DRLCT – "Médéé"
Four Songs About Grief, Farewell, and Hope
DRLCT released the album 'Médéé' on May 31st. The vinyl edition will now be released on September 21st—time for me to present the solo project by Fantin Reichler (The Kompressor Experiment, Méandre) to you guys. For 'Médéé', he invited Steve Frily (drums), David Glassey (vocals tracks 1 and 4), Isis Lambiel (vocals track 4) and Camille Babington (spoken words track 3) into the studio. You can hear Fantin himself on guitars (electric and acoustic), bass and synths. He also did the arrangements and compositions. The result is a soulful piece of art that flatters the turntable and reminds us of our own transience.
Fantin also worked with Ludovic Volper on the four tracks—he did the recording and mixing. Christoph Noth was responsible for the mastering. DRLCT released "Asunder" (10:56), "Un jour en Octobre" (08:56), "Flow your tears, that Bluebird said" (09:17), and "Interlinked" (10:49) on Sunday Fog Records.
If you think that even the songs' names sound heavy and sad, you're right. With 'Médéé', Fantin deals with the death of his beloved mother, among other things. Overall, however, the record is not only characterised by gloom and hopelessness. I'd even go so far as to say it's quite the opposite—in hours of restlessness, sadness and darkness, they provide strength and have a wonderfully hypnotic, optimistic effect on the mind. The pieces, which develop layer by layer, tell the story of peeling oneself out of a dramatic situation. They do this in a blunt, straightforward manner—painting a wonderful picture of gratitude, beautiful memories and hope.
Multi-layered and emotional
Harmonious, cinematic and beautiful. Pierced by skilfully placed disharmonies and ramified narrative strands that spread out in different directions and finally reunite, leading to a harmonious finale. You could describe it as melancholic, but there is much more to 'Médée' than that. It describes the setting of a complex emotional world that accompanies us all. The darkness will always make it to the surface. Intermitted by numerous other feelings and distractions that work their way up, gain the upper hand and lose their power again, leaving room for the darkness to flare up again around the next corner just to be interwoven with light again. Here is how Fantin describes his feelings:
"On September 5th, 2022, my mom died after a three-year losing battle with cancer. In order to cope with her brutal death, I started writing a lot of music, just to have a purpose, something to pour my sparse energy in."
Farewell to the beloved mother
The four songs, each around ten minutes long, revolve around the Swiss artist's experiences during this difficult time. 'Asunder' is about his mother's anger and disbelief when she realised her life was over. "Un jour en Octobre" is about her nostalgia, which was abruptly interrupted by the cancer that reached her brain. The ballad 'Flow your tears, that Bluebird said' about acceptance and 'Interlinked' about her last, painful steps towards her final rest.
I recommend you listen to this album if you haven't already done so. Fantin is also looking forward to your vinyl orders from now on.
Read my interview with DRLCT founder Fantin now!