Hürlement play old-school, up-tempo Heavy Metal, both aggressive and melodic. Their style is built on influences like Manowar, Running Wild and Judas Priest, but they are also great fans of the 80’s French Heavy Metal scene and hell-bent on carrying the legacy of cult bands like Sortilège, ADX, Killers, Blasphème, H-Bomb… To reflect this mix of influences, they write some of their songs in English, others in French.
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Salut This is the beginning, the right time for an introduction to HÜRLEMENT Please can youi tell us biography of the band and tell us about all the releases, you have produced the last years !
Alexis : Salut! Hürlement started in 2003, from the ashes of a former heavy metal band in which François (guitars) and I were both playing. We recruited François’ brother Pierre on drums, and from then it took us a bit of time to get the rest of the line-up and start writing. We were going for a small demo, but lost the recorded tracks halfway and went straight on to make our first album. We have three full albums, all released on Emanes Metal Records: “De Sang et d’Acier” (2009), “Terreur et Tourment” (2013) and “La Mort Sera Belle” (2017).
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Your last EP was released by Emanes Metal Records ! How did you get in touch with Laurent and how does things occur? Do you feel especially proud about seeing your music released on Emanes Metal Records ?
Alexis : We already knew Laurent a bit, first from his other releases and some gigs he organized, and actually just from the French metal scene. If I remember well, we met for the first time at the Blasphème reunion gig in 2008, and that had nothing to do with Hürlement, just sharing our passion. Then he saw us play and heard our stuff, and offered to release our first album on LP, with a CD version as well. We already had promised the LP version to another small label (Metal Coven Records), though, and he accepted doing the CD only for the first album. We have an easy relationship with Emanes. We just bring him the music and graphics, he gives us a technical frame in which he can publish, and that’s that. No bullshit. It’s great to work with someone that is so dedicated to the metal cause, a true fan like us, and so square.
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Why you choose the French language for the realses lyrics , it’s reminds me of ADX ?
Alexis : ADX is among our main influences for writing in French, that’s true. They have very well crafted lyrics. We write some of our songs in French because we love the French scene from the eighties, there were some incredible bands and releases in that era. And having songs in your own language also brings something less usual, a touch of personality.
How and why ADX ‘s Bassplayer Julien Rousseau joined the band ?
Alexis : We actually were not looking for a second guitar player, but were already friends with the ADX guys and Julien. After seeing us a few times, he proposed to join the band on guitar, and since he completely fit the band’s spirit we decided to give it a try. Everyone always wants two guitar for a bigger sound during solos, but I’m personally very fine with just a roaring bass in the background; to me, the main point is the second guitar allows us to fully bring the crossed melodies and harmonies we have on a lot of songs
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How do you write music ? Is there a special atmosphere needed ? How long does it take to have a full HÜRLEMENT songs got ready ?
Alexis : François and I write the songs, often separately. Either he brings music and lyrics and sends a tab to everyone, then I add my vocal lines to it and slightly arrange the lyrics to fit the lines and rhythm; or I bring a fully tabbed song on my side, with music, vocals and lyrics. Then the whole band rehearse it together, we change a few details and reach the final form. Writing is done on the side, so it can have taken anywhere from a few weeks to a few years depending on the song. I have a few written years ago that are still waiting, and I know François has a stash of riffs on his side too, each album is a mix of those and fresh material. Julien joined after the third album was ready, we’ll see how he fits into the writing routine for the fourth one.
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Tell us about your weekly practices ! How many times a week do you rehearse, and in what kind of conditions does it occur ? Is it in an old garage, a hangar, in your own house ? Maybe there are affordable “rehearsing studios” in France ?
Alexis : We rehearse in a small studio, I don’t know if it’s affordable but since we don’t have a choice (in the Paris area, population is very dense and there is no room for a rehearsal hangar or garage), that’s how it goes! Having our own practice room would be better, but it’s just not possible where we live. We typically rehearse once a week, two or three hours. That is not a lot but some of us have family lives and need to make everything work. I moved from France to Germany a couple of years ago, so most often the band rehearse without me and I do it on my side at home, which is okay for vocals. I usually have one or two sessions of a couple of hours per week, sometimes three. Of course, I still come over rather often so we can play all together. We also take full weekends together here and there through the year.
Which country/ continent currently has the best Metal scene in your opinion ? What about the worst ?
Alexis : I would put the worst scenes in styles I don’t like at all, actually, not according to country. Haha, though I can probably name one scene I really dislike, that would be the Paris black metal scene, a painful bunch of pretentious, racist and mostly talentless dicks, but even there, there are exceptions and I think the worst is behind us, from years ago.
Best scene, now that’s much more interesting… But it’s also an endless debate and I’ll probably change my mind every week. The European scene is the one I know the most because of proximity, of course, so that would probably be my first choice. It’s the one I’m most exposed to, and there are currently fantastic gems from France, Greece, Portugal, Italy, Spain, Germany, arrrgh I’ll end up having to name every country.
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What do you think about European metal in General ? Many bands are very well over ?
Alexis : Oh, I guess I kind of answered this above. Those are small scenes for the most, but they have been very active in the past fifteen years and the European festivals and communication on the Internet have helped create a cool spirit for it. I really think we have lived a good period there, we’ll see how it goes on.
What kind of merchandising do you currently have for sale ?
Alexis : We have several types of shirts from each album, both male and girly cuts. Some buttons. Then the releases, LP’s and CD’s, and the third album should come out on tape as well. Our first album on CD and our patches are sold out, we’ll make new patches very soon. We haven’t gotten to the crazier or fancier items yet, but we have a few ideas…
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What you think about Tunisia Metal scene ?
Alexis : I’m sorry there, I don’t really know enough to have a serious opinion on that, I don’t have much culture of the Tunisian scene. The only two bands I have heard from are Myrath and Saracens, I believe.
What are the future plans for HÜRLEMENT?, feel free to conclude and consume ! Thanx for the answers! Heavy Metal is the law !
Alexis : We are still promoting our newly released album, and have a few upcoming gigs around Europe with that. Next year we should get on a few summer festivals, as the release came a bit late for the 2017 season. We’ll also soon get started on writing and rehearsing for the fourth album, probably next month, and that should take us a couple of years more.
Thanks a lot for your interest in us, I hope you like “ La Mort Sera Belle” (and the previous ones too ! ) , it’s awesome to get attention from outside of our usual sphere. Maybe we even get the privilege of flying over one day, who knows ?! Thanks for your support and YES, heavy metal indeed is the law
Interviewer : Med Manef Slama
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