(In February we had the pleasure of premiering and reviewing the newest album by the French doom band Carcolh, which is out now on Sleeping Church Records. Today we present Comrade Aleks‘ new interview with Carcolh vocalist Sébastien Fanton, and he again proves to be a wonderful conversationist.)

Five men from Bordeaux love and know how to make smart, traditional, almost textbook doom metal. And why not! Most of them did it years before Carcolh, and, let’s face it, they are professionals in their field.

“Carcolh” is a mythical half-snake, half-snail from French folklore, but this does not mean that the guys are “barely dragging their feet.” They managed to tell six stories in the 46 minutes of their third full-length Twilight of the Mortals, revealing in their own way the nature of human tragedies in the sublunary world.

This album shows that Carcolh maybe do not progress in a global sense of the word, but confidently move forward enriching their soundscapes with a lot of new nuances and semi-colours. All the instruments sound heavy, clear, rational, and tasteful. Sébastien Fanton’s vocal lines are harmonious and noble, matching the themes performed by his colleagues. Twilight of the Mortals is far from monotonous; its pace varies from the furious gallop of “The Battle Is Lost” to the crushing dirge of “My Prayers Are for Rain” or the twelve-minute long, multifaceted, and saturated “Empty Thrones”.

This material isn’t something one could easily digest in a case you aren’t into traditional doom metal, yet we did the interview with Sébastien, and it may help you to get how cool Carcolh are. Continue reading »