If you like classic metal in French, you can look forward to the debut album by Meurtrières. The band from Lyon serves up a real treat with Ronde de Nuit (“night patrol“). Against this background, we talked to guitarist Olivier Voyou.

André: Thank you very much for taking the time for us. How are you?

Olivier Voyou: Bonjour. I’m doing fine, thanks. Summertime means holidays means great times – cause you know what? Working sucks, ahaha.

André: What was the last album you listened to before this interview?

Olivier Voyou: Let me check my turntable… ok so that was the latest maxi 12” of Noir Boy George, French weird synth punk. Just bought it last Saturday.

André: There are certainly some readers who don’t know Meurtrières yet. Please tell us a little bit about your band history so far.

Olivier Voyou: Flo Spector, Xavier, Thomas and I have formed the band in 2018 upon the ashes of our previous bands Pinku Saido and Gasmask Terror. After a while Fleur joined us on vocal duty. We recorded our first s/t record, played a handful of shows and then Fleur left the band. Covid showed its ugly face but we stayed active, rehearsing, writing songs and looking for another singer. In 2021, Fiona wrote us a lovely mail stating how much she would be thrilled to play with us. We met, it went smoothly, she was in the band.

André: On 25 August your first full-length album will be released: Ronde de Nuit. When did you write the first songs for this record?

Olivier Voyou: Actually one of the songs on the record was written a long time ago (in 2018). Beside this particular one, all the other songs were created between 2020 and the recording session in 2022.

André: Is there a track that is particularly close to your heart?

Olivier Voyou: I really like the opening track “Rubicon“. I do think it has a strong narrative power.

André: What is the significance of the lyrics for you? Is it especially important to you to tell the listeners an interesting story?

Olivier Voyou: Lyrics are fundamental. They are the cornerstone of a good song. Without good lyrics everything you try to build with music collapses. I think Fiona (who writes all the lyrics) always lets a door open when it comes to the meaning of her writings. Is it fictional? Is it personal? Is there a societal statement? That’s great, I don’t like the obvious.

André: On our blog, we focus on metal with epic elements. How would you define the term “epic” regarding music?

Olivier Voyou: Power and glory. Giving the listener the strength and the courage to face adversity.

André: Are you planning to perform live in the next months? Are there already fixed dates that we should note in our calendars?

Olivier Voyou: Several shows are planned, yeah. 14th of october in Lyon with the brillant Faucheuse (d-beat from Bordeaux). 3 shows with the doom masters of Dionysiaque in late october (Lille – tba, Courtrai, Freiburg). In march 2024 we will be opening the Saturday of the Hell Over Hammaburg festival in Hamburg. And probably more shows I can’t recall right now and more shows we have yet to find as we want to play live as much as possible.

André: Have you already attended a concert this year that really excited you?

Olivier Voyou: Dead Congregation at the Courts of Chaos festival was fantastic. Totally crushing experience. I toured with a local band called Under 45 which is a great live unit (in a post-punkish, wire-esque way). I don’t know, I attend so many gigs of different essences that I have trouble remembering them all sometimes. Intoxication doesn’t help either. 

André: In recent years, a number of young French bands have stirred things up in the underground. Is the metal scene particularly lively in your country at the moment?

Olivier Voyou: There are indeed several excellent metal bands in France right now. May it be in heavy metal (Tentation, Herzel), death/thrash metal (Skelethal, Sacrifizer, Venefixion) or doom (Dionysiaque). Each band has its own identity, they’re not just polite copycats. And I’m only mentioning the metal ones there since you can find the same enthusiasm in punk hardcore (Bombardement! Faucheuse! Violent City!) or experimental music (Sister Iodine! Chicaloyoh! Rien Virgule!). I just fucking love music.

André: Last question: Let’s assume time travel would be possible. In which era would you most like to live, at least temporarily?

Olivier Voyou: I’d be happy to catch a glimpse of medieval times or the effervescence of art in the 70s’ New York but I ain’t nostalgic at all, I do believe the best times are right now as I’m living here and now and I intend to live at the fullest possible and be the most creative I can. Life is epic.

André: An excellent conclusion. Olivier, thank you for this interview. Give the best regards to your bandmates from Epic Metal Blog.