JULIEN DAMOTTE
Questions asked by Jon Wilde, added to Rock Realms 22nd February 2010.
Julien Damotte is a French guitarist who recently impressed us with the variety and technical excellence displayed on his new album Trapped.
In the Q&A below, he talks about his solo career and more.
When and why did you originally take up the guitar?
Julien: I started playing the guitar at the age of 12 (I’m now 30). My father bought me an acoustic guitar for Christmas, although I didn’t really feel like playing an instrument at the time. But when he showed me how to play some Beatles or Chuck Berry, I soon began to like it. Then, after a year or so, I started taking lessons at my local music school. There, I learnt how to discipline my playing, so to speak.
Who were your early inspirations?
Julien: Apart from the Beatles and many blues players, which I am still fond of, I was first inspired by Slash (Guns N Roses) and Gary Moore. I was getting more and more interested in technique, so I started listening to Joe Satriani and Steve Vai, then I moved onto Paul Gilbert, Nuno Bettencourt, Ritchie Kotzen and Michael Lee Firkins to name a few. I bought their instructional videos and tried my best to reproduce every lick.
Later on, I discovered John Petrucci and my love for Progressive Metal was born. Finally, I took lessons with Stephan Forté (Adagio), Mattias Eklundh (Freak Kitchen) and Bumblefoot (Guns N Roses). Those three guitar maestros took my playing to another level.
Do you come from a musical family?
Julien: Apart from my father, who has been playing the guitar for ages, I can’t say I’m from a musical family as such. However, my parents have always had good tastes musically speaking and I guess that listening to Pink Floyd or Deep Purple when I was very young helped me get a musical ear.
You seem to cover a number of styles with your playing. Is performing different genres important to you and something you actively pursue from a technical point of view, or do you simply have diverse tastes and enjoy ‘mixing it up’?
Julien: I don’t think I mix styles intentionally. But I do have very diverse tastes. I’ve always loved blues or 70s rock, but I also listen to everything else, from very extreme metal bands to R’n’B or even Rap. Then, when it comes to composing, I really try my best to do Progressive Metal, but my other tastes are never far away...
You have played with a number of bands over the years. Could you give us a brief history of who they were and what sort of music you played?
Julien: The first band I had was when I was 13 or something, at school. We tried our best to cover some Guns N' Roses, Metallica, Red Hot Chili Peppers or Ugly Kid Joe tunes. Then we started to do concerts and we named the band Devilspoon. In the meantime, I was also part of another band named Exprim, composed of students from the music school I was in. The school director, who also was my guitar teacher, really wanted us to sound as professional as possible. We played some Pink Floyd, Joe Cocker, Van Halen, Dire Straits or Toto covers. With those two bands, I also began singing more and more.
The last band I played in before moving to Paris was “Ze Froggiez”, a blues-rock band covering some old Creedence, Tina Turner, Rolling Stones… but also more recent bands like Coldplay or Muse. At that point, I really needed something more metal-oriented!
Am I right in thinking you still play in a band - Madonagun? Could you tell us a bit about them?
Julien: Madonagun is the first real metal band I’ve played in, and besides, we only play original material, no covers. I joined this band in 2007 and we released our first E.P. “Resurrect on the Razor Edge” in January 2010. The only goal we have is to write music as we feel it. No other constraint. The result is a mix of Hardcore, old school Metal and Progressive elements. You can check us out on MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/madonagun.
Our first E.P. is available at http://madonagun.bigcartel.com/.
What inspired you to produce solo work alongside the group work?
Julien: The only reason is that I really needed to express more personal things. Before “Trapped”, I had never written “real” songs...or very cheesy ones! This need to write personal songs only comes with maturity in my opinion. The more you have to say, the easier you write songs. Moreover, my solo compositions have always been very different from the things I write for my bands.
Your first solo album was an instrumental, whereas new release ‘Trapped’ features vocals. What was the reason for the change of approach?
Julien: For a guitar player, releasing an instrumental album is like a dream, and almost like a prerequisite. In 2003, I met Buzz (Tubular Brain), a very talented artist who sings and plays the guitar very well, but most of all is a brilliant composer. He showed me that it was possible, with very little knowledge and a BOSS 8 tracks recording device, to record songs on our own.
As I didn’t really needed to express personal feelings at the time, I only concentrated on technique and wrote “Deep Inside”, which contained eleven instrumental tunes, from blues to my very first progressive metal compositions. The result is far from perfect but really satisfied me at the time.
In 2004, many things had changed in my life, and now that I knew I could record stuff quite easily, I decided it was time I created a “real” album, with “real” songs, which is much more rewarding, in my humble opinion, than self-satisfactory guitar wanking over cheesy backing tracks. Besides, instrumentally speaking, everything has been done before and better!
Was there any concept behind the writing of the new album, or is it more of a compilation of standalone tracks?
Julien: I really wanted my first vocal progressive effort to be a concept album. Therefore, the whole album revolves around the idea that we are all trapped into our own existence, body and soul, from birth to death. Indeed, no matter what we do, we’ll always be stuck in the same mortal coil. Life is like a book of which we know the end. Every page we write is merely a way to make that book worth reading, that is to say to make our life worth living. That’s the basic concept. But everyone can find different meanings according to their own experiences. At least I guess so...
How long did the album take to create – from the initial writing until the final mastering?
Julien: It took something like five years, from the very first song (“Dying”) in 2004 to the mastering at House of Audio in 2009. Then it took another year or so to contact labels, manufacture the CDs and then promote the album. That’s a very long but rewarding process.
How does the writing process work? Is it all by you, or did you work alongside other musicians?
Julien: I wrote everything except most of the keyboard parts I think. For the first song, I told Nach to redo what I had programmed earlier. But as time went by, he started to find more and more ideas and at the end, I totally trusted him with writing parts of his own. That’s why I really want to work again with him in the future. As for the rest, everyone modified some of their own interventions here and there, but basically, I’m the one who wrote everything.
Could you tell us a bit about the guests on the record and what they brought to Trapped?
Julien: Buzz and Nach are my closest friends, so what they brought is beyond music. Matt is the singer of my band Madonagun, so it was obvious to ask him to do the Death Metal vocal lines. As for Gus Monsanto (ex-Adagio, Revolution Renaissance), he asked me once if I needed help with backing vocals on my album. Of course I did! But I had other plans for him! So he ended up singing almost half of the album. He also helped me a lot with my own vocal parts. Mattias Eklundh and Christophe Godin are among my favourite musicians, but they also became close friends. It means a lot to me to have them on “Trapped”. Finally, I was introduced a very talented Soul/ RnB singer named Maya. She literally brings a touch of softness and charm to the end of the album.
Apart from the addition of vocals, how does the new album compare to previous release ‘Deep Inside’?
Julien: I think it’s much more mature and much more interesting. Besides, there are real songs this time. I insist on that because it was the main goal I had: writing songs. And it’s harder than I thought! That way, emotions are conveyed much more easily. Eventually, the production is also much better than “Deep Inside”. Everything sounds much more professional.
How would you actually describe the style of Trapped? There’s prog, metal, acoustic rock and more in there...
Julien: I’ve always found it hard to label someone’s music. So I guess it’s even harder for me to label mine. Of course, it can be seen as Progressive Metal, period. But in my opinion, I think it’s a little more diverse. The choruses are maybe a little too “mainstream” to be prog? Certain riffs or vocals (The Inner Struggle) are perhaps a little too “extreme”? And the R’n’B vibe of the intro of “Ending Chapter” doesn’t really belong to prog either... So let’s say it’s prog metal with a few variations. I wonder how people will label it...
Did you try out any new techniques or instruments on this release?
Julien: I learnt a lot in doing this album. First, I learnt how to record songs with a computer and of course how to use the software required. Then, I learnt how to program drums that actually sound like drums. I also learnt how to record my voice, which may well be the hardest thing on earth. Last but not least, I experimented a lot with odd-time signatures, scales and modes, guitar sounds, etc…
“Trapped” is also the very first album I recorded with a 7 string guitar. The original demos were all made with a 6 string, so I really had a blast adding the seventh string afterwards! The result is of course much heavier.
Along those lines...what are your favourite pieces of kit?
Julien: I’m proudly endorsed with Line 6 amps, so I would say that they are the ones I prefer. What I like about my HD147 head is its versatility. You can play every style at every volume, which is perfect for me. I didn’t want to be stuck with loud amps that only sounded good in soundproofed rooms or big venues. As for the guitars, I used an Ibanez Universe (7 strings) for the heavy riffs and another Ibanez (John Petrucci Model) for the more mellow parts and solos. The latter is the best guitar I’ve ever played so far. I couldn’t live without it!
Who did the artwork for the album?
Julien: His name is Stan W.D. He’s one of the most talented artists I know and I knew he would create something that’d fit the concept perfectly. If you want to know more about him, I invite you to check out his personal page: http://stan-w-d.deviantart.com/. He has worked with bands like No Return, Awacks, Cloverseeds and Lokurah. His work is just mind-blowing!
What is the music scene like in France for progressive rock and metal?
Julien: Playing Progressive Rock or Metal in France is very tough. I wouldn’t say there is a big interest for that kind of music here… but maybe I’m wrong. I’m about to find out! Of course we have a few good prog bands like Kalisia, Lord of Mushrooms, Awacks and Time Curve Symmetry. But unfortunately, France is not the best place to play this kind of music.
Are you planning to play any solo dates in support of the new album?
Julien: It might be a little difficult to bring “Trapped” on stage, but Nach, Buzz and I really want this to happen. That’s the next thing we’re going to work on!
Do you play many live dates with Madonagun?
Julien: We have only played a dozen gigs so far but we really want to play more and more in Paris and elsewhere. We are working on a full-length album at the moment and we are also rehearsing a song from “Trapped” to play on stage (“The Inner Struggle”)! For next shows (and music extracts), please visit http://www.myspace.com/madonagun.
If you were stuck on a desert island with a solar powered CD player, what 5 albums would you want with you?
Julien: That’s a tricky question… I would certainly pick “Awake” by Dream Theater, “Burn the Sun” by Ark, “Day for Night” by Spock’s Beard, “Milliontown” by Frost and maybe “Addicted” by Devin Townsend (or any other album he did!). And if I could add a sixth one, I would say “Silhouettes” by Textures. Ask me the same question tomorrow and I’m sure I’ll give you different answers!
Any question you love being asked that I’ve missed? If so, what’s the answer?
Julien: Nope.
Where do you see yourself over the next few years? Do you take each day as it comes or do you have a master plan?
Julien: I’m very far from having a master plan. I wish I had one! Instead, I simply try to seize the moment. In my dearest dreams, I see myself doing more and more music. And even making money! But to be realistic, I guess my life isn’t going to change that much.
What are you up to once you’ve finished answering these questions?
Julien: Take a nap! That’s my favourite activity. And then maybe grab a guitar and improvise over silly bluesy backing tracks for an hour. Nothing creative today, sorry!
Anything else you would like to mention?
Julien: Nothing else. Thanks a lot for this interview! See you on March 9th for the release of “Trapped”. Stay tuned on http://www.juliendamotte.com/...
Thanks again to Julien for his time. You can check out the Rock Realms review of his latest album Trapped here.
http://www.myspace.com/damotte
