Fantômas (group)

For the character of fiction, consult the article Fantômas

Fantômas is a group of Avant-garde metal formed in 1998 in California, with the the United States. The group is named after Fantômas, a character of fiction published in a series of popular detective novels in France before the First World War.

History

The group was formed when the singer Mike Patton composed a handle of spasmodic songs and avant-gardists right before the different dissolution of sound groups Faith No More. Patton then sent its compositions to friends while hoping to form a new group: Guitarist Buzz Osborne of Melvins, Bass player Trevor Dunn of Mr. Bungle (the group that him and Patton had formed with the Lycée), and the Batteur Igor Cavalera of Sepultura. Cavalera refused the offer, but recommended Dave Lombardo Slayer, because he thought that he would be perfect for the project. Lombardo accepted the offer and the Supergroupe of Patton was formed.

In summer 2005, the group made a round in Europe with Terry Bozzio with the battery, because Lombardo was in round with Slayer. Lombardo played with Fantômas during the last dates of the round, which finished on September 15th, 2005, but rumors tell that Bozzio will be the beater for the next album of the group.

May 13rd, 2006, Patton revealed with Billboard.com that a fifth album was envisaged: " This next album will be an entirely electronic business. That will require a creative organization to know how to record it and carry out it, but there will be no acoustic instrument. We more or less will pass in hibernation mode. I must, as soon as I have a little time, turn over to the table and start to write next the album."

Style

Although their roots are located in the heavy metal, their music touches many musical genres and is remarkable for its direction of the sometimes moved Humor; a criticism described their style like " Hobby-horse - metal". Greg Prato, a musical Critical , described their music as being " completely original… especially compared to alternative blah and foreseeable Rock'n'roll of the end of the Years 1990. " Patton seldom sings conventional words, preferring its own style of vocal Musique strange, similar to Scat.

The songs of Fantômas are often unmatched and without refrains, use sometimes Larsens and pure Bruit, and they could be described as noise progressive. In spite of that, they are not a group of Musique bruitist at 100% and the majority of their songs have marked Rythme S and melodies. They are a single combination of progressive noise psychedelic.

They arrange also their albums around strange concepts or topics:

  • Fantômas/Amenaza Al Mundo is inspired by cartoons of Science-fiction, each track being numbered like a page (Page 1, Page 2, etc). The artwork was mainly taken of the Italian cartoon Diabolik.
  • The Director' S Cut is a series of reinterpretations of film musics. Some recoveries are more honest with their original than others, like the Berceuse of the Night of the hunter, while others transform the song in a radical way, as the music of the Parrain which devent a song of Thrash metal.
  • Delìrium Còrdia was a one hour old track and fourteen minutes, illustrating the concept of the Chirurgie without Anesthésie.
  • Suspended Animation (Recorded during the same sessions that Delìrium Còrdia ) is an album of twisted music of cartoons, where each track is named according to one day of the month of April 2005; the first edition of the album, in limited edition, contained a calendar of April 2005.

Members

Discography

Sources

  • Official site

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