Alex Richard Interview – Issue 46

Introduction & Interview by Guy Jones

Artwork by Marion Mutt

Photography by Reece Leung, Clément Le Gall & Dave Manaud

“I’m never gonna be pro again.” The first day I met Alex he was singing this satirically to George Michael’s ‘Careless Whisper’. No arrogance – tick. Pop culture referenced with skateboarding- tick. Comedy – tick. I instantly knew I was going to like his personality as much as I admire his skating (which is held in high admiration anyhow). Bordeaux’s scene is thriving and one which deserves universal admiration and Alex is certainly beyond integral to this, loved by everyone near him and brimming with personality. If you get a chance to see his t-shirt and hat collection, the references mean the conversation will never dry up. Thank you so much for the interview Alex and be sure to check out his upcoming video part with us. Tonnes of love my man.

Hello! Thanks so much for doing this and how are you doing at this moment in time?

Mate! I’m the one who’s supposed to be thanking you for this. I’m good! I’m not really skating much at the moment due to some minor knee and rib injuries but, apart from that, everything is good.

You started your documentation early, with your first ad being a switch flip at 15 for Cartel Skateboards. Would you do it again for a Wasted advert as a subtle homage, and were you worried about going the Macaulay Culkin child star route?

Is paying homage to yourself really a thing now? I’ve never had that idea but would definitely consider it, since the spot is still there and I still might be able to do it. The Cartel situation was a right place, right time kind of thing. I went skating at the local park and met this sales rep guy called Stephane (shout out Steph). He was there to meet two older skaters from Bordeaux that I knew, they were already hooked up by the distribution thing the famous Stephane was working for. I’m pretty sure I tried to impress him a little bit haha, and ended up getting boxes of Circa Shoes, Cartel Boards and some shady Brazilian trucks too – I can’t remember the name of them now… I think at that time I was more hyped on the fact that I could basically skate for free, not having to ask my mum to buy me shoes and boards when I needed them.

As Outkast famously said, the only thing cooler than being in The Blobys is leaving The Blobys. Are you still down with this famous Parisian cult and, again, was there a fear of getting too popular? 

I just wanted to be in Bordeaux close to my family and do my thing. All these guys are from Paris and were living at their parents’ at this point, so I would go there a lot. I quit school early, which is dumb, but by doing so I was able to take the train there and go to Kevin’s or Vincent’s place every few months for a week basically. They would also spend a lot of time in Bordeaux, staying at my mum’s tiny apartment or with some friends. It’s nothing but good times and we had a lot of fun. I’m still in touch with some of them, I have nothing but love and respect for all of these gentlemen and I’m really grateful for these times. They are all great guys and I also got to witness some of the best skating just by spending time with them. Seeing a young Vincent skate was always really crazy, he has always been super good and kind of knew how to do everything or learn everything in five minutes.

I feel you must have a secret source of modesty, possibly some ancient well, as everyone in Bordeaux and certainly beyond refers to you as their favourite skateboarder. Do you ever switch into an alter ego and become super arrogant? If so, what would your name and outfit look like? Also, would you have a signature thing like entering rooms whilst blasting guitar solos?

If that was the case I would go for the white leather, like tight white leather pants with no shirt and a flamboyant red jacket, leather indeed. I would also ride a white tiger that would be called Glory or Bernardo and I would go for the flute, not the guitar. Or maybe I’d be accompanied by a metal band like Manowar or Kiss, like a hard rock ballet kind of performance. I’m not sure about the name, but it would have to be something epic but also dark and metal. All of that on a white tiger that spits fire.

Tapping into your friends for research, they say that you’re a massive nerd and hanging out with you for the day guarantees that you’ll give someone new information. So, firstly, what is it like to be a nerd?  

I would say it has its good and bad sides; like I know that I’ve already watched too many videos and read too many magazines, but at the same time there’s great stuff to watch that comes out every week… I can’t say that I watch every video that comes out these days since it would be impossible, but as a kid I was able to catch up with the internet haha. There were a lot less videos and parts coming out at that point too. Seriously, I just like watching things when I know it’s going to be interesting or fun. I grew up without the internet until I was 16 so I would watch a lot of DVDs and even a few VHS when I was younger. Skate videos, magazines and everything that goes with it have always been amongst my interests.

Secondly, would you like to give us a bit of information about a band or a film or some folklore for our lovely but ignorant readers?

Nothing crazy, but I recently came across a band called The Glove that I highly recommend. They’re a band formed by Robert Smith from The Cure and Steve Severin from Siouxsie and the Banshees, so it’s pretty much a weird mix of those bands, which I found really cool.

It’s nice to be able to speak to somebody that is so passionate about what they culturally consume. What were some inspirational skate videos for you growing up? I know Lost & Found is up there!

I started skating around 2001/2002 and I’m pretty sure my first videos were PJ Ladd’s Wonderful Horrible Life and Zero – Dying to Live. I remember watching those two a lot, but when I started hanging out at the skateshop I was able to see a lot more. I remember watching the DC Video for the first time with the shop owner and he was freaking out during Danny Way’s part, yelling “NO WAY NO WAY NO WAY” in English out loud in the shop. I also remember watching Mosaic there, which was very inspirational. Lost & Found came out a little later I think, but I watched it so many times. I was hyped on skaters from England and I thought it looked different from the French or American videos that I knew at this point too; there was more room for creativity and style. Also the music and the way it’s edited are just really well put together. To this day it’s still one of my favourite full lengths to watch.

Please don’t take this personally, but you’ve been referred to as a black cat for board brands – Trauma and Rave. Are you and the universe making sure they shine bright for a short time and are always remembered fondly? 

Who’s been saying that haha? I need names. I think the industry should definitely take this as a warning, do not sponsor me if you want to keep your business running haha. More seriously, it’s really sad that Rave is now gone. I actually quit Rave a year and a half before it went out of business because I wasn’t feeling it anymore, it started as a project made out of our friendship and mutual motivation and I guess you can’t keep on doing that for too long if you want to make money out of it, so it had to take different directions. I’m really grateful for all of this, but at some point it was just too different from what I liked in a board brand.

You and your girlfriend own a gorgeous cat. What’s their name and what band do they most relate to, firstly in appearance and secondly in personality?

The name is Marley but its full name is Doctor Marley Johnson the First; not for Bob Marley, even though I don’t have anything against Bob, it’s more because I liked how Marley sounds as a name. Don’t ask me about the doctor part, it’s a doctor and I have nothing to do with it. Marley is definitely a solo artist and can’t be part of a band because he likes to be the star of the show. He would not like to share the light of success with other cats or even people. Sometimes he reminds me of a Hutt, you know those big worms from Star Wars? He likes to lay on the floor and just do nothing except being a big worm.

We’re working with your fine self on a part now. I say we, it’s yourself and Doom Pat but your girlfriend is also providing visuals; how are you finding working with two people you are so close to?

It really doesn’t feel like working, at least for me since I have known Pierre for 15 years maybe. We have been roommates before too, so I think we kind of know how the other one works and it makes everything easier. I just feel like I’m going out to try to get clips with a really good friend that I can trust, he puts a lot of effort into trying to make my skating look good on camera and I know we very much like the same stuff in terms of skateboarding and videos so it’s just less pressure to put on myself. With my girlfriend Marion, who’s going to be doing the titles and some animations here and there, it came about because she draws a lot. She’s extremely talented and she likes to spend hours drawing on her tablet, and I thought it would be interesting and fun to try to work with someone that is a little bit outside of the skateboarding realm.

What are your top 3 hot sauces and where would you recommend we purchase them?

Habanero mustard from Oso Ojo, White Whale sauce, which is made with Jalapeno green pepper and lots of garlic, and there is one made with seaweed that goes extremely well with fish and meat but I can’t remember the name. We have a really good shop here in Bordeaux called Sweet Pepper and they have a pretty good website. Support your local hot sauce shop!

I don’t think we can do this interview without mentioning the prolific Bordeaux store that is Riot. How have they helped mould you as a human and a skater? Do you have any good skateshop stories? Also if Riot was a film what would it be?

I started going there when I was really young, I remember there were still one or two other skateshops in town but I ended up skating for the shop at the same time I started skating for Trauma. Trauma would only hook me up if I was sponsored by a shop so that they could try to sell some boards to said shop. I was 16 at this time and was already flowed or kind of helped by another skateshop when Trauma came about, but this shop wasn’t down with buying Trauma stuff. I don’t know what came over me, but I went to Seb (the owner) at Riot to ask him if I could skate for the shop so I could also skate for Trauma and he was down to help me out. I worked there for a few months when I was younger too. I would sell hotdogs, sandwiches and coffee at the entrance to the shop. I was babysitting Seb’s daughter when she was young too. Seb has always been there for me and for all of us skaters in Bordeaux. I have been working there for 5 years now and couldn’t be happier, it doesn’t feel like going to work. For sure it has its bad sides like every job, but it’s a blessing to be able to pay my rent and live the life I live just by being at the shop and helping out. As for a good skateshop story, I once had a guy coming in to ask me if I could serve him the strongest alcohol I had in stock. The guy was so drunk he didn’t even notice he wasn’t in a pub or a bar. He slowly walked out of the shop whilst shitting his pants… or maybe the pants were already full of shit, I’m not too sure about the timing.

When I met you, you had continued on from Dry January and kept going without the booze. Could you talk to us a little bit about that, and any techniques to help stay off the booze? I mean we defo grew up in the Piss Drunx generation. 

I was definitely an alcoholic. I was drinking every day, partying, doing drugs and going out on any occasion and for no particular reasons. I was a good drunk, but really bad with hangovers. I was thinking about quitting for a year before I actually tried to do so. I would love to be able to only drink a beer or one glass of wine and go home not drunk, not drink the day after and be in total control of what I’m doing, but I can’t do that. I suffer from addiction and I guess it’s always going to be there. So I’m not sure if I’m in a good position to recommend being sober or anything, except maybe to try to do what is good for you and for the people that are around you and also maybe listen to the people that know you and that are close to you.

Well put! Staying on the subject of generation, you’ve mentioned how you’ve witnessed kids get incredible then, by the time they’re 16, get bored of skating; as if they completed the physicality of it but maybe missed out on the culture. Do you feel this is the way things are going, or are there going to be other generations of kids overanalysing someone’s kickflip, or the lighting and outfit in a photo? Basically are you going to be a comic book protagonist reinstating the nerdery into skateboarding?

I think skateboarding has grown into something that we can’t control, it doesn’t belong to anyone and it’s something that we can’t own for ourselves like we thought we could. Everybody skates and everybody can be good on a skateboard. Now more than ever before it’s about what you want to do with it; good or bad, creative or not, technical or whatever. There is a lot more freedom to skate the way you want or dress the way you want so I would say it’s a great time to be a skater, even if you’ll still find a few old heads mad at you because you’re different or you’re supposedly flipping your board too much for their old narrow eyes.

Is it nice to ride for the brand Wasted and not be wasted? How did you get on the brand? I really love what they’re doing! Does it also mean you’ll have to go to Paris more?

It looks like I’m going to have to go there a little more for sure. Paris is fun, especially if you’re there to skate, so I’m down to be there more often. It seems like the people at Wasted have a real desire to do something that skaters can relate to. They are putting a lot of effort into making the brand better and better and it’s mostly people that I know already or people that I have been skating with in Bordeaux or Paris, so I’m hyped.

Please give us any recommendations, shout outs or nonsense if you’d be so kind Mr Richard.

Huge cliché incoming. It might be a lot to you – just like it is to me – but try to keep in mind and remember it’s only a piece of wood and steel. It’s basically a toy that we have turned into something more, but it’s still a toy. So maybe try not to think of it as something that’s too serious, try to keep it fun and do whatever you want with it. It’s not something that you have to do a certain way.

I’d like to thank all my friends in Bordeaux and everywhere around the world, my girlfriend Marion for being the best person in the universe and my mother Isabelle…

You guys, Guy, Reece and Vinnie, for making this possible, Clement Legall and David Manaud for helping out with the photos, Pierre “DoomPat” Patissou for filming and editing the part,  Mark Baines, Flo Mirtain and NB Numeric, Seb, Vince Bibou and Louis at Riot Skateshop, Beber at Haze Wheels, Luidgi Gaydu, Jerome Valette, Joey Tershay and Steve “Shrewgy” Ruge at Ace Trucks, Paul Labadie at Ashes Griptape, Johann Liebel, Fang and Arthur Giat at Wasted Paris.