We propose in this article an interview with a French band that we had the pleasure of listening to and reviewing recently, welcome CKRAFT.
Hi, how are you?
Hi guys, great! Thanks a lot for having us today!
You are a band that offers elaborate Progressive Metal sounds, with Jazz influences. How was the passion for these genres born?
Charles (the bandleader): “I grew up listening to metal, it was the only music that would really make sense to me as a teenager. I’d spend hours listening to KoRn, Slipknot, and especially Gojira. Their album “The Link” really changed my perception of music and I still listen to it as an adult with the same passion and awe. Later in my formative years, I saw a jazz big band play live and I was blown away by the exuberant freedom that this music was projecting from the stage. Sooner or later I had to blend these genres!“
Your sound is very varied, what are your main inspirations?
Charles: “CKRAFT was born when I discovered the melodies from Middle Ages, especially Gregorian chants. These melodies were the last element I needed in order to write compositions with a strong direction. So I’d say that they are (compositionally) the main influence. On the stylistic side I’ll quote Gojira again, with their riffs and their energy that embody the essence of metal, in my humble opinion. I also love Meshuggah and Car Bomb, the way they mess up with rhythms and clavas and the general intelligence and intelligibility of their compositions always blows my mind.“
Your album “Epic Discordant Vision” was released in June 2022 and features very intense and elaborate tracks, how would you describe the album?
Charles: “I would describe it as a banger! (laughing) More seriously, releasing this album is the first time in my life that I’m 100% happy artistically about one of my productions, without having to compromise whatsoever. Our purpose was to make something that, in a fully instrumental setup, is looking to be as heavy as possible, while using these epic Gregorian melodies, and jazz-influenced harmonies, and create a space of discordant improvised sections for the synth-accordion (we call it “augmented accordion”!) and the tenor saxophone.“
You have the ability to combine Jazz sounds with more modern and Heavy sounds, how does the creative and compositional process of your music take place?
Charles: “I literally write everything down on paper, even the drums parts. Sometimes the idea starts from a riff or a rhythmic pattern that is looping in my head for too long, sometimes it’s more about the melodic aspect of one Gregorian chant, and then it’s all about developing and varying these elements, and think of each tune as an epic story that has to be told as loud as possible. When everything is written down and I’m sure of the tune’s structure and intention, I bring it in rehearsal to my fellow band members and we craft the sound all together, they sometimes have suggestions to make some parts sound heavier, which I’m always happy to apply! We spend a lot of time in the rehearsal room until we’re happy to play a new tune on stage.“
Many of our fans and readers are wondering if there will be a chance to listen to your music live, do you have any plans for that?
Charles: “Absolutely! We’re on the road as we speak, in Germany and mostly France for now, but hopefully more internationally in the future! The best way for fans to stay updated would be to follow us on our socials (all the links are here: linktr.ee/ckraft.music), if we play in your town, the info will be in there!“
Today’s music market offers less refined and more commercial sounds, what difficulty (if any) does a band like yours find in proposing their music?
Charles: “That’s a good question! As far as I’m concerned, I don’t think we’re in competition with the more commercial artists that you’re thinking of. I think our music talks about something that fewer people want to listen to. It talks about the violence of men and nature, and embrace them as an endless source of inspiration for one of the heaviest art form (Metal), rather than turning one’s head away from the disaster and live a happy life in cognitive dissonance. That’s probably why some metalheads feel the need to qualify this or that music of “trve” or “untrvue”… When the violence is just a gimmick it feels utterly wrong. I’d personally find it more difficult to release something purposely “less refined” or “more commercial” as you say, but I guess that in the end if we stay true to ourselves and to our message, more people in this world will understand what we’re saying and are -hopefully- become our beloved fans!“
What advice would you give to young artists who try to emerge by proposing a musical genre with more refined sounds like yours?
Charles: “I have no idea! I think we’re exactly in this category of emerging young artists, so I really don’t feel entitled to give advice to anyone actually! Just do what you like and have a deep respect for the material you’re using, I guess?“
I thank CKRAFT for the interview and for the availability, wishing them the best for the continuation of their musical career. Thank you.
Charles: “thanks for this free-expression section! I’d like to say a few words about the band’s name then: I think musicians and composers are very similar with craftsmen, in the sense that we all use noble material -for us, middle-ages melodies, the culture of jazz and that of metal- just like craftsmen would use different varieties of wood, minerals, etc. and create something unprecedented directly from these materials, combined with their art, their expertise and experience. That’s why I named this band CKRAFT, along with the fact that “Kraft” in German, means strength/energy/force! And there you have it, a mixture of “craft” and “Kraft”! Again thanks a lot ProgRock Journal for having us!“
Read our review of the album “Epic Discordant Vision” here: https://progrockjournal.com/review-ckraft-epic-discordant-vision/