Few names in the current metalcore landscape have experienced a surge quite like LANDMVRKS. Off the back of 2021’s exceptional ‘Lost In the Waves’, Marseille’s favourite sons took the world by storm, building bridges between hardcore kids, hip-hop heads and heavy metal mavericks with their own unique blend of punishment and passion. And having added fuel to the fire with the recently released ‘The Darkest Place I’ve Ever Been’, a record that is deeper, darker and more devastating than anything that has come before, via Arising Empire, they are continuing their upward trajectory in style.
Now, as they announce their biggest ever UK headline shows, with a supporting cast of Split Chain, Pain Of Truth and the legendary Underøath, Rock Sound chats to guitarist Nicolas Exposito about the development of their latest era and what it means to see the connection between band and crowd intensify so beautifully…
Rock Sound: The growth that LANDMVRKS have experienced in the last few years is astronomical. How has it felt to watch things expand from inside of the band?
Nicolas: When you come from a place like Marseille, you never realise that you have a band that could tour places like the US, Japan, and Australia. Your only goal when you start out is to get to play local shows and try to make it to the next city. But then, when you look at what we have coming up with the tours lined up and the main stage festival appearances, we’re really grateful for that. Seeing that so many people are enjoying our music when we only ever did this to express ourselves is amazing. We’re on a really good vibe right now. We love to tour, we love to play, we love to write music, and we feel like we could do this forever. You look at a band like Metallica, who are still doing this in their 60s, and could we be those guys? And if we didn’t have LANDMVRKS, is that something that we would be able to wonder?
RS: In terms of where we are right now, the release of ‘Creature’ as a single was a big turning point. Not just the musical scope, the concept, the visuals, and everything in between. But when it comes to piecing that together within the context of this record as a whole, where did that all begin for you?
Nicolas: We started to write for the album at the beginning of 2023. We rented a house and said, ‘Okay, guys, what are we actually going to write for this record?’ because we really had no idea. We were writing the demos there and then, and we wrote maybe three or four songs, and felt like it wasn’t that good. We only kept one song from those, which ended up being ‘Requiem’. So instead, we started writing whilst on the road, because we were still touring ‘Lost In The Waves’ at that point. It’s difficult to work like that, but down the line, we found that we had ‘Creature’ and thought to ourselves, ‘This is the song. ’ When Flo wrote the lyrics, we realised we had to do something with this creature, which is how we developed all the imagery around it. As that grew, we started to think about how we would build around what this creature was becoming. The more we tuned into the writing process, the more it became glued to the ‘Creature’ process, and the more the ideas came through.
RS: It feels as though what Flo was providing with his lyricism, and this is reflected through how the whole record turned out, was quite deep. What did it feel like to see him opening up in such a way, using these dark feelings in ways he probably hadn’t in the past?
Nicolas: All of the lyrics from LANDMVRKS come from Flo’s personal stuff and the things that he has been through. Sometimes it’s deep, sometimes it’s sad, but sometimes it is happy as well. The only thing that holds them together is that they are always honest. When he is writing, he’s never going to talk about something that he didn’t feel. And even more so on a song like ‘Blood Red’ where he is singing in French, you can feel what he is saying even more.
RS: It feels like this album features so much more of your mother tongue than previously, almost like a statement of intent of this being who you are, but also clearly a means of expressing yourselves as eloquently and emotionally as possible…
Nicolas: Not being native English speakers, writing lyrics the way we want them is sometimes hard. We love rap music, and Flo has written rap verses way before he even started making metal. And when it comes to writing in that style, it’s much more natural for him to deliver it in French. He has the words, he has the slang, he knows exactly the feelings that he wants to introduce to the fans. I feel as if he ever starts to write a rap verse in English, he will start overthinking it. It’s about the culture as much as anything, too. It’s obvious to do it in French because of that.
RS: From a musical standpoint, how has it felt changing things up from your position? Expanding on both the harder and softer elements of what makes LANDMVRKS who they are…
Nicolas: I feel like with this album, we were searching for what could be the next level up. I think we have been listening to many other music, researching different bands and styles. Because of that, perhaps the album is more mature? We could think about how we can structure the songs and make the riffs better and better. Like, with ‘Requiem’, I started out by jamming the riff, then adding this note and that note, and by the time I was done, the riff I started with didn’t sound anything like the one I ended up with. In overthinking those parts, it has ended up being a really good thing. If you compare that to how we sounded on ‘Hollow’ or ‘Fantasy’, we were more into saying, ‘This riff is great, let’s just keep it that way. Let’s finish the rest of the song.’ Now, we are always thinking, ‘How can this be better?’ That’s probably why the album took so long to write, because we thought about absolutely everything. But in the end, we are really proud of what it became. We wanted to have the ten best LANDMVRKS songs on this album, and I feel like we did that.
RS: Has having more eyes on you affected how you approach the band? You mention ‘Hollow’ and ‘Fantasy’, and back then, you were just making what made sense for you. But has the pressure to keep things at the level they are at now influenced you in any way?
Nicolas: If you think about it too much, that’s when you are under pressure. But when I have a guitar in my hands, I don’t ever think about it. I just do what I want to do. If you think too much, you’re fucked. You can see the pressure as being a bad thing, when it’s possible for there to be a good pressure. We’re going to show the world what we know how to do off the back of it, rather than worry about it. We have to play to our strengths.
RS: And when you use those strengths positively, you can see it when you play these songs live. People are responding more, singing louder, and moshing harder. How do you feel as though the LANDMVRKS live experience has changed over the last few years?
Nicolas: It depends on what sort of show it is. Whether it’s a headline show or a support show, or a festival appearance. But if I have to focus on our headline shows in Europe, it is seeing the crowd so much more involved. That makes me so happy. I enjoy watching the fans enjoying their time with us, seeing their facial expressions change. The more we play bigger shows, the more I see happy faces. Seeing the people in front of you feeling that way is a good feeling.
RS: It’s interesting to see more smiling, happy faces as your music gets darker. But that is a benefit of opening up: people are more comfortable expressing themselves because they know they aren’t alone in feeling this way…
Nicolas: Absolutely. You can cry at our shows whilst still feeling happy. If you think about the songs and lyrics on this album, it really is ‘The Darkest Place I’ve Ever Been’. But when we are on stage, we like to be opposite. We move around like a hardcore band. That juxtaposition exists because we want to be able to interact with the people in front of us. We don’t want them to see the band crying because we are feeling sad. If the lyrics we are writing are sad, then that makes us want to bring even more of a positive vibe to the people when we perform them. It’s all about momentum, really. When Flo is on stage, he is not having these feelings. It’s okay not to be okay, but also to know that it’s not the end of the world. He may be singing these sad songs, but I know he doesn’t match the spirit he felt when he wrote the lyrics. It’s why he’s able to talk about his demons and his sadness, but do it all with a smile.
RS: To realise that you’re able to share such heaviness with so many people is a gift in itself. And by not letting it consume you, but rather celebrate that you have made it through, is as powerful a statement as you can make…
Nicolas: That’s life. There are good points, but there are bad points too. Sometimes you feel depression, but sometimes you feel happiness, and both are what make you feel alive. It’s the same when it comes to music. Sometimes there are going to be sad songs, and sometimes there are going to be happy songs. But the fact that you have expressed them is the crucial part. Be more honest, and the people will feel it. If it’s fake, they will see through it.
RS: So, as you step into the rest of 2025, and some of the biggest shows of your career so far, what excites you the most about what LANDMVRKS represents right now?
Nicolas: Reaching this level and having these proper headlines shows all over the world, I’m excited that we can offer the best LANDMVRKS experience ever. To show what we have in our minds and bring it to life. To think about building a new intro, bringing new songs into the setlist, is exciting too. We’ve been playing ‘Lost In The Waves’ for so long, but now we have ten new tracks to play with. And to do that whilst travelling the world, that’s a really good feeling.
Catch LANDMVRKS on the following UK and EU tour dates:
04/12 – Meisenthal, FR @ Halle Verriere
07/12 – London, UK @ Roundhouse
10/12 – Wiesbaden, DE @ Schlachthof
11/12 – Wiesbaden, DE @ Schlachthof
13/12 – Leipzig, DE @ Haus Auensee
14/12 – Munich, DE @ Zenith
16/12 – Lille, FR @ L’Aeronef
18/12 – Hamburg, DE @ Inselpark Arena
19/12 – Cologne, DE @ Palladium
