A universe trash. A charming author. A Montreal character from Granby. Author Akim Gagnon leaves no one indifferent. Inspired by excerpts from his book The cigar at the edge of the lips, published last winter, our photojournalist Martin Tremblay accompanied the writer on a nocturnal trip, filled with alcohol and laughter. Because the border between the tumultuous life of the character of his book and his own life can sometimes seem enigmatic to us.
Posted at 7:00 a.m.
While the wound of my separation from Charlotte becomes a scab that reinfects itself with nothing, I gradually become a character: the survivor. Or the living dead. A thin, coked, alcoholic and totally lost Akim.
Excerpt from Cigar on the edge of the lips
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Akim Gagnon is finishing his new novel, to be published in 2023, by La Mèche editions. His balcony in the Villeray district is one of his favorite places to write.
It is always provocation that guides all of my ideas. I tread water with my feelings and I don’t delve into anything. Basically, what am I trying to say in my first pages? That I’m an alcoholic? That I’m slipping and losing control of my life?
Excerpt from Cigar on the edge of the lips
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
The cigar has become a favorite accessory of his character. Akim likes to smoke it while listening to the music of Leonard Cohen and drinking a few beers from Quebec microbreweries.
I want to smoke to clear my mind. I look at my cigars. Even though now I know karma doesn’t exist, I’m still going to smoke a $40 Cuban cigar for fear of setting my house on fire with a $9 Don Tomas cigar. I light up a Hoyo de Monterrey. I stare in the mirror. The smoke distorts my face. I feel like I’m suddenly three hundred years old.
Excerpt from Cigar on the edge of the lips
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Not wanting to sober up, Akim makes himself a “7 and 7”, a cocktail drunk by Paul McCartney during the recordings of the documentary Get Back. The recipe is simple: several ounces of Seagram’s 7, an inexpensive whiskey, poured into a can of 7 Up.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
He and his brother Karl (VioleTT Pi) love to play billiards together. They love the darkest taverns in Montreal. Karl and billiards occupy an important place in Akim’s novel. Karl is more than a brother to Akim. He is his best friend. A fusional relationship that is priceless for the author.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
The brothers finish the beer funds before leaving for the restaurant Au Pied de Cochon. The evening is well watered for the two accomplices. Karl and Akim discuss where their artistic creations come from. They don’t have an answer. One day, Akim wanted to write. He writes. Karl composes music and writes lyrics. It will be his third album next year.
Restaurant Au Pied de Cochon. As soon as I entered, I felt good there. Rare are the places where I have the impression of leaving my heavy coat of anguish in the locker room. […] I will remember all my life the first time I walked through the restaurant to get to our table.
Excerpt from Cigar on the edge of the lips
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
The Au Pied de Cochon restaurant became Akim’s headquarters. A place where he found a heartwarming friendship with chef Michael “Mike” Picard Labelle. Akim finds himself in the personality of the place. He always had a lot of admiration for the owner Martin Picard. A place where excesses are welcome.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Who is the real Akim? Is the character the author? Is everything true in his book? A question that remains unanswered. But that everyone asks the author, without ever getting an answer.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
The night is off to a good start. Akim is drunk. He and his brother will tour the bars of rue Saint-Denis to end this trip.
I step out and take a deep breath. Montreal is slightly hectic as I like it. I feel like an adult for once in my life. I watch the buses pass on the white light and the cars come to a stop at the red. I cross the street. My first steps as an adult. I walk without the help of my shrink, Clémentine, my parents, my brother, my friends and my shell. I’m taming my new balance.
Excerpt from Cigar on the edge of the lips
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
The night ends in an alley of the Plateau Mont-Royal. Both brothers will have a busy 2023. A new novel for Akim Gagnon and a new musical album for VioleTT Pi.