Interview with Sentinelles (FRA) plus review to Sentinelles' latest album "L'envol"

Sentinelles are a two member Black Metal band from France. They play a very good and full Black Metal and they just released their album L'envol. You can find a review to the same on the bottom of the article.  Lachryma Christi had the pleasure to interview both members, Alann and Nicolas, let's see what they have to tell about this album and all their experience in Sentinelles.

How did Sentinelles start, and why the name Sentinelles?

Nicolas : Sentinelles is born during winter 2012, when Alann and me decided to play an atmospheric Black Metal, in the same vein that commons bands we listen, and to tell a story, based on four seasons. When we finish to prepare “L’envol”, in March/April 2012, we were at the DreamBox Records studio, based at Paimpol.

At the first, we wanted to create a medieval Black Metal band, so Sentinelles wasn’t the name we wanted. When we realised that “L’envol” was more an atmospheric, contemplative album, we decided to call him Sentinelles, men who observe what is happening far away or just near them, parcourant les régions. Sentinelles (eng. Sentry) come from Italian ‘sentinella”,  “sentire”, hear. So it was a great word for the band, and we’ll continue this “contemplation process” in our music.

Where do you get your inspiration, for the music as well as the lyrics?

Alann : I write music and texts only in Autumn. I wroted the four tracks and the first version of the lyrics between October and December. It’s a great season to write, I love the atmospher, the colors of the trees and the sky. The music of Sentinelles is the longs walks in nature we done at this period of the year, with Nicolas, the britton atmospher... I listen a lot of music, but i think they influences me maybe just for arrangements. Nonetheless, i listen a lot of bands like Negura Bunget, Wolves in the Throne Room, Patti Smith, Nature and Organization... and they of course influence me.

For the lyrics, i read Rimbaud, Verlaine since i’m 17 years old and i think i have the same vision than Arthur in particulary, so my textes are very influenced by him, and there are some tributes, the most visible in the title of the last chapter of “L’envol” : L’étrenne des Sentiers ( Rimbaud wrote L’etrenne des Orphelins).

All the lyrics were writted first in Britton  but Nicolas don’t speak this language so we decided to translate in French, and guard juste somes sentences, like on “Immensité et tristesses” track.

How did the idea of having Yohann (from Les Chants de Nihil and Belenos) and Sven Vinat (from AntiCorpse) came out? How was the experience?

Nicolas : I meet Yohann who is a friend of a friend one day, by chance. I talk about Sentinelles, but i haven’t think to ask him if he could be interessed to release an album.
Later, Alann and I were to a party and we discuss with him. He was interessed by this project because he have the same feeling as us, and we realised that we have the same conceptions for some lyrics/themes. So he tell that it was okay for an album, and despites he works in four or five bands he was very motivated. and there are a lot of commons points with Malysteria and the project of “L’Envol”, so we started to work on it.  Yohann and Sven are two friends since a long time, so he presented him to us, and the studio was ok for us, and the work of Sven was what we expected.

You released your first album l'Envol this Summer. How have been the reactions to it? Are you happy about the result?

Nicolas : We have good reviews for the album. He was released 2 month ago, so it’s early to talk about reactions, but the people who know “L’envol” saids that we have our personnality, and it the best think for us.

What are your lyrics about?

Alann : “L’envol” is a concept album. There are for tracks, for the four seasons. We talk about a man who is very influenced by the king of his country, and he believes to it like he believes to god; One day the king die and the man decides to travel...It’s difficult to explain the lyrics, but during the album there are the concept of errances, atheism, anti-rural lifestyle

What are your favorite bands?

Nicolas : Behemoth, Nokturnal Mortum, Drudkh and Burzum
Alann : Drudkh, Belenos, Die Verbannten Kinder Evas, Nature and Organisation.

Can you name a band/artist with you would like to work with?

Alann :  Concerning me, with WITTR and Negura Bunget in particulary, because they represents what i think is Black Metal actually, and because i’m feel in the same processus/spirit than they. Furthermore, i would like doing something with Fenriz.

What are your plans for the near future?

Alann : The second album is writed, and he will open a trilogy. I don’t live in France actually, so we don’t know when we will record him. And  we project to work for a special split...

Anything else you would like to add?

Nicolas: We would like  to thanks Saturne VII, who have made the artwork for “L’envol”, which is amazing. You can see her work here :

http://saturne-sept.tumblr.com

We wante to thanks Yohann and Sven for their respective work, and friendship, and we hope it will be others collaboration with them.

You can follow Sentinelles on the facebook page :  facebook.com/sentinelles.bm 

Thanks Lachryma for interest. 

Lineup:

Alann Corfa
Nicolas Salmon

Latest release:

L'envol (2012)

Shortly reviewing L'envol. This is a very good album that just came out last Summer which has a very pretty artwork all in black and white. Includes 4 tracks. What can you expect from this album? Very rich melodies combined with the rawness of the Black Metal,  very into what has been done in France in the last few years. If you like Peste Noire, you will enjoy this album. It is a bit less crude, more melodic, with acoustic interludes as in piano compositions and clean voices and choirs. It is very aggressive at times, but in a good way, not trivial and expected, but surprisingly well done. There is a result here, a pleasant and majestic work. 

You can find more information and music of Sentinelles on:

https://www.facebook.com/sentinelles.bm