“I grew up listening to Depeche Mode while other kids were into Green Day.”
Today (September 4, 2020) marks the release of Above The Snow Line’s Rebellion — a blistering collection of new songs from the Canadian alt-rock project.
On second thought, “alt-rock” may be too generic of a term to describe this music. A sampling of Rebellion reveals an eclectic range of styles: sprinkles of electronica, a dash of math-rock, a hint of shoegaze-y goodness, and a lot more where that came from.
Lyrically and vocally, Matthieu Gauthier-Prud’homme (the man behind Above The Snow Line) really shines. At times, his voice is vaguely reminiscent of Thom Yorke’s; at other times, he may be channeling Placebo’s Brian Molko. But where many bands struggle to balance their abstract tendencies with palatable music, Above The Snow Line manages to accomplish both with ease. Accessible and artsy as hell, Rebellion is an album you don’t want to miss.
DarknessCalling.net was lucky enough to chat with Matthieu about the new album and its origins. Read on below.
DARKNESS CALLING: Thanks again for your time! We're fans at Darkness Calling. Very excited for the new album. As those songs weren’t available on Spotify yet [when we released Volume II of our playlist], we chose to feature "Parts of Our Hearts.” Can you tell us any memories about that song in particular, whether from the writing or recording process?
ABOVE THE SNOW LINE: I do have a very different way of writing than most people do. It literally pops out of nowhere. To give you a better idea, music gets created, at any time, in my head. Most of those times, it’s already constructed with all of the instruments, all the different parts, and it even comes with a couple of sentences. The rest is gibberish to fill the melody. I need to record the ideas on my phone as fast as I can so I don’t forget it. So, yeah, my demos are actually super awkward a cappella recordings. And usually, it all happens when I do something boring that doesn't really require me to think much, like washing the dishes, walking, driving with the radio off, or trying to get to sleep (That’s the worst).
So, on topic, well (I’m sorry in advance) it’s a little depressing. “Parts of Our Hearts” was first called “Maddening Night.” It was written with a specific image, burned into my mind probably forever, of a video taken during the Bataclan attacks, in which you could see and hear people running for their lives in the streets behind the venue. A terrible sight. A horrible feeling of injustice, terror, and sadness could be felt, and I always had this feeling of, “It could have been me.”
It’s a nightmare scenario no one could have predicted; you’re at a music show just enjoying life with people you care about; you would never expect that type of shit. I read a lot of stories about the survivors, and many of them lost their loved ones during that night and never had the time to say goodbye. It’s just incredibly sad and unfair. So, that’s what the song’s about. The End Is… Soon Enough was about endings — different kinds of endings — and this song was originally at the beginning of the second part of the first record, right before “Scarecrow.”
Musically, it evolved a lot during the recording. It first started in a more minimalist style, with only the main keyboard loop and acoustic guitars sitting on top of the drum machine. You can still hear the original guitars at the very end of the song, actually.
“I always had this feeling of, ‘It could have been me.’”
DARKNESS CALLING: The video for "I'll Never Let You Down," your newest single, is very cool [See below]. The editing and effects really elevate it to another level. Can you tell us how the concept and video came together?
ABOVE THE SNOW LINE: The video was actually shot before the track even existed, back in November 2018. I knew the vibe and kind of track I was aiming for, but I didn’t have one that would properly fit. Fast forward almost a year later, I wrote “I’ll Never Let You Down,” and it’s as if the song was made for those shots. The glitches are a nice compliment to the colder, more industrial sounds in the track, but are also some kind of visual representation of my selective memory and mistakes.
DARKNESS CALLING: While still experimental, your new single sounds very grounded and "real," maybe even more so than your previous offerings. I think I might have detected a distorted harmonica in "I'll Never Let You Down," or am I crazy?
ABOVE THE SNOW LINE: I think I know what you mean, so I think you aren’t totally crazy. It’s a synth, but I do have a harmonica sitting around here somewhere. And about that more grounded feeling, maybe it comes from using less reverb overall; everything sounds closer and less dreamy that way. My previous records were mastered by other people and it ended up having more reverb during that phase.
DARKNESS CALLING: Your sound is super unique but also has some clear influences. The first thing that came to my mind (if you'll forgive the comparison) is old-school Radiohead, but somehow with the sprawling weirdness of newer Radiohead. Of course, anyone who listens can tell that's not your only influence. I've seen you mention IAMX, which is one of our favorites. Can you tell us a bit about how these or other influences have shaped you over the years?
ABOVE THE SNOW LINE: If by “old-school Radiohead” you mean OK Computer and Kid A/Amnesiac, yeah. Definitely. I love how Tom Yorke uses his voice like an instrument, and I also love their incredibly effective use of melodies. In Rainbows is also one of my favorite records of all time.
Other than that (I could talk about this for hours) I grew up listening to Depeche Mode while other kids were into Green Day, NOFX, and The Offspring. DM forged my tastes in music, then NIN, Tool, and Marilyn Manson blew me away in the late 90’s, among others. So did Queens of the Stone Age a bit later, and still today. So I guess my music is a healthy mix of all of this and a lot more!
DARKNESS CALLING: Your new album Rebellion just dropped today on September 4th. I noticed that those who support you on Bandcamp will be treated to a special b-side as a “thank you.” Can you tell us about the b-side?
ABOVE THE SNOW LINE: I have around 70 songs that were created during the recording of Rebellion. I didn’t want it to be another double album, so I had to cut and cut and cut. Some tracks may end up on a future release, but for now, I’ve decided to complete one that is directly tied to the narrative called... [Drumroll] “Rebellion, Part 2”
DARKNESS CALLING: Thanks again for taking the time to chat with us! Is there anything else that our readers should know?
ABOVE THE SNOW LINE: With the release of Rebellion, I decided to distribute my previous albums free of charge on Bandcamp, so go ahead and rob me!
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