WORST DOUBT

Q1. For readers who might not be familiar with you, would you please provide some background on the band—where you’re from, when you formed, etc.?

Jacob (Guitars) : Hey man, thanks for the interview ! The band started in 2014. We’re from Paris. Hugo (singer) and Emile (drums) used to play together in a beatdown band called Backboned. After the band split up, they created Worst Doubt. Different line up back then but the plan was to play straight up New York Hardcore. Since that time, we released two demos, a LP and an EP. Our style has changed a bit, but we still see ourselves as a glorified NYHC band with metal influences.   

Q2. Who are some of the band’s primary influences?

In the beginning of the bands, we were super into the og NY bands from the late 90’s / early 2000 (Dmize, EGH, Bulldoze, Merauder, Kickback…) but also the more “modern” ones like TUI, King Nine, Soul Search. Since that time, we also add some more metal influences, mostly Death Metal as it’s a genre we dig a lot. Bands like early Suffocation, Dying Fetus and their side projects, Pyrexia, early Gojira. We fuck a lot with the Hardcore bands that mix those two genres, like Irate, Terror Ave, All Out War, etc.  I think you can hear it on Immortal Pain.

Q3. Your EP Immortal Pain was recently released—what was the writing and recording process like, and what can listeners who haven’t heard it yet expect?

Pretty much the same writing process since the start of the band. Hugo, our singer, is the main songwriter in the band. Most of the time when he has ideas, he records pre productions, send it and we discuss what’s to keep / what’s to change until everyone fuck with it. Some of the songs of the ep were already written during the Extinction (our first LP) writing sessions.

Regarding the recording, we worked again with our friends Max (from Rixe) at Chateau Vergogne Studio. He’s a great producer and he knows how we work so it was a no brainer to call him again. We recorded the ep in a weekend and ask Cody from Sanguisugabogg / Volcano to mix / master it. We love his bands and the records he produced and felt like his style was a good choice for the direction we aimed for, which was mostly like “we want this ep to sound like a 90’s Death Metal demo”. Some people hated it but it is what it is haha. We love it, that’s all that matters.

I think it’s a straighter forward record than our LP imo, but if u fuck with that “in your face” type of Mosh Metal, people should give it a spin.

Q4. What are some of the themes you explore on the EP?

Theme wise, it’s the logical continuity of the LP lyrics. Personal struggle, social dynamics criticism, poser shaming, you name it. We also have a song with 10+ featuring from a lot of friends from the Paris Scene which is your classical ignorant “my city is better than yours, fuck you” type of song and was super fun to do.

Q5. For American listeners, the EP was released via DAZE. How did that relationship come about?

When we were talking with Cody during the mix session, he told us “That’s the kind of shit that Lumpy (from Daze) would fuck with. I just sent him a track, you sould send him the whole EP when it’s done.” Which we did. He actually fucked with it and he was already familiar with the band, he was down to do a co release with BDHW. He’s a great dude and has one of the most exciting roster at the moment imho so we’re super happy to work with him. Plus, he’s one of the few US hardcore labels that actually give a fuck about euro bands.

Q6. Some of your members also play in Headbussa, recently on the road with Knocked Loose and Deafheaven and then out in Asia with Last Wishes. What were those touring experiences like and does Worst Doubt plan to hit the road in the near future?

Yeah 3 of us plays in HB (Hugo, Emile and Baptiste, our guitarist). I was lucky enough to do merch for them on that tour and it was really dope. Awesome conditions, rock star tour bus, sold out big clubs almost every night. And everybody was really nice to us. S/o to Knocked Loose for picking up Headbussa,  S/o Deafheaven for being awesome people. We were sharing the bus with them and we had tons of fun. It was really far from the DIY style type of tour we’re used to, great experience. I wasn’t in Asia but they loved it as well. People there were super welcoming, crazy moshers. SE Asia / Japan have a great scene.

Regarding Worst Doubt, we all have been super busy with our different projects but we just did a French run with our friends with Sorcerer (great band, check them out) that was really dope, as it can be tricky to do only French shows for bands. We wanted to play a only French run for some while now and are super happy with how it went. Now, we’re mostly working on some stuff that we can’t talk about yet but cool news should be announced soon for late summer / end of the year, so keep your eyes peeled. 

Q7. Who are some other artists/bands on the scene we should be paying attention to?

They are so many atm but I really fuck with the Glasgow scene (Despize, NBE, Hellbound, DOP…), our friends in Take It In Blood, Sorcerer, Corruption Pact, Citrus, Dig in Wretch, Broken Ankles are also dope and you should check them out.

Q8. Is there anything else on the horizon for the band or any other things you want to tell our readers about?

We working on bringing our asses to places where we never been yet, so that’s the main focus right now. We’ll also probably try to write a new LP next year. Some of us also play in a new band called Severed (Worst Doubt / Headbussa members). We recorded a demo so hopefully it ll be out soon.

Thanks for the interest and all the best with your zine.