Some friends from Montreal (Ville St-Laurent), got together one day in the late 70s to make noise with guitars and drums and gave rise to Blue Oil. They recorded a bunch of original songs as a 4-piece female punk rock band in 1981, then became a trio and toured relentlessly until 1985, playing gigs around the province of Quebec and parts of Ontario. Early lineup: Manon Asselin (Aka Nilessa Noname): bass, lead vocal (1978-1991), Christiane Fatter: guitar, vocals (1978-1982 ), Manon Fatter: drums, vocals (1978-1991), Marie Martine Bédard (Aka Thin Coma): guitar, vocals (1981-1985).
Name:
Blue Oil
Genre:
Punk rock, new wave, post-punk
Founded:
1978
# of Albums:
Single 7inch (1982), 12inch EP in 1988 (with Chris In Vitro on bass and Cari B. Jones on keys), LP archival deluxe package in 2023 (Recordings from 1981 to 1983)
Latest Album:
Blue Oil – Supreme Echo 2023
Latest Single:
Money / Living for the Time (Self-released 1982)
Latest Video:
A mini-documentary on the early Blue Oil line-up featuring vintage tv and live footage, edited by Marie Martine.
Favourite musician growing up:
Manon F.: Véronique Sanson
Marie Martine: David Bowie
Nilessa: Too many to name one.
Favourite musician now:
Manon F.: Amyl and The Sniffers
Marie Martine: Lana Del Rey
Guilty pleasure song:
Marie Martine: Classical Gas by Tommy Emmanuel
Manon F.: Annette’s got the hits – Redd Kross
Nilessa: Too many!
Live show ritual:
Manon F.: sticking Band-Aids around fingers before playing.
Marie Martine: Hmmm, none.
Nilessa: Just getting ready.
Favourite local musician:
Marie Martine: Half Moon Run
Nilessa: Jean Leloup
Manon F. : Taxi Girls, Technicolor Blood
EP or LP?
We all agree on both!
Early bird or night owl?
Marie Martine: Night owl
Nilessa: Night owl
Manon F. : Early chicken
Road or studio?
Both
Any shows or albums coming up?
We are incredibly proud of the Blue Oil album just released by Supreme Echo. In parallel, Marie Martine recently put out a CD of her solo work: Projet Hippocampe, and Manon F. follows the path of BLUCHICKN, as a home studio recording project.
Where can we follow you?
***
Rapid Fire Local Questions:
What is your favourite local restaurant?
Marie Martine: Le Toqué
Manon F. : Resto bar Du Collège
Nilessa: I’m always trying new places.
What is your favourite street in your city and why?
Marie Martine: Ste-Catherine Street because you never get bored walking from east to west.
Manon F.: Saint-Denis Street downtown. Love the lights at night.
Nilessa: Avenue Laval, one of the prettiest streets on the Plateau.
What is your favourite park in your city and why?
Marie Martine: Carré Saint-Louis since it is my family’s park and was named after my great grandfather.
Manon F. : Parc Beaudet in Ville St-Laurent
Nilessa: Parc Lafontaine
What is your favourite music venue in your city?
Marie Martine: Club Soda
Manon F.: Any small club with live bands
Nilessa: Same as Manon F.
What is your favourite music store in your city?
Marie Martine: Le Backstore on Avenue des Pins.
Manon F.: Long&Mcquade for music gear, Le Backstore for vinyl.
