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Drummer Mario Duplantier of French progressive metallers GOJIRA spoke to Art Of Rock about his obsession with bodyboarding, a water sport in which the surfer rides a bodyboard on the crest, face, and curl of a wave that is carrying the surfer towards the shore. He said (as transcribed by Phoosi.com): “It’s not like surfing. Bodyboarding is like a smaller board. Since I’m a kid, I’m bodyboarding. So yesterday I was in the water during wintertime. I try to go every day. I’m truly addicted to the ocean and to bodyboarding. [The water is] super cold [right now here in France]. And outside it’s cold as well. But I have a good wet suit and all the gear.”
Duplantier went on to say that he has gone surfing with METALLICA bassist Robert Trujillo on a couple of occasions in the past. “When I was in California, he invited us to surf together,” he said. “And he’s also going in vacation in Biarritz, where I’m living right now in the Southwest of France; he’s coming sometimes during the summer with his wife and kids. So every time he’s here, we go surf together. He’s such, such a cool dude and a cool person. And a good surfer as well.”
Trujillo and METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett are frequent surfers. When they’re not playing stadium-sized concerts, you may find them riding waves in Portugal or Morocco. Trujillo had even partnered with a famous Australian surf brand to market a line of boardshorts.
GOJIRA‘s latest album, “Fortitude”, entered Billboard‘s Top Albums chart at No. 1 last May, while also claiming the No. 1 spot on Billboard‘s Top Current Albums, Current Rock Albums and Current Hard Music Albums tallies. The release also marked a career high debut on the Billboard 200 for GOJIRA, arriving at No. 12, with several career high chart positions and Top 10 debuts in countries around the globe including: France (No. 2), United Kingdom (No. 6), Australia (No. 3), Germany (No. 8), Belgium (No. 2), Netherlands (No. 4), Denmark (No. 3), Portugal (No. 4), Finland (No. 2) and Norway (No. 10).
“Fortitude” was highlighted by the singles “Another World”, “Born For One Thing”, “Into The Storm”, “Amazonia” and “The Chant”, a slow-burning track featuring some of GOJIRA‘s most melodic material to date.
Furthermore, GOJIRA concluded a month-long fundraising initiative in support of the indigenous-owned NGO The Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB) who advocate for environmental and cultural rights of indigenous tribes in the Amazon. Working with the social good-focused digital platform Propeller, the charitable campaign raised over $300,000 through an auction and raffle of one-of-a-kind items from the band and their friends in METALLICA, TOOL, SLIPKNOT, SLAYER, Slash and more. All proceeds were donated to APIB to support their work aiding the indigenous tribes of the Amazon who have suffered immensely — victims of deforestation, land loss, forced labor, violence, and harassment.
Recorded and produced by Joseph Duplantier at Silver Cord Studio — GOJIRA‘s Ridgewood, Queens, New York headquarters — and mixed by Andy Wallace (NIRVANA, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE), “Fortitude” is GOJIRA‘s first album in five years and the follow-up to 2016’s Grammy-nominated LP “Magma”. A collection of songs urging humanity to imagine a new world and then make it happen, “Fortitude” has been earning widespread critical praise with Rolling Stone naming it one of their best albums of April 2021 and remarking “It’s all the rage of death metal mixed with the conscience of punk rock and the musicality of progressive rock.” NPR hailed “Another World” as “an apocalyptic banger,” and Paste called “Into The Storm” a “much-needed revolutionary anthem.” Stereogum declared, “hearing this band operating at their peak is a life-affirming thing,” while Revolver attested “Fortitude” “could spark a revolution.”
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