The movement, Irradiance. The refuge, every bit of hope.

Irradiance

Thank you for taking the time to talk to us! First of all, congratulations on being chosen as the Wild Card for the FemMe Battles, which places you directly in the finals! Did this come as a surprise to you?

Yes, it’s a very nice surprise! We were only hoping to reach the second round, and we were extremely happy when the jury chose us! While winning the Wild Card, it’s even more amazing!

How do you feel about the competition, how are your other competitors this year?

We considered the battle as “standard” concerts, putting aside the competition, because for us it was first of all a chance to come and play in the Netherlands for the first time, and we were not sure to be selected for the following rounds anyway.
All the other bands that took part in the competition this year have a very good level, they all have their strengths, and some have already a lot of stage experience. It is a pleasure to discover and play with so many talented bands!

What do you bring to the female fronted metal scene, what makes you unique?

It is not easy to answer this question, it would surely be better to ask the audience! We try to bring some originality in our compositions; for this, we decided not to limit the influences and ideas that could appear during the creation of the songs. So we incorporated jazz, prog parts, indus sounds, etc. because it seemed to serve the universe we created with the lyrics and texts. In addition, we integrated Alexandra, our violinist who plays with both saturated and classic violin sounds. This adds a personal touch to our live sound.

In december you self-released your debut album Dissidence, what can you tell us about this record?

It was a real experience! We decided to make the first album mostly on our own, but being very demanding on the artistic content. We had the chance to work with several talented musicians and singers. We recorded ourselves every tracks then the excellent Lasse Lammert (LSD Studio) mixed the songs. It was very rewarding!

How has the reception been so far?

So far we have had very encouraging feedbacks on our work, from the audience, the reviews and concert organizers. We are even surprised to see the enthusiasm shown by some people! This motivates us to continue and give the best of ourselves.
It is an immense joy for us because we invested a lot in this project!

There are many different influences and styles in your music. Where do you find the inspiration to mix all these types of music together?

Now this is a hard one. We decided not to limit the instruments, styles etc. and let our imagination run free instead. We like a lot of different things in terms of music and art, allowing us to expand our horizons.

When listening to your music, I get a very strong “motion picture soundtrack” feel, which got even strengthened by you releasing a “trailer” for your album. If your music was a soundtrack, what would the movie be like?

It is a success if you have this feeling, let me explain: with this project, the idea was to create what could be called a “concept band”, where music would be tied to a retro-futuristic universe. The following introduction summarizes the story:

“After countless conflicts to take rare resources over, the Reforme, a new self-proclaimed government, tainted with religious radicalism and totalitarianism, took power on inhabited lands. Neutral territories extending between the reformed cities, true citadels with huge glass walls, still shelter a core of active resistance, led by former mutinous officers and other ambiguous personalities who fight for freedom, life and the right of expression.
The movement, Irradiance. The refuge, every bit of hope. One watchword Dissidence.”

So yes, you could easily imagine a film in this world (what we would like to bring through clips for example). To deepen the fictional universe, I actually also written and published a short story collection (in french)  featuring the characters or places present in our songs.

The artwork on your debut is not what you would expect from a metal cover, which is what makes it so awesome. Who made it, and where did the idea come from?

The artwork was a very important point for us, in the sense that it was one of the facets of the universe that we created. So I made a model of the booklet, made sketches of each of the illustrations, before contacting the french illustrator Camille Alquier that I had discovered through a mutual acquaintance. He transformed these black and white sketched concepts into beautiful painted illustrations. Then a graphic designer, Angelique Paillard, made the layout of these illustrations in the booklet.

What do you bring to the stage? Does your music translate well to a live set?

We are always happy to go on stage. I can not comment on what people thinks of us but one thing is certain: we really have fun on stage. This is the opportunity to share with the audience. We will integrate more and more theatrical aspects in the show because we would like to bring a bigger part of our fictional world through live elements.

We try to adapt as best as we can the pieces in order to stay close to the album but with the minimum sampled content, which can be a challenge when you need brass and choirs…who knows, perhaps one day we’re going to have the opportunity to play with a full jazz orchestra and a live choir !

What are your plans for this year? Where can we see you live?

Well obviously at the FemMe Battles finals ! After a short summer break, we will resume defending our album in autumn both in France and in Belgium (so far) and continue working on the second one.

Where can we find your music? I tried looking you up on spotify and bandcamp, but you’re not really present there yet (one song on bandcamp).

We’re working on this. (And currently waiting for the approval of some of the websites you already mentioned). Aside from this, we have just been referenced in the EMP Online’s catalog, so it should be easier to find us !

Do you have any last words for our readers?

We are really glad to be chosen for the finals and to see the result of our work and all our efforts noticed…And hopefully appreciated !
Thanks again, and see you on stage !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asSC4W3C1M

Randy Gerritse

Randy is the founder of Metal On Loud Magazine and its community. He is a lyricist for several bands (Dissector, GOOT), an author currently working on his second book, and does web development for a living.

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