As the cool
members of Scarve have the good idea to live just like me in this good old town
of Nancy, I have taken the opportunity to make something completely new : an
interview without moving my ass out of my flat ! And then, on a dark February
night, Patrick (guitar) and Dirk (drums) came here in order to answer to some
questions and listen to some stuff…
You’ve just released your
second album, ‘Transluscence’… How did it go concerning the recording and
everything else?
Patrick : In fact, this is
our first album officially produced and with a big distribution.
Dirk : Concerning the
recordings, we have had the help of our label because they have their own
studio. So we have been able to use all the stuff and record, which we made
with our sound engineer, the one we use for our shows. We also worked with
Daniel Berstrand, essentially for the mix, and for some recordings too. For
that, we went to Sweden, though everything else was made in France.
By the way, how was that in
Sweden?
Dirk : Very well! That was
a good experience, and he did what we were expecting of him. We wanted someone
who could push things into something quite extreme, concerning the sound. We
didn’t want to sound like a specific band, we wanted to go straight ahead, try
new things, and the idea was to give a strong identity, not only to the music,
we can do that, but also to the sound. We worked hard in that way.
And you got a very powerful
sound !
Dirk : Yeah, we wanted a
huge sound, but with a lot of small details at the same time. It’s not easy to
fond a comparison, but Daniel has been able to create something out of the
common, which was our aim.
And concerning your label,
this is their first release…
Patrick : In fact there has
been the first Lucretia album, but it was finally released by Brennus. So yes,
we are their first release.
How did you get in touch with
them ?
Patrick : We were looking for
a label, but had already had a bad experience with Thunder, because they closed
down before we made anything. We had recorded some tracks, we met those guys
who were creating a label, and they asked us to associate with them. And Dirk
did it with the bass player.
Dirk : In fact, the bass
player and I are part of a team where we take care of some bands…
Do you have new plans already?
New tracks? Tour?
Patrick : Right now we’re
working on two things : shows, because we have to make a lot, and then the new
album. We have some ideas for new tracks, and we’d like to have it done in
about a year. Bergstrand will certainly mix it again, and he proposed us to
work with us on the song writing. Which means we’ll record demo tracks, send
him, and he’ll give us his ideas and some advice.
Dirk : And he’ll create
the sound and the sound-concept right from the demos, because on
‘Transluscence’, he worked on it at the last minute, so he didn’t really know
what to expect. Now he’ll be involved a bit more.
Patrick : In general, when he
produces, he records and mixes, and with us, that was the first time he was
only doing the mix. There have been some recordings, but…
Dirk : He had also given
us some advice, like where we had to put the microphones… in order for him to
have some ideas on what he would have to do. But it looks like he liked it !
OK, one last word before the
blind-test?
Patrick : It’s important that
the readers know the album. And if they like it, they have to come and see us
live.
Dirk : Even if they don’t
like it (laughs) , we’re gonna make them change their mind !
And now, just listen to that…
HERTZ & SILENCE, ‘Applied
Sciences’
Patrick : I’ve already heard
that, it sounds like this Canadian band…Annihilator.
Dirk : I’m waiting for the
voice (laughs), anyway, the drummer kicks ass. I feel like listening to
Pantera. I don’t know…
It’s distributed by Musisoft,
just like you…Hertz & Silence…
Both of them: (laughs)
Shit, we were listening to this one only two days ago ! We must have
Alhzheimer…
Dirk : We listened to it
in their offices, we had heard a lot about it, especially because of the
drummer. I had told you we knew it ! (laughs) In fact, maybe we don’t
know at all, and we’ll have to find another excuse for the next one…
CARNIVAL IN COAL, ‘Got Raped’
Dirk : An unreleased song
from Carnival In Coal? It’s them? You know why I didn’t recognise it at first? I
bought the album, but lent it to a mate, and he hasn’t given it back, so I only
listened to it two or three times. But I bought their new cover CD, and it’s
great ! It’s a band that I love ! Very new, with a lot of integrity, and I like
that. They just need a drummer.
THE KOVENANT, ‘Mirror’s
Paradise’
Dirk : I know that… It
sounds a bit like Rain. A Samaлl touch too.
After a minute…That was
Kovenant !
Dirk : I knew this one,
but I haven’t really listened to it. Hellhammer changed a lot ! As you can see,
we recognise nothing (laughs) !
MARDUK, ‘Christraping Black
Metal’
Dirk : (as soon as the
drums enter) This is Marduk!! The last one? I haven’t got it, I didn’t buy it because
I already have the one before. I’ve listened to it a bit, and it sounded like
the other ones.
Patrick : Is that the one
with all the war noises in it?
Dirk : I have to listen to
it, because it’s quite successful ! It sounds like it’s a blow !
NOSTROMO, ‘Delight’
Dirk : With an intro like
that, it’s Mortician ! Oh, no… Wow, this voice!
Patrick : It kicks ass !
Dirk : The sound makes me
think a bit of Anal Cunt. And another crazy drummer ! But no, I don’t know…
SLIPKNOT, ‘Surfacing’
Dirk : I know that… Sepultura?
Something that I know but I can’t remember, as usual (laughs)
Patrick : I’ve already heard
that… Slipknot? A sort of Sepultura meets Korn…
Dirk : They got the right
idea with their masks, now they’re very well-known. I had listened to it at a
mate’s, and I thought it was a bit monotonous. I have to listen to it again.
PARADISE LOST, ‘True Belief’
Dirk : Paradise Lost ! I
know this guitar sound ! On ‘Draconian
Times’, right?
MORTICIAN,
‘Zombie Apocalypse’
Dirk : (before the music
begins) This is Mortician ! I know them for many years, it’s one of the most
extreme things ever. But I prefer Morbid Angel and things like that. One or two
albums are pretty funny, but now they’re a bit boring. They only have to use
full-speed drum machine. You have to have new ideas. For example, Cannibal
Corpse doesn’t evolve enough…
CANNIBAL CORPSE, ‘Hammer
Smashed Face’
Dirk : Cannibal
Corpse !
Fuck, I haven’t pressed ‘play’
yet !
Dirk : This is a classic,
‘Hammer Smashed Face’. I saw in your eyes that when I had said Cannibal Corpse,
I had said the name I shouldn’t have ! (laughs) But I prefer ‘The
Bleeding’, though they’ve been criticised a lot. The new one is not as good as
‘Vile’, and they’re stuck in what they do. It’s not like Kovenant that is
criticised too but that I respect more because they follow their own way.
And an easy one now ! SLAYER,
‘Angel Of Death’
Dirk : Slayer !!! I’ve
been listening to this one for two years !! It’s the album that made me become
a musician…