First off i would like to thank Steve and all of In Other Climes for taking the time out to do this interview with Worldwidetakeoverzine
How did the band come to be named In Other Climes and is there any special meaning behind the band being named this?
There's no special meaning.When we started the band, we were looking for a band name and one day, Maxime, our former guitarist went with different names but nothing interesting except "In Other Climes". It sounded strange and original, so, we kept it.
who are some of the bands main musical influences?
It's very different with each of us, but we all listen to metal, hardcore, trash and death.
are any members in side projects other than IOC?
Only Julien has different projects. he's a professional musician, so, playing with different bands is his job !
what are your views on fighting at shows?
That's stupid ! Shows are meant for having a good time not to go the emergency room !
for someone who has never seen IOC live and is planning on attending a show what can they expect to see?
It depends on the audience, the atmosphere...
But what i can tell you is that IOC is definely a live act band !
we try to make the best gig each time we play, even if there's not a lot of people.
how long has the band been together?
Since 2004.
how many cds eps 7 inches split cds and demos has the band currently released?
We released a first 2 demo songs in 2004, but we didn't sell it. It was just to find places to play.
Our first real cd is "Sword Of Veangeance" out in 2006 on Custmcore Records. This E.P is sold out since last year
so, we decided to do a reissue called "Sword Of Vengeance : Chapter II" with a new layout, live songs
and a live video clip.
what do you base your lyrics on when writing new material?
The lyrics are always influenced by philosophy and poetry.
is there a large and thriving scene in the Nice area as well as throughout France?
Not really,there's only few bands who kicked ass. Here, people are not very into Metal/hardcore. They prefer
metal stuff like Meshuggah, Gojira ... but things are starting to change.
how did the band come to signing with both Customcore Records/Deadrock Industry and how have they treated you so far?
It was very natural because we already knew Mika from Customcore.
After seeing us a few times live, he decided to sign us. It's a small label, so, we don't have a lot of advantages but we like to work with him because he always has very good ideas about artworks, designs and he makes a very good promotion.
I see that you are playing Deadfest this year how did you get added on the bill and
who are you looking forward to seeing play while you are there at the fest?
I contacted Chris, the organiser of the fest last year because i was looking for gigs in scandinavia. The band didn't play there before, so, i asked him if he could help us with a few dates. He told me that it will be difficult to organise a tour but if we were interested we could play at the next deadfest. As you can imagine, my answer was "Yes, for sure !"
is this the original lineup and if not what is the current lineup?
Not at all ! we had a lot of line up changes since the begining especially with the bassists and drummers.
Today, the current line up is :
JC - Vocals
Steve - Guitars
Ben - Bass
Julien - Guitars
Lionel - Drums
if you could have anyone do guest vocals on your next recording who would it be and why?
Felipe, the singer of Confronto (BR) ! I really appreciate the south American bands singing in Spanish or Portugese.
But for me, confronto is the best one.
Two other singers who would be interesting too:
Marcus from Heaven Shall burn (Ger) because his voice is intense and powerfull
and Andre from Maroon (Ger) he has an awesome voice.
does the band have any plans to tour the USA in either 2009 or 2010?
We already played in the U.S this summer, so, i don't think we will come back before a moment. with the new album, we plan to visit countries where we never played before.
In only one sentence describe your sound to someone who has never heard you before ?
Powerfull, aggressive and energic music mixing metal and hardcore. On the new album you could find new influences like trash and death.
when the band is on tour in the van what is usually playing in the cd player?
A lot of old school stuffs : hard rock, glam rock, hardcore, trash, stupid french songs...
how were you first exposed to the scene and what made you say i want to be in an band?
It was when i was like 13 or 14 years. It was a Machine Head gig for their 2nd album.
One of the best show i have never seen ! At this time i already played guitar. For me it was very natural.
I grew up meeting people who played and listened to hard roch, metal... so, at 12 years old, i decided to learn guitar and quickly started to play in a band.
when on tour and driving from city to city what is some of the weirdest shit you have seen happen or pass by?
One of the weird thing we saw was this summer when we were touring in the U.S. After a gig in San Diego, we were stopped on the highway because a guy was killed. There was police cars everywhere, helicopters ... that's things that you cannot see in France !
where do you see the band in 3 years from now?
I don't know if we will be together but if it's the case i hope the music will be better and that we will continue to play everywhere and meet cool people. It's why i play music !
who are some of the up and coming bands from the Nice area as well as throughout France that we should be on the lookout for?
To me, these 2 bands are really good :
None shall be saved (old school to new school hardcore)
www.myspace.com/nsbs
and The Arrs (metalcore) www.myspace.com/thearrs.
We really like to see and play with them.
the term hardcore has become so overused that any band putting a breakdown into a song is considered hardcore but explain to the readers what hardcore means to you?
To me whatever kind of music you listen to, The most important thing is to be honest, trying to be better everyday, and help people you really love.
How can the readers from around the world contact you about ordering merchandise?
There's different links where you can buy our stuff but the best is the Customcore shop to order our CD (www.Customcore.com)
and bigcartel for the merch (http://inotherclimes.bigcartel.com)
What is your most memorable show and why?
It was this summer in Poland, we had a show planed in a small city. When we arrived we thought that it would be a normal show but when we started to play people became completely crazy !!!
what is your favorite city and country to play shows in and also your least favorite and why?
We really love to play in California, Poland and Germany. Shows there are awesome and we always met good guys in these countries !
Who are some of the bands that you enjoy touring with?
We spent a very good time with Samaritan (NL), Godless Crusade (IT), Human Ashtray (SP) ...
What advice can you give to some of the newer bands starting out that maybe having a tough time and thinking about giving up?
Never give up !
where do you think you would be right now had you not been exposed to the hxc metal scene?
Into music ! Music is my life !
where else besides myspace can the readers go to to findout about upcoming shows and other band related information?
You can find everything you want on our the myspaces and websites of Customcore and In Other Climes:
www.myspace.com/inotherclimes
www.inotherclimes.com
www.myspace.com/customcorerecords
www.customcore.com
what is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to the band when playing a set?
Nothing really special.
why do you think that people always associate violence with hardcore shows and it always gives hxc scenes and shows a bad reputation?
Because hardcore music is violent but it doesn't mean that the gigs are violent.
Yes, people mosh, stage dive, make circle pit and as musicians we really appreciate to see a crazy audience but it's just for fun and spend a good time.
People need to release their tensions doing sports, art ...
why it should be a problem to listen or play violent music ?
Do you have any upcoming shows that you would like to tell the readers about?
We will play at the Deadfest in Sweden on the september 13th and we have a european tour planed with Paura (BR) this fall.
Is there anything else that you would like to add that i may have forgotten to ask that the readers should know about?
Our new album will be available in October on Customcore Records, so, don't forget to get your own !
Thanks for your interest for the band. Much respect !!!
