Quickie with Peaches
Peaches, Lube Evangelist
For those who don’t know Peaches personally, the Canadian electroclash musician has kept a mostly low profile in the ten years since she last released an album. For those close to her though, like ultra-gay filmmaker Matt Lambert, she’s been a loyal fixture of the queer punk scene in that sometimes gloomy German capital they both call home. If a generation of baby queers grew up being told to “fuck the pain away”, Peaches, now 59, is back with some follow-up tips on how to do so with confidence, by spreading the gospel of good lube. Her latest album, ‘No Lube So Rude’ is out tomorrow with an x-rated music video directed by Matt, filmed at a queer trailer park in Berlin with a diverse cast of freaks and face-sitters. After a quick lunchtime chat, Matt and Peaches let it all hang out in the sauna together for some pics.
Peaches: I hope you don’t mind me eating lunch, it’s a mess-apalooza over here.
Matt: No, this is a safe space. So what the BUTT is No Lube So Rude?
Well, BUTT, lube is not just for gay men who forget their poppers. Lube is for everybody, and it’s very important for post-menopausal women. I think lube is something that can bring everybody together and bring you to a new level. And if you forget the lube, it’s quite rude! And also, I um, (takes a bite) if you don’t bring the lube, there’s going to be situations where you’re going to consent to things that aren’t comfortable for you. And in this way lube will help you and also bring you to more of an understanding.
Amen. So what turns you on and why?
What turns me on? Confidence. Revolution. I’m gonna go for the ‘Raspberry Reich’ approach.
Has that changed over the years?
In the early days, I think it was more performative, and now I’m more…trying to be real with it.
If you could be a fly on a wall in anyone’s bedroom, who would that be?
Oh my God. I’ll start with Annie Sprinkle, there’s a lot to learn from her. And she’ll just have sex anywhere – it doesn’t have to be the bedroom.
When you think about sex personified, is there anybody that comes to mind?
I think about someone like Wendy O. Williams from The Plasmatics. Also, Grace Jones. Definitely Grace Jones more than Madonna. Not that I’m dissing Madonna… It would actually be very interesting to be a fly on the wall for Madonna, too. There’s insane experiences there! Who do you think about?
I think that’s changed for me over time. Sex is not about looks, it’s how someone makes you feel. Do you savor the political shock value of sex in your work?
People are always asking me, like, “do you feel like your work is political?” Yes sure, or whatever. But I’m not the political one. I am reacting to the politicisation of sexual activity.
I mean, it’s political because we exist within a political system.
Right, it starts with that. But calling me political is sort of like ‘putting baby in the corner’. You know what I mean? We’re reacting to what is systematically being made political, but then being called political.
When we made the No Lube So Rude music video together as just the biggest lubey orgy ever, people were naturally asking ‘is it too provocative?’ And I was just like, this is such a fucking relative thing.
Exactly. And you know what? It’s also about the resistant act of joy.
I mean, the biggest fear for fascism is orgasmic energy, because you cannot tame an orgasm – as much as people try their whole lives.
An orgasm is so transformative, it’s our way of releasing ourselves. Why are we trying to put ourselves under this tension by resisting it? All we have is our bodies.
Totally… Where do we go from here?
I think it’s very important for people to understand how they can best serve the community in terms of bringing energy and inspiration and art. I know that I can bring a celebratory nature in a dark time, and it’s not a celebratory way of avoiding what’s going on, but of finding the joy in it.
Exactly, right.
On more of a metaphysical level, I see lube is an allegory. Our world is full of dryness and tension. If we had magical lube, maybe we could at least start to have the seed of understanding between us and feel a little bit less tension in terms of hearing other people’s perspective.