INTERVIEW TO FOSCH (WITH PAGA')

Hey black metal bangers,

our beloved Francesco Bazzurri reviewed two months ago the brilliant third album by Fosch, an Italian black metal quintet singing in the dialect of their homeland, that is Bergamo, in the region of Lombardy. So, fascinated by this thing and also by the themes faced by the band that are rooted in the Bergamo folklore, Francesco thought well to interview them.

In brief, this is the interview to Fosch. One of their two guitarists, Pagà, answered to the questions.

First of all, let's talk about your band. Who are Fosch? And where are you come from?

Fosch band was born in Bergamo in 2004 from an idea of our first singer, Ivan “Bunom”. He wanted to combine his two great passions: vernacular poetry of Bergamo and black metal. In fact, our first songs were poems written by Ivan with a musical accompaniment. Over time the topics covered by the texts have been varied, going first to address issues related to the rural life lived by our ancestors and, subsequently, recalling some ancient legends and tales spread in our valleys. Currently the Fosch are formed by me, Guido “Pagà” and Daniele “Gott” on guitars, Pierpaolo “Ol Pier” on vocals, Francesco “Ol Ganga” on bass and, fresh back in the ranks of the band, Maurizio “Picinel” on drums.

What strikes most in your work is the research for stories that are rooted in the tradition of Bergamo and its places, rich in very dark stories and creepy legends. I've read something about and I remember something like Caccia Morta [“Dead Hunt” in Italian. – ed. Flavio] or the Legend of Ornica. How your album develops, starting with this folkloric substratum? Do you want to talk about it?

You’re right, the intro to our last album picks up some verses from a 1930 poem about Caccia Morta. The reference to the legends and culture of our province, as mentioned, is the basis of the project Fosch; fortunately Bergamo and its valleys are rich in stories and traditions, some forgotten, so it is a pleasure for us, in our small, to discover them, study them and try to spread them to those who don’t know them. Our pieces develop trying to create an atmosphere suitable to the stories we decide to tell, making sure that the music creates the right "soundtrack" to the facts told in the lyrics.

Also the choice to sing in the dialect of your homeland it's a very captivating choice that strikes the listener. How powerful and magic is language supporting the storytelling?

The choice to sing exclusively in our dialect is a further cornerstone of the Fosch project, immediately welcomed with enthusiasm and shared by all members of the band. In our opinion, in order to be able to sing in a credible manner of legends or traditions of a population it is essential to do so in the language in which the latter were born and spread among the inhabitants; besides the fact that, personally, the vocals in Bergamo dialect creates an aura of unique charm around each piece that we compose.

I remember Vladimir Propp speaking about fable like a journey of initiation in tribal societies. Besides the pure appearance of the concept, is there also a more mature and intimistic path?

The intent of every Fairy Tale is certainly to convey a certain message or teaching that allows the listener to better understand the culture that surrounds him. Many of our texts, therefore, referring to local legends, are rich in teachings, even of moral nature, spread in the traditional culture of our province.

Your way of playing music recalls old school of black metal. Is it can be considered simply a tribute or is it a deeper stylistic choice?

Undoubtedly at the basis of our music there is a lot of old school black metal as it is undoubtedly the genre that best lends itself to music the stories we tell. I personally believe that black metal, at least what I mean black metal, is a style of music very "poetic" even in its violence and that well fits the issues covered by our lyrics. We also try to mix many other genres, from doom to death metal, through folk arpeggios, depending on the atmosphere we want to create, without limits.

“Per chi éla la nòcc” it's a great work, that hold its own with the black metal heralds of northern Europe. But, behind possible affinities, the Italian folklore and his dark side, for me, can have more peculiarities and more appeal. Do you think the same opinion?

Absolutely yes, as I said, although certainly the northern European black metal is an undoubted source of inspiration for us, we always try to give a distinctive and original trait to our music and in this the rich terrain of popular traditions of our province is of great help to us.

Concluding this interview, what we expect from Fosch in the near future? From indiscretions, I know that you are working for a new concept album speaking about an Italian vampire. Can you tell us something more?

Finally we started playing again, we hope to be able to continue doing it with more continuity without further hitches and resume live. Unfortunately "Per chi ela la nòcc" did not have the right live support having been released shortly before the pandemic. As for the future we are still considering whether to continue along the lines of the latest albums collecting fairy tales and legends or explore something new. One idea we came up with was looking for sources and news about a serial killer who lived at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries: after strangling the victim, he removed organs, ate body parts and drank blood. He often attacked them by biting their necks. We think it’s an interesting idea to change the theme of the next album so as not to be repetitive, we’ll see how things will develop. We’re just getting started.

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