A message from Mario in the clip below:

All the tour dates : GO TO THE TOUR SECTION

No one sounds like French metal band Gojira--or, rather, they sound like no one else. They bear the European death metal hallmarks of speed and rhythmic trickiness, but instead of reveling in the blood, guts, nihilism, etc., that characterize the lyrics of their peers, Gojira concern themselves with saving the whales. (Yes, literally.) In the brootalworld of heavy metal, it's, well, weird.

Anchored by brothers Joe and Mario Duplantier (on guitar and drums, respectively), the four-piece band retain their original lineup now 11 years since their debut. (No drama? Also kind of weird.) We spoke to Joe about the odd upbringing that continues to influence his music--and about how to explain metal to your grandmother.

See also: The Best Metal Concerts in NYC This Month

You've said you and Mario grew up in an old house that was considered kind of strange in your town. Could you talk about that a little more?

It's pretty striking when you go in this family house where we grew up. It's not like normal houses. It's very raw. It's open to the wind. There's dust and leaves everywhere, but it doesn't matter. It's an old house...It was very free. That was a big influence on us, I think.

Our parents were artists, and my mother was born in the states, so she had a different attitude and way of expressing herself. She was...louder than other moms. [Laughs] You know how in France, people talk super quiet. So, we had this American mom, and our dad is a painter, and they're not the kind that teach you how to be polite and to live properly. Our house was a happy mess, without heat. Just with fire in the winter. It was tough, but a very happy childhood. I couldn't understand sometimes other kids because they were very different. They would play rugby and do stuff that was really common in our area when we were doing theatre, music, and stuff like that in the house. The house was also far away from the village, and it was surrounded by trees, with forest animals. For me, it's kind of normal to be not like everybody else.

It's interesting that you grew up feeling different from others, like an outsider, because your music is so unique among heavy music. People call it death metal, but you don't sing about gory, bloody things. You have a more uplifting message. How would you classify your own music? What kind of metal would you call it?

It's hard for me to classify. I like to say it's music. I know it sounds cliché, but I like to say we're just playing music. But of course it's metal. It comes from the gut, really. We don't have so many influences from other bands. For example, growing up, we were not part of a larger group of several bands. There wasn't really a scene. So, I think that's helped us to be more ourselves, and we were not in competition with another band, for example, trying to go faster than them or heavier. We were really on our own, and I'm really glad because we didn't have too many influences. And concerning the lyrics and the theme, we don't need to exaggerate the difficulties of life and how "gore" it is already. It's enough to talk about your emotions, and it's gore enough. You don't need to add all these clichés, you know, bloody images and stuff like that... READ THE ENTIRE INTERVIEW

GOJIRA will be holding their first ever Meet N Greet @ SCRAPE on Saturday Jan.19 from 2pm - 3pm

Please bring all your junk to get signed and don't forget your cameras!!

Much thanks go out to ROADRUNNER CANADA for their support!

Tickets are still available @ SCRAPE for their All-Ages show @ The Vogue Jan.19 w/ guests DEVIN TOWNSEND & THE ATLAS MOTH.

SCRAPE records
323 East Broadway, Vancouver, British Columbia V5T 1W5

Infos:

https://www.facebook.com/events/476481442397557

http://www.scraperecords.com/

The US TOUR is starting next week and we have added a new Show in Brooklyn, NY on February 18th!

Presale: Wednesday January 9 Public

On-sale: Friday January 11

Check the Clip below and get your Tickets!!

We are stoked to announce that we will be back Norway in March at theTrondheim Metal Fest next year!!
Tickets and Info here: http://trondheimmetalfest.no/

We are glad to announce a new date for the US TOUR next month!

1/27 – Pomona, CA @ The Glass House

TICKETS GO ON SALE TODAY - CLICK HERE!!

more information here : http://gojira-music.com/news/item/109-new-headline-tour-2013

GOJIRA TO EMBARK ON FIRST HEADLINE TOUR THIS WINTER BAND TO HIT THE ROAD WITH THE DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT + THE ATLAS MOTH

(New York, NY): Metal behemoths Gojira will embark on their first headline tour of the U.S. this winter, with The Devin Townsend Project and The Atlas Moth serving as support.  The band's Roadrunner debut L'Enfant Sauvage was released in June of this year, to much critical acclaim.

The tour kicks off on January 14 in Minneapolis and runs through February 16, wrapping up in Philadelphia. It will wind through the country and Canada, hitting major markets along the way.

The VIP pre-sale will begin Tuesday, October 23 at 3PM local time, with public onsales to follow on Friday, October 26.

Fans who pre-order tickets before December 1 will be rewarded for their early support. They will receive an instant download of two exclusive live tracks ("Love" and "Toxic Garbage") from the band's special NYC show at Webster Hall, which was recorded in August of 2012, along with a download of a full show from the band's current European tour.  The full show will be provided via email at a later date.

Therefore, going to see Gojira in the live realm –where they are known to be absolutely devastating and able to shake the foundation of the venues in which they play- is a constantly renewable experience.

Below is a sample of what the press is saying about Gojira.

"Epic assaults…delicate interludes…a devastating and harmonious combination of the organic and mechanical. Like all memorable monsters, this beast has a soul." –Alternative Press

"One of the most riveting and challenging metal records of the year." –Pitchfork

"An all balls, no baguettes affair." –Decibel

"Mechanistic precision." –AV Club

"Wages guerilla warfare." –SPIN

"Impossible to pigeonhole and harder to ignore, one of the year's best." -Outburn

"Melody, brutality, atmosphere, top-notch musicianship, and most important quality songs abound." –About

"There isn't a single flaw to be found on this album and it's exactly what metal needed to step into the next generation." –Blabbermouth

"The isn't just the next chapter for Gojira' it's the next for heavy metal at large." –ARTISTdirect

"It's heavy, it's accessible, it's layered with beauty, and most importantly, it's well-written." –Loudwire

"Cements Gojira's place as one of the most inventive, unique metal bands of today." –Bloody Disgusting

Tour Dates:

January 2013 

• 14 - Mill City Nights - Minneapolis, MN
• 15 - The Garrick Centre - Winnipeg, MB
• 16 - Odeon Events Centre - Saskatoon, SK
• 17 - MacEwan Hall Ballroom - Calgary, AB
• 19 - Vogue Theater - Vancouver, BC
• 20 - Studio Seven - Seattle, WA
• 21 - Hawthorne Theater - Portland, OR
• 23 - The Fillmore - San Francisco, CA
• 24 - Ace of Spades - Sacramento, CA
• 25 - Henry Fonda Theatre - Los Angeles, CA
• 28 - The Marquee - Tempe, AZ
• 29 - Sunshine Theater - Albuquerque, NM
• 31 - Granada Theater - Dallas, TX

February 2013 

• 01 - White Rabbit - San Antonio, TX
• 02 - Warehouse Live - Houston, TX
• 04 - State Theatre - St. Petersburg, FL
• 05 - The Masquerade - Atlanta, GA
• 07 - Rams Head Live - Baltimore, MD
• 08 - Irving Plaza - New York, NY
• 09 - Mr. Smalls Theatre - Millvale, PA
• 11 - House of Blues - Chicago, IL
• 13 - Phoenix Concert Theatre -Toronto, ON
• 14 - Le National - Montreal, QC
• 15 - The Palladium - Worcester, MA
• 16 - Theatre Of Living Arts - Philadelphia, PA