Lately I have spent time listening to the French death metal band named Gojira. Specifically I have focused on From Mars to Sirius, their 2005 effort. Though one could try to deny the album's environmental bent, the song "Global Warming," though rather hamfisted, delivers a clear opinion on the matter: humanity needs to shape up or a turning point will be so far surpassed that the environment can no longer be saved. The opener "Ocean Planet" plays a complementary role by painting the Earth as beautiful through the relatively melodic music. I will freely admit I do not fully understand the album - metal vocals are just so difficult to decipher after all. To me this album differs from the usual environmental fare due to the songs "Unicorn," "Where Dragons Dwell," and "Flying Whales." These images are so fantastical that they capture fantasy as a whole. Here they use environmentalism to create the Earth as something worth protecting, as something amazing. Thus the use of fantasy furthers environmentalism by providing motivation. The album couples these images with those of travelling - along with the song "The World To Come" - creates an image of what happens if humanity fails in its quest to effect environmental change.
I need to spend more time with this album and though I can't say I entirely agree it certainly provides some thought-material.
Gojira. From Mars To Sirius. Listenable Records. 2005.
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