Interview Gwenn Tremorin aka Flint Glass

Abbiamo di recente presentato il suo ultimo lavoro con lo pseudo Flint Glass, ispirato all'immaginario fanta-gotico di Lovecraft, e colpiti dal suo indiscutibile talento nel forgiare ambientazioni molto suggestive attraverso suoni di elevatissima qualità, abbiamo recapitato qualche domandina per conoscerlo meglio. Stiamo parlando del parigino Gwenn Tremorin, il quale ci ha raccontato dei suoi progetti e della sua passione per Lovecraft. Buona lettura!

Hi Gwenn. We recently reviewed your last work as Flint Glass.We noticed a trait d'union between your records and particular literary issues. Did you ever think about working for cinema? I try and make the Flint Glass sound have a real mass and a tangible presence, which some choices to interpret as forms of mysticism. The music itself has finally reached that point where there's a perfect creative synergy between the inspired theme and the music itself. I try to write the music understanding fully the images. It's an attempt to create a sound that quite literally envelops the listener physically, that take him or her to a place that only exists within the sound. Basically, I seek to tell dark tales with my works; taking listeners on journeys and voyages into the depths of imagination with all the possible keys ..Of course, I hope to have one day, the possibility of working on a movie soundtrack !

What's the relation between Nyarlathotep and Heraknopolis (if there's any)? I don't see a real relation between them but more an interesting conceptual opposition from the mystery of pyramids to Lovecraft´s myth; from the ruins of the Horus´ Temple, the Sky and Sun god, to the Lord of Darkness !

You look particularly interested in ancient civilizations.. In your perspective, what's the most fascinating one? I've been fascinated since long time by lost civilisations. I really discover old Egyptian civilisation mysteries after a long travel in Egypt. Hierakonpolis was a great ancient Egyptian city that was the capital city of the country long before the pyramids. On my side project "Tzolk'in" with Empusae, our inspiration is Maya civilisation and its mytologies, now Nyalathotep is inspired by HP. Lovecraft fantastic novels, ghostly and mysterious. It's difficult to choose what is the most fascinating one. But I want in the futur create a concept album on the theme of "Mû"..

What about your audio equipment? I mainly work with a computer with some audio softwares and a lot of effets. I use an AKAI midi workstation that can be used as a sampler and sequencer, but now I use it only for my live concerts. Besides, I take a malicious pleasure to cut and re-work movies sountracks and each sound catching my attention!

You cite some words by Lovecraft. Why did you choose them? This text come from a novel I really like ( Imprisonned with the Pharaohs) and was perfect to explain my inspiration in the Chtulhu mhytos theme. Here is the traduction you'll understand: "In their rhythmic piping, droning, rattling and beating I felt an element of terror beyond all the known terrors of earth--a terror peculiarly dissociated from personal fear, and taking the form of a sort of objective pity for our planet, that it should hold within its depths such horrors as must lie beyond these aegipanic cacophonies. The sounds increased in volume, and I felt that they were approaching. Then--and may all the gods of all pantheons unite to keep the like from my ears again--I began to hear, faintly and afar off, the morbid and millennial tramping of the marching things.It was hideous that footfalls so dissimilar should move in such perfect rhythm. The training of unhallowed thousands of years must lie behind that march of earth's inmost monstrosities...padding, clicking, walking, stalking, rumbling, lumbering, crawling.. and all to the abhorrent discords of those mocking instruments...."

Do you follow any rite before composing or making sounds? I just tried to re-transcribe my feelings. When I compose, I need to be alone and immerge myself in my universe. Making music for me is a kind of outlet for myself, like letting out my own daemons!

Do you think Bush is related to Cthulhu? Funny question. What I like most in Lovecraft writings and Cthulhu Mytos is the fact that everything has benn attached to a fundamental legend according to which this world was populated in the past by the beings of another race, followers of the "sorcery". They lost their influence on this universe and were banished by it, but they still live elsewhere and are always ready to return in order to take possession of Planet Earth and create chaos down there. But now, the truth about the universe was discovered (there is no God, only a race of Aliens who consider humankind as a mass of insignificant specks). There are now only two way-outs for Bush: madness or death! ;-)

Any future project you're working on? Yes, I work on a new Tzolk'in album with my belgian friend Salocin from Empusae ( and This Morn Omina). I think It's a perfect mixture between each one of our personal projects. And I just finished a new collaboration album with the famous German experimental project Telepherique. It's a very different theme, more experimental. It's inspired by "information overload", speed of changes in technologies, internet media and theirs negative effects on the human brain). This album will be release soon on the Canadian label Angle records. ( www.angle-rec.net )

If you should advise someone to buy some cds in order to start listening electronic music...? Ha, to start softly, I would advise the ambiant and "darker" works of Brian Eno, on Land and Apollo, or the very early, ambient-style, T.Dream stuff like Zeit. or the pop attitude of Kraftwerk (the Capitol years stuff), with that very schematic and mimimalistic melodic lines. For more rhytmical stuffs, why not Plasticman or Autechre first periode.