Thrash Eaters recently conducted an interview with Canadian metal innovators VOIVOD in Paris, France. You can now watch the chat below.
On the split with bassist Jean-Yves Thériault (a.k.a. Blacky) and addition of Dominic “Rocky” Laroche:
Michel “Away” Langevin (a.k.a. Away; drums): “Last year, Blacky didn’t agree on how the band should be managed and all that, so we parted ways. And we didn’t want the situation to be complicated. I mean, we could have phoned back Jason [Newsted, former METALLICA and VOIVOD bassist] and all that, but that’s complicated; it’s another set of issues. And we wanted to be able to give each other a call and say, ‘Let’s jam,’ and go to the rehearsal space. So that’s what [VOIVOD guitarist guitarist Daniel ‘Chewy” Mongrain] told me. He said, ‘I know somebody, and I’m sure, sure, sure, sure, sure he can do it.’ And I’m, like, ‘Great! Let’s jam.’ And that was it.”
On VOIVOD’s recent return to the studio:
Mongrain: “‘We Are Connected’ [which was released on a single earlier in the year] was the first song we composed all together, as this new lineup. And we went another time for a second song. It’s not out yet. So each time we go at the same studio, and each time we get better at how to manage the studio and, as a team, how to work together. So it’s getting better and better each time. And we have more songs to come in the writing process, and we’re gonna go back to the studio and record some more. So it’s pretty exciting to write again.”
On VOIVOD’s songwriting process following the passing of the band’s original guitarist, Denis D’Amour (a.k.a. Piggy):
Mongrain: “I was really happy that people would accept me as part of VOIVOD. But it’s kind of a mission to respect the vocabulary, the sound, the core of the music of VOIVOD. I mean, when we arrive with some riffs that sound in the spirit of VOIVOD and Michel starts to play a drum beat and Snake [Denis Belanger] comes with a beautiful line, it becomes VOIVOD right away. There’s no way it’s not a VOIVOD song, as soon as we jam together and improvise. The communication is there, so it’s pretty easy, I think. It’s a lot of work, though. But it becomes VOIVOD pretty fast.”
VOIVOD’s latest album, “Target Earth”, as released in January 2013 via VOIVOD’s own company, Iron Gang Factory, and Century Media.
Source: Blabbermouth
