The transformation is complete for Your Inland Empire.
Originally known as Crown, the French band composed of Stéphane Azam (vocals/guitar/synthesizers), David Husser (guitar/synthesizers), Marc Strebler (bass), and Nicolas Uhlen (drums) is reborn in 2025 with its new album, Your Inland Empire, released by Season of Mist.
We begin with Scars, a rather melancholic first track that clearly displays the band’s musical positioning between Industrial and Darkwave, slowly progressing while Stéphane‘s voice brings a human touch to the ambient coldness that naturally intensifies, then suddenly dissipates to make way for There Is No Me. The track is already much more danceable, although still a little disturbing in terms of vocals, creating an interesting contrast that exploits Gothic influences before joining Grinding and its vaporous tones. The percussion makes the sound quite catchy, especially after the short break, but the backing vocals bring the track to an end, leading into the violent Edge of Perfection, which is clearly one of the most aggressive tracks on the album, both in terms of the virulent instrumentation and the vocals. The band slows down, but the violence resurfaces, bringing with it a unifying intensity before moving on to Silver Knife, where the atmosphere immediately calms down, allowing itself to become much more majestic on the choruses. Undone starts off with a more festive atmosphere, albeit very jerky and conducive to crazy robotic dancing, before darkening, then Venom anchors us definitively in the heaviest tones with a slow and heavy rhythm in which rage and intensity constantly echo each other, leaving screams and harmonics to haunt our journey until Sulfur, which returns to lighter and airier accents. The track is quite accessible and gently transports us to Chemicals’ raw groove, which transforms into minimalist and soothing layers to better reinforce itself and provoke a real break between verses and choruses before becoming softer again with Myself Destruct, the next track. The nightclub atmosphere sometimes gives way to rawer riffs where menacing growls accompany the vocalist, but it is ultimately I’ll Be Your Night that has the honor of setting the pace for our final steps with its omnipresent keyboards that hypnotize us while the vocalist occupies our mental landscape with his almost dreamlike placements until the very last moment.
Although I haven’t listened to Crown much, I have to admit that Your Inland Empire is a huge step forward! Your Inland Empire is an extremely diverse album, which can take us from a raw and aggressive sound to intoxicating touches in no time at all, and I’m sure the band will be unanimously acclaimed in the Industrial scene!
90/100
A few questions for Stéphane Azam, guitarist and singer of the band Your Inland Empire, about the release of their new album Your Inland Empire.
Hello, and first of all, thank you for taking the time to talk to me! Without using any style labels such as “Industrial,” “Darkwave,” or anything else, how would you describe the band Your Inland Empire?
Stéphane Azam (guitar/vocals): Labels are often reductive, but they seem to be a necessity in the music press. We definitely operate in the Industrial Rock/Metal sphere, also mixing in Electronic music, with influences from Post-Punk, Post-Rock, Hardcore, Punk, and Coldwave —but I would say it goes far beyond these labels.
The band was previously called Crown. What motivated the change of identity? What does the name Your Inland Empire mean to you, and how do you personally relate it to the band’s music?
Stéphane: We had quite a few setbacks with our previous label, Pelagic Records. Let’s just say it’s a new start, with the same lineup: it’s simply the continuation of Crown. I’d had this name in mind for several years already; it’s a reference to one of David Lynch‘s cult films, an artist who has deeply inspired me, both for his unique universe and his creativity.
Your first album, Your Inland Empire, is coming out very soon. How do you feel within the band? Have you had any feedback about it yet?
Stéphane: We’re calm, but also expectant. We really gave it our all on this project. We’re diehards and perfectionists. We’ve also been through a particularly tumultuous period—on a personal level, let’s say, without going into details—the kind of events that can make you doubt a lot of things, with all the uncertainty that entails. We obviously want people who discover this album to have a good time and be taken on this contrasting journey through extremes. We’ve already received some feedback, including a superb first review in New Noise, where the journalist really captured the essence of the album—which is quite rare these days. Some journalists do their job by carefully reading the biography and promo text that accompany the album, others don’t at all :). With the multitude of releases out there right now, and the fact that we’re starting from scratch, it’s fair to say that it’s not an easy task to attract attention—especially with such a unique album.
How would you sum up Your Inland Empire in three words?
Stéphane: Unique, visceral, emotional.
How did the process of composing the album Your Inland Empire go? Did you notice any changes compared to your productions under the name Crown?
Stéphane: I started writing the first demos at the end of 2022, with the idea of an album full of contrasts in mind. The process is as follows: I build the demos, I program the drums and synths, I (clumsily!) play the guitars, hehe, and I lay down the vocals. The demos are usually already pretty well developed. Then I send everything to my partner David, who recorded, mixed, and produced the album. We discuss it, modify certain structures, a few riffs or synth lines, and rearrange everything to get the most coherent result possible. Then Nico and Marc, our drummer and bassist respectively, come into play. David re-records all the guitars, because I’m a terrible guitarist :). We also experiment as much as possible with guitars, synths, vocals, drums… That’s probably the most exciting part of the process. All this alchemy comes to life through some pretty unusual experiments that you’d hardly ever see in the production of a “classic” metal album. For example, we have guitar parts that sound like synths—and vice versa. We like to surprise the listener and lead them down the wrong track. There are so many production details that the album requires several listens to grasp all the nuances.
The band’s sound blends Industrial, Darkwave, and Post-Metal. How do you manage to create your own unique style?
Stéphane: As I mentioned earlier, it goes far beyond these labels. I think it’s simply a reflection of what has shaped our culture and musical identity, which go far beyond these three styles or genres. It’s a true reflection of who we are today, emotionally and musically. We simply create music that reflects who we are.
Which bands would you cite as your influences? How have they evolved over time to give you your current sound?
Stéphane: Nine Inch Nails, Depeche Mode, The Cure, Killing Joke, Tool, Einsturzende Neubauten, Alice In Chains, The Young Gods, Björk, Ministry, Neurosis, Swans, Boards of Canada, Massive Attack, Jon Hopkins, Aphex Twin, A Perfect Circle, Knocked Loose, Godflesh… There are so many, it’s almost impossible to name them all. I’ve always listened to a lot of music, in a multitude of styles: from Black Metal to World music, from Folk to Death Metal, including Electronic music, Jazz, and Classical—anything that can stir my emotions. Unfortunately, nowadays, everything has become a question of marketing. We’re seeing a multitude of bands appear that have been put together from scratch: Metal versions of boy bands and girl bands. It’s pretty sad, but it reflects the current music business, including in the world of metal. I’ve been listening to all these styles since the early 90s. I think that when you write music, it’s essential not to get stuck in one style—so you don’t go round in circles or get complacent in the safety of constantly reproducing the same formula.
How did you decide on the themes addressed in the songs? How did you choose the tracks to unveil to present the album?
Stéphane: The theme of the album revolves around The Dark Night of the Soul. It’s an album built on human duality. It’s an inner journey into the darkest corners of our beings. It’s also an observation on human relationships and society in general, because we’re not in good hands, nor are we really aware of the mess we’re in. We chose the singles together with the label to best represent the atmosphere of the album. The last single, Edge of Perfection, is by far the most aggressive on the record.
I know it’s a difficult question, but do you have a favorite track on this album? Or one that seemed the most natural to compose?
Stéphane: There Is No Me, without hesitation. It perfectly represents the duality that runs through this album, as well as its entire sound palette.
Your Inland Empire is being released by Season of Mist, who already worked with you on Crown‘s last album. How is the collaboration with them going?
Stéphane: Not at all 🙂 Crown‘s last album was released by Pelagic Records. This time, the collaboration with Season of Mist has been great: they are much more professional, invested, and committed.
(Sold in the Season of Mist shop, hence the confusion, ed.)
I saw you play at Hellfest in 2022. What memories do you have of that show? Will there be a different approach to live performances with Your Inland Empire?
Stéphane: It was a memorable experience. We were a band that came out of nowhere, and we didn’t expect to see so many people under the Altar tent. It was surreal to see all these people coming to discover us, in a way. We had a 45-minute set that felt like it lasted five minutes—it was intense and frankly incredible. The approach will be the same as with Crown, with the same lineup, of course.
What are the next projects for Your Inland Empire after the album release?
Stéphane: Our goals are to find a tour manager, prepare for live shows, play as many concerts as possible, and start writing the next album.
Are there any musicians or artists you would like to collaborate with in the future?
Stéphane: The Young Gods, Health, Author & Punisher, for example. And obviously Trent Reznor—even if he remains completely untouchable.
Do you think you’ve improved as musicians with this album?
Stéphane: Yes, probably a bit 🙂 Each album represents a new challenge; we push our limits and step out of our comfort zone every time.
Which bands do you dream of playing with? I’ll let you imagine your dream date with Your Inland Empire as the opening act and three other bands.
Stéphane: NIN, obviously. We already had the chance to open for The Young Gods a few years ago, which was a dream in itself. Gojira, Ministry, or Tool… we’re allowed to dream a bit, hahaha.
Last question: what dish would you compare Your Inland Empire‘s music to?
Stéphane: Ramen, hahahaha—somewhere between delicate and robust! To be honest, I’d say a local dish… or even a local menu: the marcaire menu, served here in farm inns. In the past, it was the meal of farmers and agricultural workers who worked in the Vosges mountains. It consists of soup, a pie accompanied by salad, smoked pork with potatoes and onions cooked in kilos of butter and caramelized, a plate of local cheeses — including the famous Munster and Barikass — and, to finish, a dessert: fromage blanc drizzled with kirsch. Always somewhere between delicacy, heaviness, and robustness, hahahaha.
So that was my last question. Thank you for your time, and the last words are yours!
Stéphane: Thank you for this wonderful interview and for your interest in our album. It was a real pleasure to answer your questions. See you soon!