Three and a half years after the release of their impressive debut LP Cliffhanger, Bordeaux based emotional post hardcore act PVST (formely PAST) are back with a new record, a quality new EP that pushes at the boundaries of multi-layered post hardcore and invites the listener into well-thought soundscapes that do get quite noisy at times, but framed around melodious harmonies. Today, we’re giving you the first listen of “Seuls”, along with the band’s first hand commentary below!
Asked about the recording process and the meaning of DIY approach in their work, the band replied:
We recorded during one week by ourslef in the French country. That’s the first time we record by our own because for « Cliffhanger » and « Never Fall Down » we recorded at the Apiary studio with Amaury Sauvé (Birds in. Row, Bison Bisou, The Prestige…). So we met all three and decided to keep our way from the beginning of the project, to record the three instruments at the same time, in live. It was special for us because it was the first time we recorded alone, without anyone giving a direct opinion on the technical or artistic elements.
This EP also corresponds to Simon’s coming to the drums dropping Joris. He brought a lot of freshness to the band, especially by importing textures of sounds that we added as finely as possible to the songs. They allowed us to push our work even more on the ambiances, which allowed the group to find its own sound. We took the time to release this album because the last year we toured more than usual and it’s more difficult to manage with our daily lives when you work in DIY conditions.
Regarding the lyrical concept of the record, they added:
When we started writing the lyrics, they mostly talked about love relationships and related issues. But very quickly they took a broader turn to finally take a dimension almost political or at least social. Seuls means Alone in pluriel. The lyrics evoke the feeling of being alone while we are in a hyper connected world. He also talks about the fact that we can only meet eache other in forms of fighting against ourselves. So, they actually talk about power games in an almost sociological sense. Sometimes they are visible in the way we manage our intimate relationships and sometimes more globally as the image of an empire that wants to engulf other countries. We played on this contrast between what we can live in an intimate relationship, but also on the scale of a country.
PVST live:
Dec 18 Le Cirque Electrique – Paris, France
Dec 19 Toulon
Dec 20 – La Salle Gueule – arseille, France
Dec 21 (Release show) – L’athénée Libertaire – Bordeaux, France
The band comments:
The money collected from the entries will be donated to an association of volunteer psychologists caring for people in extremely precarious situations and who are mostly migrants. We will play with the groups Solitone (screamo) and des Astres (post-rock). for the occasion the painter A.A (arthur anium) will present his works.
We met Hada from Hache Bookings in Spain when she booked us in Madrid. Very quickly whe decided to work together to book our shows with her in her country. We also work with Jean Charles Medina from Mission Dolores (The organization we’ll be official in several months) in France. But for other countries, we really want to play everywhere. So, we are scheluding some show in Spain and in France for 2020, because in other countries. We would really like to go to the Scandinavian side, but unfortunately no proposals have been offered to us.
Spring is giving way to summer in many parts of the world, and France is no exception. Bordeaux band PAST are out in full gloom with their latest song, “Seuls” – and boy does it smell sweet. Craving the scent of reverb-laden lamentations mixed with vivid, musical melancholy? / Everything Is Noise
