DF n°158, Interview with ROME and Review of Aldo Chimenti's DEATH IN JUNE : A l'Ombre des Runes, May 21st, 2012


On April 9th, we went to see Michael Gira perform in Paris. To our great surprise, we met Jérôme Reuter from band ROME in the first row. He had come especially from Luxembourg to attend this unique French show. After the concert, we went outside in the rain and talked about his last trilogy, Die Aesthetik der Herrschaftsfreiheit, the things to come and Jérôme's passion for Michael Gira. A pleasant improvised moment.
During this radio show, we also reviewed the book by Aldo Chimenti, Death in June : à l'ombre des runes. It was an opportunity to listen to a lot of Death in June's songs and to read excerpts from books that have been very influential for Douglas Pearce since Chimenti talks extensively about three authors in his biography of the band : Mishima, Jean Genet and Drieu La Rochelle.

Here's the playlist :

 SWANS, Will we survive
ROME, Rape blossoms, Die Brandstifter, Families of Eden, Der Wolfsmantel, Reversion, A pact of blood, The secret sons of Europe, Das Unbedingte, The Merchant Fleet, Querkraft, Wir götter der Stadt, Nera.
DEATH IN JUNE, Blood Victory, Les cavaliers du crépuscule, Death is the martyr of beauty, Death of the West, She said destroy (piano), Burn again, He's disabled, Last farewell, Little Blue Butterfly, Fields, Only Europa Knows, Heilige..., Kameradschaft (piano), Touch defiles, Doubt to nothing, Passion! Power!! Purge!!!, Bring in the night, Hail! The White Grain (piano), Ride out!, Kapitulation, Lifebooks, Death of a Man, Headhunter, The Mouner's Bench, Sons of Europe, Flieger, A Rose for SD (after she's dead), Cathedral of Tears, We said destroy, Red dog - Black dog.

 Jérôme Reuter (Rome)


 Death in June - mid-80s

DF n°157, Interviews with PLUS INSTRUMENTS (Truus de Groot + Toon Bressers) & THE TOBACCONISTS (Scott Foust + Frans de Waard), May 7th, 2012


According to us, the best moments of last month's Sonic Protest festival in Paris were the shows and performances by Plus Instruments, Truus de Groot and The Tobacconists.
Plus Instruments is the project of Dutch cult synth-post-punk-euro-beat queen Truus de Groot. She started her career in the late seventies. At that time, she met notably Michel Waiszvich, who gave her access to the Crackle Synthesizer, and the musicians from the band Nasmak, notably Toon Bressers with whom she is still working. In the early eighties, she went to New York, played notably with Rhys Chatham and Lee Renaldo then she moved to Memphis, Seattle, and finally California. During all these years, she has explored various music genres, from wierd psychobilly to alien exotica. We met her and Toon and explored step by step the whole career of this eccentric lady.
The Tobacconists is the new project of Scott Foust (XX Committee, Idea Fire Company) and Frans de Waard (Kapotte Muziek, Beequeen), entirely dedicated to their passion for cigarettes. We spoke with them after their show, before taking the last subway.

CULTURAL AMNESIA, Sacrebleu
PLUS INSTRUMENTS/TRUUS DE GROOT, Mating Call, Lonely Island, Big Man, Crazy Train, Vom Ertunkenen Mädchen, Bodies, Notions, Things, Yma Yma, Git along, Spy, Freundschaft, Only One, Paikea
XX COMMITTEE, Metal Worker
THE TOBACCONISTS,Grand Entrance
XX COMMITTEE, Slaughterhouse
BEEQUEEN, Where no doves fly
THE TOBACCONISTS, Great Times to Smoke
KAPOTTE MUZIEK & VIDNA OBMANA, Death Pact 8 (excerpt)
NASMAK, Roger, Bill Iceberg
SECOND LAYER, Black Flowers
DATA-BANK-A, We are all involved
UJI LATASMOD FUZIO, Itt Vagyok
BLISTERING MOMENTS, 77 Seven, I guess
K., 3



Truus de Groot


Toon Bressers


Scott Foust & Frans de Waard