the essential
It is shocking that Aveyron native Paulin Courtial, singer and guitarist of the Occitan rock group CXK, learned of the death of Steve Albini, on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday, following a heart attack. For good reason, the duo recorded their latest album “Castels dins la luna” in September in Chicago, in the premises of the man who was notably the producer of Nirvana and the Pixies.
You recently collaborated with Steve Albini, we can imagine that the announcement of his death was a shock for you?
Clearly, it’s super shocking. We certainly experienced it like all the groups that encountered it. He was a true musician, passionate about his work.
How did this week-long recording session go with him, in his studio in Chicago?
What stood out to me and what I will always remember was when we arrived in Chicago. We had communicated by email with his team before, but there, he opened the door and introduced himself, as if no one knew him! We knew everything about him and it was he who introduced himself to us, it testifies to the humility of this person, it put us at ease. He was a great teacher, he did not hesitate to share his knowledge. When he worked with us for a week, he was our sound engineer, not the rock legend that he was. In his studio, he was in overalls, like a real worker. Spending a week with him was just amazing.
As artists, what has it brought you?
He was an excellent technician. He worked the old-fashioned way, on tapes, without computers, and yet the result is incredible. Besides, we are super happy with the result on our album. And then, he listened. Despite his status, if we had suggestions to make to him, he followed them, without it causing him any problems.
Additional feature, you recorded in Occitan… It was something that intrigued him. He had already worked with Basque artists, and he saw similarities. He also asked several questions about this language and its current situation. He had kept this alternative side which characterizes him by his openness, and it was touching.
How did you come into contact with him?
By sound engineer Yves Roussel, who mastered our album. He told us that he had his contact and that it would be possible for us to work with him. At first, we all laughed when he told us that! But it happened quickly. He recorded an album a week with completely different groups from all over the world.
Besides, he was in France last week, at the La Fabrique studio (in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, Editor’s note) and we invited him to come to our concert at the Club in Rodez. He was unable to make himself available, but responded to us within a minute, proof of the closeness he had with the artists.
