Audoynaud Interview

 

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the musical project?

1.      We are AUDOYNAUD, a duo of two brothers. Romain writes the lyrics and sings, and Pierre composes the music. Together, we make a French dark folk that is deep, intimate, and adventurous.

2.In March you had released your first full length, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical style that you went for on the recording?

1.      We released Hyperboréen in 2024. It’s a dark folk album where the voice and lyrics play a central role. The record also leans toward dark ambient, building textured soundscapes with electro-acoustic techniques. We mainly use acoustic instruments, recorded in our own studio and edited by ourselves.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects you have explored so far with the music?

1.      The album is called Hyperboréen. We imagined it as a journey into an imaginary Far North. The natural elements represent feelings and emotions; it is an invitation to introspection and silent communion.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Audoynaud'?

1.      It is our family name, which we also share with our older sister Charlotte, who creates the visuals for the project, and our younger sister Mathilde, who is always a source of inspiration.

5.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover?

1.      It is a photograph taken by Charlotte Audoynaud with her medium format film camera, in the area around our studio in Puisaye (Burgundy). This is where our music comes to life.

6.Currently there are only 2 members in the band, are you open to expanding the line up or do you prefer to remain a duo?

1.      AUDOYNAUD is a project in collaboration with many musicians we have met along the way. We like to see the studio as a hub, a center, around which many artists and musicians gather.

7.On the new album you also have a few quest musicians, can you tell us a little bit more about who they are and also their contributions to the recording?

1.    They are musicians we collaborate with on various projects within our label Eaux Sombres. We invite them to come and play in the studio, and Pierre collects the recorded material. From this material, he arranges the sounds like an electro-acoustic composer. On Hyperboréen we have collaborated with Evelyne Coen on oboe and English horn, Jean-Marc Ladet on violin, Michel Granon on accordion, and David Michelet and Léo Ducatez on nylon-string guitar. We have also worked remotely with the guitarist Rai Castells, who is based in Spain.

8.Can you tell us a little bit more about your label 'Eaux Sombres'??

It is a label born from the desire to create, together with the studio, a space for free, experimental, and improvised music. It is a project rooted in a specific place, and it aims to bring together unique artists.

9.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of the more underground and experimental genres of music?

10.What is going on with some of the other musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?

Pierre Audoynaud is involved in the electro-organic improvisation group ReBis, whose album Sans motif apparent was the label’s second release. He is also working on several upcoming projects that will be released through the label.

11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

We have two projects in progress. One is an album reworking songs by Current93, and the other is a close collaboration with the guitarist David Michelet.

12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

As for styles, we can talk about dark folk, doom, drone, noise, experimental music, and electro-acoustic music. For composing Hyperboréen, we were inspired by Current93, Swans, Asmus Tietchens, Françis Dhomont, and the artists on the Shelter Press label.

https://www.instagram.com/_audoynaud/