The Great Old Ones: Haunted Forever by Dreams of Nuclear Chaos

For as long as there has been heavy metal, the works of H. P. Lovecraft has had a presence in the lyrics of the genre. Starting with BLACK SABBATH‘s Behind the Wall of Sleep from their genre-spawning eponymous debut right up to the non-Egyptological songs in NILE‘s discography and the devoted cultists of SULPHUR AEON and countless artists in between, Lovecraft and cosmic horror have been a staple in heavy metal lyricism. Keen to further cement their place of importance in such an already expansive pantheon, France’s THE GREAT OLD ONES return with their newest offering, Cosmicism, just two years after their incredible EOD: A Tale Of Dark Legacy.

Where THE GREAT OLD ONES‘ sophomore effort, Tekeli-li, dealt with Lovecraft‘s classic At The Mountains Of Madness, and their magnum opus EOD: A Tale Of Dark Legacy tackles the incredible story The Shadow Over Insmouth, Cosmicism takes a different approach.

“It’s not really a story that develops on the whole disc. Each song has its own story. We can rather speak of a philosophy which joins all the tracks. And this philosophy is cosmicism, created by H.P. Lovecraft himself.” Explains guitarist and lead songwriter Benjamin Guerry on the lyrical direction THE GREAT OLD ONES have taken this time around. “It explains that humanity is nothing on the scale of the universe, and the issues that take place there. We are not made to understand them and the only thing that awaits us if we realise it is madness.”

Cosmicism is the literary philosophy behind all of Lovecraft‘s notable work, and all of cosmic horror that has followed. Less focused on the gore of our favourite splatter flicks, and the monsters of creature features, cosmicism creates a very real sense of horror by drilling into the reader the notion that we are not alone in the universe, we are not special, we do not matter and our existence is nothing but a spec of dust upon a spec of dust in the great expanse of time and space. And that alone instils a sense of existential terror more horrifying than any other sub-genre of horror fiction.

This philosophy is central to the lyrics of Cosmicism, with THE GREAT OLD ONES using some of the most well known Lovecraftian deities to hammer this existential dread home. Of Dementia takes the listener through the protagonists visions of everyone’s favourite Great Old One, Cthulhu, while Dreams Of Nuclear Chaos recounts the protagonists dreams of the Blind Idiot God, Azathoth – the ruler of the Outer Gods, and Nyarlathotep tells tale of its namesake, the Crawling Chaos Nyarlathotep.

While these deities and more are a central part of Cosmicism‘s lyrics, THE GREAT OLD ONES traverse the universe of Lovecraftian horror in a way unique to many of their contemporaries. “I think we are proposing something different from what has been done so far. Most bands focus on the entities themselves, the creepy and demonic aspect of the creatures.” Offers Guerry. “On our side, we try to tell stories, putting the landscapes and places, as entities, in the foreground. This allows us to prioritise atmospheres, as well as varied emotions. We don’t reinvent the setting to music of the writings of Lovecraft, but propose our own interpretation.”

Lovecraftian horror has grown exponentially over the decades since Lovecraft‘s death, evolving into an expanded universe of Marvel proportions dubbed the Cthulhu Mythos. While many consider only the original texts from Lovecraft himself to be canonical, the expanded Mythos offers some incredible bits of fiction centred on Lovecraft‘s creations, and introducing new Eldritch horrors to the pantheon.

“Mostly, we rely on the writings of Lovecraft himself. We still have a lot to explore in his work, without having to focus on other authors. But that does not prevent us, exceptionally, from going to seek some outside inspirations,” offers Guerry on whether THE GREAT OLD ONES stay true to the canonical early works.” For the first time in the band’s discography, they haven’t just ventured to outside inspirations. Lost Carcosa deals with Hastur, a creation of author Ambrose Bierce that was later referenced in Robert W. Chambers‘ The King In Yellow, and adopted into the Mythos pantheon by Lovecraft decades after.

Whether Cosmicism outranks EOD: A Tale Of Dark Legacy is a matter for another time and another place. That album was a game-changer, a truly special moment from an incredibly talented and criminally underrated band. Cosmicism is its own entity, an atmospheric journey through the cosmos and a reminder of the existential dread that lurks within us all. A highlight release from 2019, let THE GREAT OLD ONES take you on a journey with Cosmicism, a journey through dreams of nuclear chaos.

Each song on Cosmicism deals with a different Lovecraftian deity, with a story running through the record. Can you walk us through the story of Cosmicism, and explain which track relates to which of Lovecraft’s creations?

Benjamin: It’s not really a story that develops on the whole disc. Each song has its own story. We can rather speak of a philosophy which joins all the tracks. And this philosophy is cosmicism, created by H.P. Lovecraft himself. It explains that Human is nothing on the scale of the universe, and the issues that take place there. We are not made to understand them and the only thing that awaits us if we realise it is madness. It would be too long to explain in detail the history of each song, and the best is to leave the listener the pleasure of discovering these with the lyrics. What I can say is that The Omniscient is about Yog-Sothoth, Of Dementia about Cthulhu, Lost Carcosa about Hastur, A Thousand Young about Shub-Niggurath, Dreams of the Nuclear Chaos about Azathoth, and Nyarlathotep about, of course, Nyarlathotep.

The artwork for Cosmicism is beautiful. What is the concept behind it, and does it link to the story within the lyrics?

Benjamin: Thanks. We wanted it to be an invitation to travel, and more particularly an entity invites the listener to this trip. We can also see it open his body to present another dimension of the cosmos. The universe is infinite and full of mysteries of which we are not aware. The artwork represents very well this.

Within your lyrics, do you explore the expanded Cthulhu Mythos or do you stay to the canonical works written by Lovecraft himself?

Benjamin: Mostly, we rely on the writings of Lovecraft himself. We still have a lot to explore in his work, without having to focus on other authors. But that does not prevent us, exceptionally, from going to seek some outside inspirations. This is particularly the case on Lost Carcosa on our new album, which contains many references to The Yellow King of Robert W. Chambers.

Do you see the art created by THE GREAT OLD ONES as a contribution to the expanded Cthulhu Mythos?

Benjamin: “Expanded”, I don’t know if it’s the right term. Maybe it’s a new vision because it’s our personal vision. We pay homage in our own way to the author, putting his writings to music the way we feel it. Rather, it’s another way to live Lovecraft‘s legacy. Maybe one day we will write an entirely new story, but that is not planned for now.

In your mind, why does Lovecraft’s body of writing work so well as a lyrical foundation for much of extreme metal?

Benjamin: It would take a long time for that, which we don’t have. I had the project some time ago to write a Lovecraftian story, but I did not find the time for that. Even if the basis of our universe is literary, we remain musicians. But maybe someday!

With Lovecraftian influences in extreme metal at an all time high and the obvious limit to his available published works, do you at all struggle to create concepts and narratives that still offer something new to the listener without delving into areas that have already been vastly covered?

Benjamin: I think we are proposing something different from what has been done so far. Most bands focus on the entities themselves, the creepy and demonic aspect of the creatures. On our side, we try to tell stories, putting the landscapes and places, as entities, in the foreground. This allows us to prioritise atmospheres, as well as varied emotions. We don’t reinvent the setting to music of the writings of Lovecraft, but propose our own interpretation.

Are there any similarly Lovecraftian extreme metal bands you are particularly impressed by at the moment?

Benjamin: I really liked the latest SULPHUR AEON album. The melodic penchant I liked a lot, and there are very intense atmospheres.

This time last year, you embarked on a European co-headlining tour with AUÐN. This was the first time you headlined in many of the cities on the tour – are there plans to return on a new headline tour in support of Cosmicism?

Benjamin: Yes we would like to redo a European headlining tour. This allows us to make a longer setlist, and so have the time to propose a completely complete journey. We are working on different tour plans, and hope to play in as many places as possible.

Cosmicism is out now via Season Of Mist. 

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