Hello everyone, we’re here with Jean-François from the band Kataklysm. We’re at Motocultor. You’re playing on stage in a few hours. How do you feel? Excited? A bit nervous?
Yeah, we’re excited because the last time we played Motocultor was already about ten years ago. We’re super happy to be back. We were looking forward to it because we love playing in France. For us, it’s like playing in front of cousins. The experience always feels kind of like family. It’s really great to be back. And we’re also happy to have a good slot today, on the big stage. We’re very excited.

In 2023 you released the album Goliath. Can we expect something new soon? Is there anything in the works?
Yeah, we released Goliath in 2023, and the response was really great. We haven’t started writing new music yet, but we did release a single last month called The Rabbit Hole. It’s kind of an out of the box song we decided to do. It’s about current stuff — conspiracy theories and everything going on in the world right now. We watch the news, we ask ourselves questions, and this song reflects that. But it’s not on an album, it’s just a stand-alone single. The next thing we’re doing is: we decided to cancel all our summer festivals next year so we can focus on writing an album — a really strong one. We said, “Let’s all get in the same room and write together,” because we haven’t done that in a few years. We live in different cities, we don’t see each other much, so we’ve been writing at a distance, sending files back and forth. Now we’ve decided to rent a place in Florida — we already found it, it’s got an acre of land in the woods. We’ll all move in together and write the album. We’re going to try to make the best thing we’ve ever done. We’re really minded to give our best, and we’ll see what happens. That’ll be next summer, aiming for a release either at the end of the year or early the following one.

Well, I can’t wait to hear that.
Yeah, thanks.

You mentioned getting together in the same room to write. I also saw you’ve had quite a few lineup changes. How does that affect your songwriting over the years?
Well, of course, if you change a member, it always changes the dynamic a little bit. In Kataklysm, we’ve always had a specific sound: the way I play guitar, Mauricio’s very unique voice, the bass… We’ve had several drummers over the years, and it was hard because we couldn’t find the right person who clicked with us. Musically is one thing, but being on the same wavelength in life is another. Being in a band is like being married — if it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. But now, with our new drummer James — he’s younger than us, but it feels like we’re the same age. We agree 100% on everything. It’s really great. It feels like he’s part of the family. Musically and personally, he’s a guy we really like. I think that family spirit is truly there now. That’s why I feel the next record is going to be really cool.

Again, we can’t wait to hear it. Especially after what you just said. For you, what’s the ideal mix? Total brutality, or more of a melodic balance?
We’re super open-minded when it comes to music. We work for the song. Whatever the song demands — even if it’s different or unexpected — we don’t hesitate to bring in new elements. I think that’s what makes Kataklysm always a bit of a surprise with every record. People don’t know what direction it’ll go in, and we like it that way, keeping it open. Of course, the core sound of the band will always be there, but we like adding different elements. We like to explore, we don’t like being stuck in the same little box.

Are there any artists or albums that influence you, outside of metal?
Yeah, I listen to all kinds of stuff, any genre. I’m a big fan of Deftones — they’re not really traditional metal, but I like their music a lot. I also like Radiohead, more trippy stuff. Then I love the classics: Iron Maiden, old Metallica, Slayer… all that. And there’s also modern stuff like Deathcore, Djent, which is super cool too. But when I write an album, I don’t really think about any of that. I just sit down with my guitar and start playing. When something good comes out, we build on that first idea and try to make the best thing possible from it.

Is there one song that, for you, represents Kataklysm the best?
That’s a really hard question, and I’ve been asked it before. There are so many songs… I could tell you an older one that represents the band well: Like Angels Weeping the Dark, from In the Arms of Devastation. But there are also a lot of recent songs I love: Dark Wings of Deception, the opening track of Goliath. Underneath the Scars, from the previous album, which we’re playing tonight, that is really cool too. So yeah… it’s a tough one.

Do you have a live moment in your career that really stood out to you?
For sure, playing big festivals like this is always impressive. Even for guys like us who’ve been doing it a long time. Walking on stage with 20,000 people in front of you — it always does something inside. I remember back in high school, playing guitar alone in my bedroom at my mom’s house… and now, the journey since then — it’s incredible. Also, visiting so many countries around the world, that’s amazing too. We’ve been everywhere on the planet. It’s an incredible experience.

And my last question : do you have a message for your fans?
Yes. A big thank you for the support. I think it’s amazing that album after album, even as we get older, we still have fans following us — and even more young people joining the family. You always have that thought in the back of your mind: we’re going to release a new record, will people like it? Will they still support us? And then the album comes out, and the surprise is yes — we do have the fans’ support. I think that’s incredible. So just a big thank you for continuing to follow us in our craziness, year after year.