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| This interview was made in collaboration with Fetzner Death Records |
With the release of Masquerade, their sixth full-length album, French black metal band Dark Plague continue to refine their uncompromising vision while expanding their musical horizons. We spoke with the band's mastermind about the new album, its creative process, and the philosophy behind Dark Plague.
Asmoth: With Masquerade, your sixth studio album, what did you set out to achieve that you hadn't explored on your previous releases?
Lord of Misery: Every album needs to bring its share of evolution without creating a complete rupture. On The Threshold of Death, we had reached a peak level of maximum intensity that would have been hard to replicate in the exact same way. For Masquerade, I wanted to bring more contrast, playing more subtly with hot and cold, and integrating a few more mid-tempo passages amidst the unleashed blast beats. Musically, it’s a more diverse album. It’s also the very first time I handled the entire mixing and mastering process myself. That was a crucial step for me in order to have total control over the production chain and get a raw, massive sound with surgical precision.
Asmoth: What was the driving force behind the writing of Masquerade, both musically and conceptually?
Lord of Misery: Conceptually, the starting point was the painting Allegoria della simulazione. The image of this woman holding a mask instantly caught my attention. It’s a perfect metaphor for social hypocrisy and false pretenses. We live in a society that is so sanitized and politically correct that it forces us to wear a mask daily to survive, hide our true desires, and avoid sanctions. Masquerade expresses all of that hatred and resentment accumulated beneath this facade.
Otherwise, the initial driving force remains our absolute passion for this style. I’ve been roaming this scene for over 20 years, and I’m still making discoveries—it’s an infinite genre of music. What I love above all else is creating. You sit down, you work out structural and melodic ideas. Then you search for themes, learning new things in the process, and that’s what fuels me more than anything.
Asmoth: Did Masquerade naturally evolve from The Threshold of Death, or did you deliberately approach this album from a different creative perspective?
Lord of Misery: The album clearly follows in the continuity of The Threshold of Death, but with a more deliberate approach to its dynamics. The goal isn't to remake the exact same record over and over. If The Threshold of Death was an uninterrupted display of violence, Masquerade approaches brutality from another angle, integrating new structures and more nuances. Overall, though, the core direction remains true to our DNA: dark, melodic, uncompromising brutal black metal.
Asmoth: From the songwriting to the recording process, what aspects of Masquerade distinguish it most from your previous albums?
Lord of Misery: I think it's our most musically varied album yet, featuring the widest range of different structures and slightly more mid-tempo sections than on previous releases. Sound-wise, I’d say it’s our most modern effort to date, without losing our core DNA.
I’d also say it’s the album where we pushed our standards and independence the furthest. Nothing was left to chance, from initial songwriting down to the smallest arrangement details. Handling the mix and mastering ourselves was a revelation: unlike past records where working remotely meant making compromises, we were able to shape the sound exactly how we envisioned it.
Asmoth: How do you see the current French black metal scene? Do you think it still has a unique identity?
Lord of Misery: A unique identity? I think the French scene has become extremely diverse. The era of true black metal being a single, homogeneous entity is long gone. Over the years, several distinct branches have emerged: you have a fairly modern line like the one championed by Les Acteurs de l'Ombre, a more medieval/rural scene in the vein of Peste Noire, and a more orthodox school, so to speak, like Deathspell Omega... Beyond that, I feel we carve out our own niche in a singular form of black metal, alongside bands like The Great Old Ones or Decline of the I, which I absolutely love.
Asmoth: With so many black metal bands emerging every year, what do you think makes Dark Plague stand apart?
Lord of Misery: Dark Plague is the synthesis of all my influences and the most brutal form of my musical expression. We don't try to follow trends: we compose very spontaneously over short periods of time to capture a raw, authentic emotion. The combination of dark, hard-hitting melodies, radical dynamics, and devastating drumming gives Dark Plague a distinct identity. We pay extreme attention to detail and to the visual concept to deliver a cohesive piece of work from A to Z.
Asmoth: Now that Masquerade is finished, what are your expectations for the album and the band's future?
Lord of Misery: We don't have any concerts planned at the moment, but we promise you more albums to come! My sole objective is to keep this passion alive, to keep composing, exploring new structures, and enriching our music. I simply hope Masquerade resonates with true black metal fans, spreads our darkness, and makes hearts bleed just as ours does!
You can check out Masquerade on Fetzner Death Records - Website or on the Bandcamp below