After seven years away, SSION have returned to reinvent, and reinvigorate, pop music with their sixth album, O. And when he’s not busy being the frontman of SSION, Cody Critcheloe directs videos for other artists like Robyn, Gossip, Kylie, Santigold, Perfume Genius, etc. Cody’s behind all of them.

It’s not often Loverboy goes into an interview with zero questions written down on our pad. But having ‘brutally worked on a video and not left the flat in 48 hours’, Cody was in no mood for a ‘regular’ interview. He just wanted to talk. Talk about Tori Spelling’s big hair; trans characters in Almodovar films; Queer appropriation; Courtney Love being the American Dream; one night stands in Barcelona; fangirling over Roisin; crying over Bette Midler; being scared shitless by Pet Shop Boys…and yes, even Mariah! Enjoy. We did.

So, Cody, is this a SSION video you’re working on?
I don’t work this hard on other people’s stuff! Haha…To be honest, I mostly make videos for female artists which is way more intense than for men. Dudes are generally pretty boring.

I saw you tweeting about Pet Shop Boys the other day. They play with their image a lot.
Yeah, Discography was my big introduction. I didn’t get into them properly until 1999! ‘West End Girls’ scared the shit out of me as a kid, which made me like it more. It felt dangerous, like, ‘This is what the big city sounds like.’ Maybe it was a sixth sense, but I don’t think it was a gay thing.

I hid all my ‘gay’ music at the back of my cupboard.
How exciting! I sometimes worry that kids don’t get a chance to feel dangerous and hide stuff anymore. Someone told me about this new show with a gay bully! Things have changed! I’m just thankful I got to feel so much shame and guilt growing up. Haha…

What TV shows did you watch as a kid?
Pee Wee’s Playhouse. Beavis & Butthead. SNL. Anything with a rotten sense of humour. At college my boyfriend was really into the female wrestlers like Chyna. He collected all the dolls. So I watched that with him. I loved 90210. I always thought Donna was the coolest because she was the outcast…I also loved how big her hair was. Very thick. Someone recently compared her to a horse which endeared her to me even more! I mean, I love horses!
But as a kid, my dream was to be on Mickey Mouse Club – the Britney & Christina era. It was right on the cusp of me realising I didn’t fit that mould and then discovering punk rock.

Did you perform as a kid?
No. I lived in a teeny, tiny bumfuck town in Kentucky and because my parents were Southern Baptist, the only outlet was the church play. I thought it was so lame. The lighting sucked. The story was boring. My parents said, ‘But if you want to act, why don’t you want to do the church play?’ I was like, ‘Because I don’t want to play a sheep in a manger?! I wanna be Jesus on the cross or the prostitute washing Jesus’ feet!’

Were you into music at a young age?
Oh, I grew up on MTV. Dad was a young Redneck dude, Mom was hardcore into Def Leppard, Poison & Motley Crue. I used to watch MTV with them. But once they realised I was obsessed, they freaked out as if it was a bad influence. But MTV wasn’t that different from Saturday morning cartoons. Prince, Madonna, Michael Jackson…they were all caricatures.

You love Bob Fosse too, right?
I read a book on him and became obsessed. I’m even referencing All That Jazz again in this new video. I’m not into musical theatre at all. I only saw my first Broadway musical, Hello, Dolly!, last year! When Bette started doing her big number, this woman next to me just started crying. It was so cool.
I would always cry when I first went to rock shows. I just hadn’t had access to that kind of stuff. My Mom drove me four hours to see my first rock concert, Sonic Youth, as a teenager. As soon as they came onstage, I started bawling.

It’s been seven years since your last album. Has the music scene changed?
Drastically. I got so burned out after the last SSION album, Bent, now I don’t care about being relevant that much, which makes me extremely relevant. Haha…Obviously I’m not trying to turn people off completely, that’s why I do pop. My new label is really supportive. Have I ever compromised my work? I don’t think I know how.
Also we’re in this age where everyone wants to be queer. It’s bullshit. A lot of straight people are just playing Halloween with gender. ‘Oh, I’m non-binary.’ Bitch, you just drew on a moustache! However it’s all part of the evolution, so it’s fine and I’m enjoying everyone’s interest in it… while it lasts! It’s been good for business.

People are quick to be offended too. Do you find yourself being more cautious with your work?
No, my work is too personal. Someone is always going to be offended by something. That’s the culture we live in. Artists are being more aware now though. But it’s one thing to be aware and another to just censor yourself. That’s the dividing line.
It grosses me out when straight artists pander to the whole LGBT thing in this forced way to be diverse. I was so into Riot Grrrl – Huggy Bear, Sleater-Kinney, Bikini Kill. I thought, ‘This is so amazing to have other queer artists.’ I thought they were waving this flag and it was all bullshit. I was crushed when I found out that none of them were actually gay.

Were you into grunge?
Yeah, but not really grunge. It was more of a punk rock thing. As a kid I had this moment of, ‘I want to be a popstar,’ but then, ‘This isn’t going to work because I’m gay. I don’t look like these people. I’m a weirdo.’ Punk was so liberating. It let me think, ‘Oh I can be a musician and write songs. I can do anything I want because there are no rules.

Can you believe it’s been twenty years since Celebrity Skin!
Narratively those three albums have such an amazing cinematic arc to them – Pretty On The Inside, Live Through This and then Celebrity Skin. Courtney Love is more of an American Dream story than Madonna. Imagine that eighteen year-old girl in Portland, potentially the ugliest, most obnoxious girl (but also the smartest chick) on the entire scene, but being like, ‘I’m going to be the biggest rock star.’ Everyone’s like, ‘Yeah, right.’ I love that so much. She just willed it.

We should talk about SSION too! What’s your next single?
‘Inherit’. O is going to continue into 2019. It’s important to give the album the legacy it deserves. We’re doing videos for every song on the album. I really love making videos for myself. It’s such a privilege to be able to make your own world. I’m also using the opportunity to learn how to make a proper film. I feel like all my new videos have been scratching the surface of a proper film. It’s inevitable.

What sort of film would you like to make?
I’m not sure. Something with a lot of female energy! Something vibrant and funny but also emotional and dark… kinda like my music videos. My favourite filmmaker is Almodovar, especially Law of Desire. He has been hugely influential. I love that he never gets lumped into that category of ‘gay director.’

Why do you think that is?
Because most gay movies are always the same thing – someone in a small town ‘comes out’ and blah blah blah. We’ve seen it a thousand times. Not that it shouldn’t be told but that’s the ‘gay’ movie. I also think that’s such an American narrative. We just love that shit.
Almodovar’s films still have this element of punk. They really embrace gay characters without being singular. You’ll casually learn someone’s sister is trans half-way through the film and it’s not a huge deal. It’s not the main course. It’s post-liberation. I’ve always put my LGBT friends in videos but I don’t want it to be the plot. The ‘identity’ narrative is too flat right now. I hate flat shit.

I live in Barcelona and that attitude is very Spanish.
I had one of the most romantic one-night-stands last time when we played Barcelona. It holds a really special place in my heart. What an angel. We communicated through Google translate. He was a mechanic. We’re setting up a tour for Spring/Summer 2019. We’ll definitely come back!

Are you a circuit party fan?
No! That’s my nightmare. I don’t like the music. No one is dancing. It’s like cattle. Although I love cattle so that’s not really fair.

You went to Ibiza this summer though. How was that?
So much fun. I shot a music video for Robyn there. I don’t even know if I should talk about this, but she already had a concept and wanted something docu-style-ish. I didn’t think it was really the right project for me because I’m not a docu-type person. I have this idea of myself as a director; narrative, over-the-top, ambitious, old-school pop videos. I wanted to make the big ‘pop video’. But she was insistent and I’m glad too because it broke me out of my comfort zone. I’m so honoured she asked me to do it, to see me in that way, to connect with actually shooting again and to take a risk with her. She’s an angel in my life. I have so much love and respect for her.

Have you seen the Grace Jones documentary, Bloodlight & Bami? Your time with Robyn sounds like the part of the film with Grace in Jamaica.
Yes, I didn’t even think about that! I actually hung out with Robyn in New York first and we discussed that documentary. I don’t think it compares because I made a music video for Robyn whereas the Grace Jones documentary is a much huger endeavour.

I wanted to ask about working with Roisin Murphy.
I’m in awe of her. When she released Hairless Toys and Take Her Up To Monto, I spilled into worship territory. I was on this mission, where, I didn’t even need to collaborate with her, I just needed to tell her that I loved what she was doing. I felt so charged from her artistic output. She has that punk rock spirit… the music, the videos, the performance, all of it.

Did you write ‘The Cruel Twirl’ with her in mind?
I actually had the monologue sitting around forever. Then one night, I thought, ‘I wonder if Roisin would do it? She would be so good.’ I wasn’t sure whether her accent would be weird because the monologue came from such an American point of view. But when she sent it back I just melted as I was hearing it. I’m just such a fan that I have no perspective anymore. Haha…

Which other female artist would you most like to work with?
Madonna.

Madonna’s back with Mirwais, right?
Yeah. Music is one of my favourite Madonna albums. Ray of Light was the spiritual awakening that gave forth this amazing new era. I think that’s what makes Music so great. It’s post-spiritual-liberation, so it’s more fun and silly at times. ‘Impressive Instant’ is actually my favourite Madonna song of all time. It sounds really fresh and exciting. I always root for her, she has great albums still to come, she just needs to make the album she wants to make.
Michael’s gone. Prince has gone. George Michael’s gone. She’s the only one left and I want to know the perspective of a sixty year-old megastar. That was the problem with ‘Bitch, I’m Madonna.’ I just didn’t believe it. Is she really popping bottles on the rooftop? Maybe she is…but it didn’t feel fun for some reason.

Lastly, we are named after the iconic Mariah Carey song, ‘Loverboy.’ Which is your favourite Mariah song?
Well, Mariah is a writer. She may not get credit for it now but she will. You never get credit for those kind of things until you’re gone. ‘Touch My Body’ is my favourite song but this is going to sound blasphemous to you…I totally missed the Mariah boat.

Er…Cody, we love you and all but to quote the Queen herself, ‘You need to G.T.F.O.’ xoxo

SSION tour with Jake Shears this Fall.
For more information, follow SSION on Instagram / Facebook.

Credits
Interview Michael Turnbull
Photography Greg Endries
Styling James Veloria
Grooming Michael Moreno