Line Up:
Frédéric Couture- On Rhythm Guitar And Vocals
Francis Duchesne- On Lead Guitar And Keyboards
Vick Trigger On Bass
Eliot Landry On Drums
Well,Friends Of Aristocracy!
We speak again of our newsroom, where in a little while, we will have in all its emotions, the interview 197 of the Aristocracy.This time, we'll talk to a band that has a more cinematographic modus operandi. However, you can be sure that we're talking about a very stimulating, intense rock band with the intensity of a torpedo.We are talking about a stoner band that, like most of them, has a nerd theme, but all this with a very refined and technical quality. So much so that it is hard to believe that this is their first album, but yes, it is their debut their.
We are talking about the Canadian Sons Of Arrakis and their album titled simply as Volume I, however it is an intense album full of transitions.We want to thank the band for their work and for answering our humble but necessary questions and the Polish producer who presented us with this interesting work.Let's go to one of their songs for this unprecedented interview to happen.The Vocalist answer our questions!
A1:Talking about the composition work in Volume I?
Frédéric Couture:It all started when I was searching for new riffs for my ex-band The Hazytones back in 2017. I proposed the riff from The Black Mirror to my ex-bandmates and it didn't cut it for Mick Martel, the singer at that team.When I decided to quit The Hazytones, I had this catalog of riffs to choose from. Then, I started to record it at my studio in Montreal. It took a while before everything took place but in 2018, I decided to reach out to this drummer called Eliot Landry who played in this awesome and famous duo from MTL called Prieur&Landry.Landry was ecstatic to record the first four songs (The Black Mirror, Complete Obliteration and Temple of the Desert) in the summer of 2018. The forth song was called High Handed Enemy. We used to play it live, but decided to keep it for a second album.Later on, he convinced me to find musicians to form a quartet. Then, we approached Vick Trigger (Jimmy Target and the Triggers, Blue Cheese, UUBBUURRUU, etc.) in October 2018 and he introduced us to Francis Duchesne in November 2018.At that point, we only had 4 songs written, that would be a 20 minutes set.That wasn't enough for a first act. Nevertheless, in November 2018, we decided to book our first show that took place at Club Soda on February 16th, 2019.We wrote the last 3 songs (Omniscient Messiah, Lonesome Preacher and Abomination) under pressure because we needed to complete a full live set of 40 minutes. All of those songs were composed and written when I was on vacation between December 2018 and February 2018.For all the songs, the composition work is quite the same. It starts with me playing an old acoustic guitar and my old Gibson SG unplugged at home searching for THE riff. Then, I think and overthink about transitions between the riff and the verse, the verse and the chorus, if we need a bridge, where the guitar solo will sit in the song, etc. I try to be creative in the way I craft the songs, but I want to keep it simple at the same time.For the lyrics, for me, it's the most difficult part, I have to sit and think about themes that are related to the universe of Dune, but I also want it to be connected on universal concerns, my own input and emotions too.The songs are quite personal, even though if they're related to the universe of Frank Herbert.When I feel that the songs are decent, I record them myself at first and present them to my bandmates. And this is when the fun begins, I'm really opened with my bandmates suggestions, I trust their point of view and feeling about where the song will evolve.
A2:How Hard is make intelligible transitions?
Fréd:We have this recurring joke in the band: what's the key of the song ? Ironically, all of our songs are in the same key: C# minor. It makes it easier to elaborate transitions between the songs. Our main goal was to create a concept album where every song is a single. At first, I write every song as singles that can be listened to individually. But I also love concept albums. It all becomes intelligible when we play the set together in a live context. It's interesting to drone C# in the transitions between the songs. It's a good occasion to jam and improvise and let Francis, our lead guitarist, shine a little bit more. After playing the set live, the transitions become more obvious and intelligible for sure.
A3:It's true that I really like the orchestral tone that the band gives on their album because there is a keyboard player. But for every band that has one, this is important in many ways.I would just like to know the reasons for Sons Of Arrakis?
Fréd:This is really important to know that Sons of Arrakis don't have a proper keyboard player. But, we have the chance to have Francis Duchesne in our team. Not only he's a really powerful lead guitarist, but he also plays keyboard and has the talent to create arrangements that can sound orchestral. He has this sensibility that I don't have as a song writer. He completes and adds so much to the music that I put in place.In the future, we'll need a keyboard player for sure. Actually, we'll need to bring the studio to the stage, because we have so much ideas. Right now, we have a more traditional rock n' roll set up on stage, but we'll need to include keys and effects to produce a sci-fi live show.
A4:-Does the band believe that Frank Herbert's universe would have a place in ours or is it a beautiful utopia?
Fréd:The reality depicted in the universe of Frank Herbert is far from being an utopia. What is interesting in Dune is the complexity of the civilization described by Herbert. It's also interesting to understand the dynamics and the balance of power between all of the actors in this universe. It's a mirror of the society in which we live in, in the sense that it's an allegory. An allegory or a broken mirror, a black mirror...
A5:How to balance singles with conceptual work?
Fréd:As I wrote in a previous answer, it's important for me that the songs on the album are singles and stand alone songs. We live a world where we don't produce albums anymore. More and more artists tend to release singles or EPs. I know the importance of music promotion and I want to be in phase with my contemporaries.But I've always been a complete fan of concept albums, and Francis Duchesne is a huge Pink Floyd fan. I'm a huge fan of the albums ''Hemisphere'' and ''2112'' by Rush and ''Close to the Edge'' by Yes, and more recently, the powerful album ''Innate Passage'' by Elder.I see Volume I as a cross road between those two realities. All the songs were composed and recorded as singles at the first place. Afterwards, we sit down and overthink for months about transitions. But it's when we play in a live context that everything sits and takes place.
A6:How is Sons Of Arrakis different from your previous bands?
Fréd:To continue on this same path, it's the first time that we're in a band with a strong conceptual factor. It's really intesting to work with this kind of sci-fi universe. There are an infinity of aspects that we can explore, but at the same time, we're kind of stuck with it from now on... There's no coming back.Alos, this band is a quartet and my bandmates Vick (bass) and Math (drums) and I used to play in trios such as Blue Cheese, BIRMANI and The Hazytones. Also Vick is in this ''MTL all star five piece band'' called UUBBUURRUU. For Francis, he's a solo guitar player that produces album in his studio and also works as a producer for other bands and projects such as les Deuxluxes.
A7:What is the band's personal opinion on Melange Rock?
Fréd:I think that Melange Rock isn't a style of music. We play some kind of a stoner-''ish'' and desert-''ish'' kind of rock. We're not opposed to this ''appellation'', but we think that Melange Rock doesn't fit with one style of music, it's a vast spectrum of sonorities and genres. Francis came up with ''Cinematic sci-fi rock'' once to differentiate us from ''the vast ocean of stoner rock bands''. We can't only fit in one category and that's what's interesting about SOA.
A8:What´s the idea behind artwork´s album?
Fréd:We wanted an artwork for the cover of the album that represented well the universe in which we navigate. We were lucky enough to discover the work of Alexandre Goulet, based in Québec City. What we found out is that Goulet is a HUGE fan of Dune and the universe of Frank Herbert. When I work with a visual artist,I like to give full artistic direction and freedom to create something original. I immediately loved what he did, and there were no touch ups.The cover art for the album represents a Fremen in the middle of the deep desert. But the main focus is the blue eye, the eye of the Ibad.The back cover is also beautiful and represents a Bene Gesserit sister with the planet Arrakis on the background.There's also the artwork for the singles that represent a particular theme. The Black Mirror talks about the Spacing Guild, so we needed a cool spacecraft. Omniscient Messiah talks about the God Emperor, so we needed a representation of Leto II, that was monstrous and Death Metal as fuck. Finally, Complete Obliteration talks about the Butlerian Jihad, so we needed something that reminded us of this reality.
A9:What kind of subject don´t deserve a Sons of Arrakis song?
Fréd:This is the hardest question that I had to answer related to SOA. I will say bull fighting/La Corrida. It's not that relevant for us. We want to create a reflexion on deeper and philosophical subjects.
A10:How band know about Solid Rock?
Fréd:Actually, we know Solid Rock because they contacted us a couple of days after the release of our album on July 15th. They wanted to help us promote the album and they do a pretty good job contacting European media.
A11:Does the second song have any reference to the series of the same name?
Fréd:The song The Black Mirror isn't a direct reference of the British series by the same name. I really enjoyed the series and the sci-fi themes that are a strong criticism of the society in which we live in. It's a broken mirror that reflects the parts of us that we don't want to see. But we need to get out of the denial to progress as individuals, but also as a society. It could've been The Cosmic Denial too, you know (lol)!
A12:What abomination is spoken of in the seventh song?
Fréd:Abomination is a song related the down fall of Alia,the sister of Paul Atreides.The access to her genetic memory lead a vile character, Baron Harkonnen, to control her mind. So, that's why I started singing the song with ''altered ego by the depth of your recollection''.It's not obvious, and I want it to be the source of reflexion of the listener.I also wanted to talk about more personal stuff, but I try to hide it in those texts. People who concentrate on the texts could also report on a personal level. I wanted this album to be deeply rooted with emotions, not only rational thinking and Dune related content.
A13:Why the band have this name?
Fréd:At first, I wanted to name the band ''Ancient Dunes'' and I had this idea in my head that the cover album would be a drawing of Arrakis at night with the two moons. But I thought it was too cliché. After many discussions with my friend and family, I decided to simply call it Arrakis. But my father, who's the only person that I know that read all Frank Herbert and Kevin Herbert novels, came up with ''Sons of... ''. I'm grateful for that!
A14:Which Sci-Fi series are the band's favorites and which helped to inspire this work?
Fréd:I'm not that into TV series, because I don't have time for this to be honest. But, I really enjoyed watching couple of episodes of ''Black Mirror'' and ''Stranger Things'' like anyone else. I'm a huge Star Wars fan, but I think the story is too manichean and simple.I would say Dune! Dune is the sci-fi series of book that I enjoyed the most reading! I also really enjoyed the adaptation by Denis Villeneuve. I can't wait for the sequel, the second Dune movie. Villeneuve has been my favorite film director long before his foray into Hollywood. He made movies in French that are absolutely wonderful and one of my favorite is ''Incendies''. I also loved The Arrival! Also, he's from my home city, Montreal!
A15:Besides stoner, is sludge also worked by the band?
Fréd:Unfortunately, we don't plan to push our music in the direction of doom metal of sludge. In our roots, we're rock n' rollers and we like the hard rock direction that we're heading towards. On the other hand, we sometimes add to element of other styles such as Thrash Metal on Temple of the Desert, Doom Metal on The Black Mirror for example.Personally, I really like sludge. I enjoy Conan, Obiat and Behold! The Monolith, Psychonaut, only to name a few. I like to discover bands in that style. But I don't think it's the right direction for us to take.