ZEAL & ARDOR never fail to pull from interesting and unusual sources, and ‘greif’ is no different.
Words: Linsey Teggert.
As a child, Manuel Gagneux would gather with the other inhabitants of his hometown of Basel, Switzerland, to marvel at The Vogel Gryff parade. This annual folk tradition has its origins in the Middle Ages and features the main characters of the Vogel Gryff (griffin), Wild Maa (the Green Man or Wild Man) and Leu (Lion) dancing, floating down the Rhine, and partaking in cheeky antics that are meant to represent 'sticking it to the man'.
"It's this hundreds of years old tradition representing when workers' unions united their weapon inspection day, and that weapon inspection day is essentially what's happening," explains Manuel. "You have this costumed person on a raft on the river while canons are fired, and he joins the griffin (the greif) in the 'poor' part of the city, where they proceed to show their backsides to the 'rich' part of the city and do silly dances. It's basically class warfare when you think about it, just presented in a charming way."
It's a wonderfully weird tradition that is unique to the Zeal & Ardor frontman's birthplace, and it represents the band's fourth full-length 'GREIF' on many levels, largely signifying a step towards the personal for a band that has tended to lean into a sense of dark mystique, with Manuel solely steering the project he founded. 'GREIF' marks a new chapter in Zeal & Ardor's constantly evolving journey, with Manuel inviting his touring bandmates into the fold, welcoming them into the studio and making them fully-fledged members of Zeal & Ardor, essentially democratising the band.
