We spoke with Gautier Serre, the mad doctor behind the monstrously excellent Igorrr.
I like the contrast of both words, the brutal and the intellectual, this album can be understood by both.”
Hello Gautier, how are you?
I’m doing very well, thanks for asking. I’m excited about the release of Savage Sinusoid. It’s gonna be in a couple of days now!
What is Savage Sinusoid, what does the name mean and how does it reflect on the music?
Savage Sinusoid is our new album [and it’s] the biggest piece of music I’ve done. It took me a bit more than 4 years to make it real.
The title Savage Sinusoid is a mix between Sinusoid which is a kind of sin wave, in a more global sense of the term, mixed with Savage which doesn’t really need any explanation when you hear the first track of the album. This album is also a kind of research, like research to my own musical ideal, the word Sinusoid has depth to me because it reflects on the experimental side of the music with a scientific meaning. I like the contrast of both words, the brutal and the intellectual, this album can be understood by both.
“I cross the road with some amazing people.”
It’s a completely sample-free record, has this changed the way you compose songs from previous albums?
It has changed the way I made the tracks on this album yes, to have the opportunity to create all the different musical universes by our own gives us a complete freedom for the compositions. On Savage Sinusoid, we composed and recorded all the parts, baroque/balkan/metal/electronic etc… we even recorded it with a special equipment relative to the culture of each style, to reflect as much as we could of the original color of their sound.
There are a lot of different sounds on the album, (from accordions to genuine chip-tune) and many collaborators, suffice to say Igorrr as a collective is incredible but where do you find musicians that share your vision?
Finding the right person for each specific style is pretty difficult, there are a lot of musicians around but just a few of them are able to record properly and make it sounds great. I don’t really know where I find them, there is no real place for that, just keeping going with this project I cross the road with some amazing people.
“It doesn’t look like a love letter to my influences, but it is. Love is sometimes tricky to recognize!”
Do you have any hobbies that helps bring Igorrr the parts he needs to create these musical monsters?
I [was] a sound engineer and a job like that helps a lot in knowing how to record, mix and to do the mastering of an album by yourself. Also, while I was working in the studio, I met some very good musicians that would come with their bands that I kept in touch with after recording. That was the case for example with Nils Cheville, who is playing the classical guitar on Savage Sinusoid.
You have a very eclectic background but Igorrr doesn’t sound like a love letter to its influences and has a very distinctive personality. Where did you find the inspiration for Savage Sinusoid?
It’s right to say I’m into many kinds of music, although as a teenager I was mostly into metal. It doesn’t looks like a love letter to my influences, but it is. Love is sometimes tricky to recognize!
A metalhead who doesn’t know baroque and Balkan music would be very happy to discover that, surprisingly he likes it, and the same on the other side, classical guys, traditional Balkan or electronic music listeners would be very happy if they discover that they like metal, which is a nice homage to my cultural background.
“…expect extreme, eclectic and loud music…”
You’re taking Igorrr on the road. What can be expected from an Igorrr live show?
It’s always hard to answer this question as I’ve never attempted any Igorrr live gig in the front of the speakers because I’m always on stage! You can expect extreme, eclectic and loud music in your face for one hour.
Thanks Gautier!
You’re welcome.
