Benoit Poirier

How long have you been involved with CISM and how did you first hear about the station?

Quite the timing here, NACC – as of August 2023, I’ve been CISM’s MD for 10 years! Apparently I now hold the record for the longest running employee here. 
First heard about CISM before moving to Montreal 20+ years ago (the station being considered one of the best around in all the province – not to be a chauvinist, but still), worked and/or was involved in other stations in Montreal (CIBL, CHOQ, Radio-Canada) before ending up here, and, well, it’s the best.

Tell us about the duties of your job and what part of it you love the most and what is most challenging.

I usually summarize my duties as being in charge of the music that comes in and out of the station – i.e. sorting out what we receive everyday while keeping an ear on the stuff our DJs want to play but that we don’t have in our music library – which I assume is the job of every MD?

The best part is the daily potential of discovering some great song or artist or album and bringing something to the scene. As for the challenging part, there’s the quotas thing that some people might find annoying: being in Canada, we have to play 35% CANCON stuff, and additionally being in Quebec, we have to play 65% franco stuff, but in reality the two intersect seamlessly, and it makes for a great showcase of local music. Also, not having to worry about FCC is kinda neat.

I’d say there’s no really annoying part in the job, which makes the job even better!

What advice can you offer other MDs regarding the ways you encourage your DJs to play the new music the station receives from labels and promoters?

I compile all our adds of the week in a weekly mailer, and I guess the RIYLs help. I also update our streaming playlists weekly. The most efficient part is when I really get into something and talk about it all the time, I guess (i.e. 100 gecs + Poison Ruïn, recently).

What ways does the station reach out to/interact with the community and work to grow your audience/footprint?

Another thing I love about my job is that I don’t have to worry about this since I have colleagues whose job it is to do so ? But sometimes I feel inspired and post stuff like « C’est tu assez nice la musique » (“Isn’t music nice?”) on our socials and we get a bunch of likes – glad to help.

What was your favorite album of the past year or so and why?  Is there a 2023 release on the horizon you are eagerly awaiting?

10 000 gecs is undoubtedly a whole lot of fun! But I’m going with Poison Ruïn’s Härvest – I love everything about it: the medieval themes, the gritty yet catchy tunes, the idiosyncratic hardcore playing, the dude in a chainmail on their artwork. 
I’m thrilled by the upcoming local releases over here: Yocto’s Zepta Supernova, Laurence-Anne’s Oniromancie, Crabe’s Visite du temple inné, Population II’s Électrons libres du québec, Arielle Soucy’s Il n’y a rien que je ne suis pas + Élégie’s Romantisme.

Do you have a favorite artist or album you never get tired of listening to?

I have a trifecta of albums I always go back to: Brian Eno’s Another Green World (a staple in the best pop being experimental), Walter Wendy Carlos’ Sonic Seasonings (lush yet intense and sometimes scary soundscapes) + The Deep Listening Band’s Troglodyte Delight (Pauline Oliveros, Stuart Dempster + Panaiotis jamming in a cave while the mics seem to be really close to a spring, feels like the music is coming out of the running water). On a local scale, I’d go with folksters Avec pas d’casque.

Who is an artist or band totally outside the realm of the music you play on CISM that people might be surprised to know you love?

The most obvious would be Québécois singer-songwriter Gilles Vigneault – he penned some huge patriotic hymns which I don’t really care about, but I’m really his more poetic yet down-to-earth stuff.
A contrario – I’m not into the concept of “guilty pleasures”, i.e. you like what you like, but I feel kinda dirty to appreciate The War On Drugs (which we play but I think is lame buuut kinda dig against my own will somehow).

If you had the power to instantly change one thing going on in the world at the moment, what would it be?

Could that one thing be that it’s not going well?

What event or person in your life would you say has shaped you the most as a person?

I was thinking about this the other day and it dawned on me that my parents were not into music but my dad liking usually underappreciated food like giblets, kidneys, strong cheese and sauces and the likes might have had an impact on me being into left-field stuff (hence, music) somehow. Growing up in the countryside with no cable TV, I had a bit of a hard time discovering music when I was young, but when I could plug into MusiquePlus I’d be into the alternative franco stuff, being particularly fan of local prog-punk outfit Groovy Aardvark – whose main man Vincent Peake has been an influence on my music ethos + is now an acquaintance.

If you could choose, what time period in the past would you most want to travel back to visit and why?

I don’t see why I would want to go back to a time when there were no 100 gecs.
Also the past usually looks stupid IMO, and the future doesn’t look nice, so… UVAV (« Une vie à vivre », the jokesy queb equivalent to YOLO) + let’s go forward the best we can.

Do you have a favorite restaurant in town (dine-in or take out) that you recommend people try?

My girlfriend is quite the cook so we don’t eat out often – BUT if you ever drop by the Richmond (QC) area in the Eastern Townships you have to try Jean-Gab Martin’s chicken at La Guinguette des Cantons – best chicken I ever had.

What in your life brings you the most joy?

Being on stage behind a drum kit and/or having a day off in the countryside and deciding on the spot that I’ll build something practical with leftover wood or chainsaw and chop down a dead tree and/or listening (+ singing) to P’tit Belliveau while driving

Lightning Round:

Dog or Cat? Cat – a moody grey tabby 17 years old male!
Morning Person or Night Owl? Used to be the latter, transitioning to the former (i.e. adulting)
City or Country? Grew up in the countryside, been in the city for 20+ years, now ready to go back to the country
Beach or Mountains? Mountains! For the hike, the view + the view during the hike / Too many people at the beach
Watch TV or Read A Book? I’d recommend reading a book
Sunny or Rainy? We’ve had our share of rain since the beginning of summer, but IMO it’s way better than a potential drought – but hey, it’s all about balance (i.e. sun is nice)
Restaurant or Home Cooking? As mentioned above, home cooking, even though I’m not the one who does the cooking (s/o to Stéphanie <3)
Pants or Shorts? Short shorts or GTFO
Warm or Cold drinks? I like how all the questions in the Lightning Round could be answered with “Depends” – yerba mate during the day, beer in the evening, water (cold, preferably) throughout

Do you have any current favorite TV shows you’re enjoying/binging? How about a movie (new or old) that you’ve watched recently that you would recommend?

Even though I’d recommend reading a book (I’m re-reading The Sound and the Fury rn), I’m psyched for Ari Aster’s Beau Is Afraid.

Finally, If you could have a lifetime supply of anything, what would it be

GIFs (+ Labatt 50)