Jirfiya talks about the band's debut album, “Still Waiting”
Hello Jirfiya, thanks for your time. Would it be possible to introduce your band to our readers, as well as your roles in it? Ingrid: Hello! We are a Melodic Metal band from Paris, formed in 2018. Jérôme is the main composer and lyricist, guitarist, and also the growl vocalist. Pascal is the bass player, and Nicolas is on drums. Jérôme and Pascal are former musicians of Metal band “Born From Lie”, Nicolas former drummer of “Toxic Lily” and “Nedra”, and I am also the lead singer for the ProgRock band “Oscil”. With a worldwide pandemic going on, how have you handled the management of your band over the past few months? Ingrid: As many artists and bands around the world, we have been stopped suddenly. We had just done our first gig, and then the lockdown was a real shock. We couldn’t repeat, or see anyone, with our jobs in standby. It was difficult, and Jérôme felt that he had 2 choices: fall into a depressed mood or enter into the creative process to struggle. How would you describe, from your own POV, the French metal scene? Ingrid: We have a very creative scene here in France. Many solid bands with great musicians, in various styles: from “Death” to “Alternative Metal”. “Gojira” is one of the only french Metal bands with international fame, and we also have a popular Metal festival, the "Hellfest". But behind, there are a lot of bands touring and trying to build a professional career without labels or mainstream media. We have good bands and a huge audience, but not a lot of interest from the great rock magazines and the music industry. You've dropped, back in November 2020, your debut album, “Still Waiting”. How long have you worked on it? Ingrid: We wanted to do an album, following our first EP “Wait For Dawn”, but not so quickly. Jérôme had some ideas for new songs, but when the first lockdown struck us, he had a lot of time to compose and write. He spent 3 months sending us song after song, and we each recorded our parts, in pre-production. We had planned to enter the studio in June. And it was a challenge that gave us strength to endure this difficult period. Where did you find your overall inspiration for this release? Ingrid: The tracks deal with subjects that affect us, whether personal or more general on the news. We feel the need to talk about this or that subject because it revolts us or touches us without necessarily calculating why. The topics covered are quite varied and the pieces can be about ecology, religion, human rights. For example, “Silently” is about women in Salvador, who are sent to prison because of miscarriages. They are accused of infanticide. “The Hill Of Shame” is about refugees in Paris who are mixed up with drug dealers. Any funny stories to share from your recording or writing sessions? Ingrid: Our favorite Recording Studio, Hybreed Studio, is located in Fontenay-Sous Bois, near Paris. When we recorded our song “A Part Of Light”, there are these lyrics “You came back to haunt me”, that Andrew (our sound engineer) always sings “you came back to Fontenay”. Now it’s hard for us to hear this song without laughing, thank you Andrew! Is there one song that, according to you, best reflects the overall spirit of this album? If yes, which one and why? Ingrid: I think it’s our first single and video, and the first song written for this album, “House Of Poison”. It’s more personal, because it’s based on a disturbing event I lived through in the early months of 2019. It talks about sectarian movements, which claim to cure people of their health problems, without medical security. The cover of the album is issued of the video, it’s an invitation to connect with us and our thoughts, our reflections. I’m sure you are, like a lot of people, missing live shows. Do you already have some dates planned for 2021? Ingrid: No! We look at some gigs or festivals which are planned for the next months, but many are already canceled, or postponed again for the third time for some bands! We can’t clearly see what we can do for the moment, I think after the summer we could have a chance to perform... To finish, what is one lesson you’ve learned that you think is important to pass onto other bands? Ingrid: The more you are prepared, the better it is in the studio! The talent is 90% work. Thanks for your time!
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