La Fin Du Monde Can't Be Stopped -- Even by the Marines

Meeting the required complexity needed to earn the tag as a post-metal, instrumental band means La Fin Du Monde are a hard act to describe. Most songs have a foundation of jazz that weaves in and out of a metallic atmosphere that flags down feelings of an intelligent aggression that enjoys still moments. "We tend to use instrumental/progressive rock quite a bit," bassist Mike Crew confessed to Noisecreep of how he describes the Chico, Calif. band.

"I think of progressive as basically not having any set rules or limits as far as sound goes, like some jazz and other experimental genres. So we think it fits in that way, not in the way that describes a band that does 30-minute keyboard solos while wearing capes. Though we are also kind of a heavy rock band at the core ... just an unconventional one."



Formed in 2004, La Fin Du Monde was not a band posed to last long. The band had a plan; it was to break up soon after a few shows playing their noodling instrumental music, because original guitarist Jeremy Root was set to ship off for the Marines. "We just liked the songs to much to stop," Crew said. "We didn't play for a little while right after Jeremy left. I think we all realized we really missed it and wanted to keep going." And they have kept it going, having four releases now under their belt, including the new album 'Monolith.' And in 2006, they won the award for Best Indie/Experimental Band at the Chico Area Music Awards.

When most people hear the band for the first time the first thing to grab them is no member doubles up on an instrument playing the role of rhythm. The reason that can do this is they have two bassists. "It really frees up the guitarists to try different things. They don't have to worry about playing power chords or rhythm guitar type playing to hold down the low end, so they can try different textures and melodies," Crew said. "It also allows our drummer to lock in with different players throughout the song instead of just locking in with one bass or guitarist. It seems to open up possibilities for everyone in the band." Crew informed us that line up of two bassist was one of accidental design when the ashes of other local bands were used to form La Fin Du Monde.



And for the record, though the band's name can be seen in the beer isle, the band didn't take their moniker from the Canadian golden ale. "We had a song with a working title of 'The End of the World' when we first started out," Crew reveled. "We still didn't have a name though. Someone suggested naming the song La Fin Du Monde, which is the French translation. We liked the sound of it for the song, but liked it even better for the band name. So we changed the song title and used La Fin Du Monde for the name. It also happens to be a great beer. People do mention that a lot. We've even had people send us pictures of a bottle they saw in the liquor store. 'Dude, check it out!'