Today I spoke with guitarist Benjamin Guerry from the French band The Great Old Ones, we spoke about the legendary H.P. Lovecraft, The cancer of organized religion and how nice English people are..read on!
* Hi Benjamin, loving your new album EOD: A Tale of Dark Legacy – how long were you guys working on this album before you went in to record?
Benjamin Guerry (guitar, vocals): Hi! The composition work began just after the recording of our second album, “Tekeli-li”. It’s important to keep our head aware to ideas that can happen whenever. I spent more time composing this album because there is always a desire to make our music evolve.
* How did the recording process differ from your last 2 releases?
BG: The only difference was that we changed producer. We recorded this album with Mobo at Conkrete Studio, and the result is exactly as we wanted, very powerful, but with the atmospheres that characterize us.
* How did your record deal with Seasons of Mist come about? It’s a great label for you guys to be part of.
BG: Yes, we are very happy of that. After a tour with Shining, the Season of Mist boss has expressed interest in working with us. So we seized this opportunity, in order to offer our album a greater visibility, in Europe, but also in USA. We really hope that this collaboration will help us to play in as many countries as possible!
* What was the fans reaction to your Bjork cover like? Do you know if Bjork heard it at all? Her ex-husband artist Mathew Barney is a huge Black metal fan and has hosted many Black metal shows at his art studio here in NYC
BG: I don’t know if Bjork listened to our cover but I hope! Maybe Mathew Barney made her listen. The original song has a dramatic tension that sticks to our music. We did not expect this but this cover has made a lot of talk about it, our fans still tell us about it today.
“We are working hard to propose a big show, a true Lovecraftian experience.”
* Do you guys prefer recording or playing live? many black metal musicians are quite happy just to create and record music but do not like to play live, whereas others..it’s all about playing live.
BG: We love playing live. Recording an album is of course very stimulating, as much as the creative process itself. But we are working hard to propose a big show, a true Lovecraftian experience. So yes, we want to play as much as possible, in as many places as possible!
* By now it is well know the bands love for the great Horror writer H.P. Lovecraft? Are any of the bands fans of say Edgar Allen Poe or more modern horror writers who were inspired by Lovecraft like Clive barker or Stephen King?
BG: H.P. Lovecraft is the base of The Great Old Ones concept. He is a full member of our band so he will be with us for a long time. He created an exciting mythology, populated by charismatic creatures. There are still many stories to tell.
But of course, we are all fans of literature in general. Personally, I’m a big fan of Stephen King.
His work is extremely varied and almost always exciting. I’m also really like Maxime Chattam’s books. Very good thrillers.
* France wasn’t exactly known for its world class Death metal bands in the 90s but it produces some of the best Black metal bands in the world these days – why do you think this is?
BG: It’s been a long time that France gives birth to very good bands of black metal, but it’s true that it has accelerated in recent years. The press is increasingly interested in our country in terms of music, and an international fame is beginning to take hold. It’s really great to see so many talented formations emerged every year here. I hope this will continue, and allow groups to continue to export, whether on album or live.
* You guys are from the South west of France right? What’s the music scene there like? Do you get many international artists coming through Bordeaux? or do you have to travel to say Toulouse or Montpellier to see the big name acts?
BG: Exactly, we are from Bordeaux, city of wine. There are a lot of good bands here, in different music styles. Certainly you know most of these bands but I think about Year Of No Light, Gorod in particular. They are very respected each in their style, and have a real international notoriety.
* Speaking of France – you guys have done a decent amount of touring so far right? What’s the best part of going on the road? Any crazy tour stories yet?
BG: We try to play as much as possible. As explained previously, doing concerts is really important to us. It is of course the concert itself that is always the most exciting on tour. But going on tour is also really nice because it allows to take a rhythm only dedicated to the music.
To be honest, I don’t have true crazy stories to tell you. But we had the opportunity to play in some crazy places. During the last tour, we played in a real and beautiful Italian style theater, with a fantastic acoustic. It was an absolutely fantastic experience!
* How did you guys enjoy London when you played there? Had you been before as a band or just as tourists?
BG: Every time we played in London it was great. English people are really nice. It’s also a very beautiful city, with very varied districts.
Most of us have been there as a tourist, but we always enjoy walking around before playing.
“Makes us realize that religious fanaticism is truly a cancer for the world today”
* One of the things we hear a lot about France on the news here in the USA are the terror attacks – are things there as crazy as the mainstream media makes out? Is it just sensationalism? or are things much worse?
BG: Mainstream media always do in sensationalism. This is unfortunately their way of functioning. But what they tell comes from real facts, and very sad facts. Of course, we do not live in fear. This especially makes us realize that religious fanaticism is truly a cancer for the world today. I would even be tempted to say all the organized religions. We must fight to keep our total freedom of expression, especially through music, and Art in general
“We would really like to come to concerts in the US”
* Any plans to play the USA in the future?
BG: We would really like to come to concerts in the US, and of course we have that idea in mind. But it is very difficult when one is an underground band to go play there, especially for financial matters. But we keep hope!
* What plans do the band have for the rest of 2017?
BG: We will open for Inquisition for two gigs in April, and some festivals in August. At the moment we are working on a big European tour. We hope to announce good news soon.
* Any final words?
BG: Many thanks for your support and for this interview. We really hope to come to the US!