really, given that's what Ditto
herself is proving to be, once again.
I'm still very overwhelmed
by this administration and its
effects on the entire world
Fake Sugar
by Beth Ditto is
out now via
EMI/Sony
Beth Ditto
INTERVIEW
Ex-Gossip vocalist Beth Ditto returns with her
debut solo album Fake Sugar. She spoke to
STACK's Zoë Radas.