I don't write as many album reviews as I did back in my heyday of working for the ol' webzine, but now and again an album comes out that I just need to go on about. Being my blog, it's a lot more informal, but nonetheless this album deserves the praise.
From the mind of Gildas Le Pape, someone who has done some time in the extreme metal scene, but is quite involved in jazz, Guerre Et Paix is a debut album like one that I have not heard in a very long time. It brings me back to the days where I can grab a genuinely new album and be blown away by it; this has not happened for awhile. I've certainly heard a few very good debut albums the past few years(one from Norway last year stood out quite a bit), but I can count them on one hand, it feels like. Via Doloris being as incredible a band/project as it is made me very happy to be able to crack my knuckles and gush about an album all over again like the old days.
For those unfamiliar, Gildas is a French musician who resides in Norway, is a guitar teacher, and has done some work in metal bands; he was Satyricon's guitarist from 2008 to 2013, and was in a short-lived French black/thrash band called Morbid Rites(they only had two demos.) Via Doloris is the first time, at least that I have heard, where he's doing an entire extreme metal album.
This album is mostly a one-man affair. Gildas composed and wrote everything here, and played all of the instruments save for the drums, which he tapped the mighty Frost to handle. If you're going to get yourself a drummer to take part in a project, trying to get one of the best in the biz is a great bet, and he did just that. If you aren't familiar with Frost, I imagine you might be new to the genre(which is fine! We all start somewhere), but he's basically one of the best extreme metal drummers out there, having been in the scene since the early '90s and has taken part in countless projects, though his main bands are Satyricon and 1349.
I very, very much hope that Gildas has more albums in him, because this debut is stellar. Sitting at seven songs and clocking in at nearly fifty minutes, the songs are incredibly layered and dynamic, never overstaying their welcome.
Stylistically, this album is definitely black metal, of the melodic, well-produced and atmospheric variety. At least for me, it harkens back to the '90s when I'd break out one of those groundbreaking new albums, a la Nemesis Divina or Storm of the Light's Bane. It doesn't copy either of those at all, but it's just to give you a sort of idea of the vibe I get. Given those are two of my favorite albums of all time, it's a very high complement. The production is tight, though not overly wrought, and feels natural.
Opening with "Communion," it sets both the pace and the theme of the album-the bleak main riff sticks with you as the chilling vocals cut through and Frost's drums keep it all together, setting the blistering pace. A memorable riff keeps me coming back to the track; definitely one to want to hear more than once. "Un Franc Soleil" is a slower, more melancholy track, the haunting vocals, tight groove and strong melody selling an almost grieving atmosphere. It was the second track released from the band, close to the album's release. (I don't want to 'spoil' all the tracks talking you through each and every one from start to finish.)
"Omniprésents" speeds things back up again, and continues to feed the listener wonderful, still-mournful, yet surprisingly catchy melodies. The more one listens to this album, the more it becomes apparently just how talented Gildas is at composition, performing, and arranging as well. With Frost's stellar drumwork adding the backbone, it also shows he has an ear for picking out exactly who he might need for the album, too. I'll be honest, while there are plenty of talented drummers in the scene, I'm not sure any others could've given this album its feel, given the drum legend's ability to feel the music better than many.
"For the Glory" is up next, and is the band's first music video and was the first song that was up for release. I'll link it here in case you haven't seen it yet:
A great pick for the album's first taste, as I think it encapsulates the album's whole feel very well. This one's a fast and pretty heavy affair, though it does not lose the fantastic riffs and melodic tones that it has been delivering so far, and importantly, it keeps and in fact well showcases that almost desolate atmosphere. The break of acoustic guitars melds wonderfully with Frost's frenetic blasts and double bass assault.
"Ultime Tourment" is the longest song on the album, clocking in at over ten minutes, but never wears out its welcome. Opening with a marching beat on the drums, it has a slower groove that almost invokes a dirge-like anthem, but both guitars and drums are delightfully dynamic in this one. Halfway through the song, it proceeds to have a transformation into a much more wicked sounding affair. The riffs on this album continued to impress me as I listened, mixes of both heavy grooves and tremolo picking giving it its unique, yet still dark sound.
The final two songs are "Visdommens Vei I" and "Visdommens Vei II." The first being the longer of the two, opening with yet another beautiful and somber melody and some creative drumwork for a good couple of minutes before the song forms into something one might hear if there were such a thing as a black metal funeral procession. Slower to mid-tempo at first, with a groove that drives you to headbang right at your desk.
The follow-up is more of a two-minute, eerie outro with some very eerie sounding guitars and monk-like choir-chants, closing off the affair rather beautifully, almost like it closes off the funeral-like dirge of the previous track.
If you've caught onto my possibly somewhat repetitive descriptions, I use the terms "melancholy," "atmospheric", and "bleak," quite often. It's for a good reason; it's the type of picture this album paints. To me, this album sounds like a lonely sunset as one sits on a rooftop, a solitary, windy walk through a wooded graveyard, or an early, cloudy morning with a storm rolling in. It sounds classic, yet new at the same time.
Something I genuinely appreciate about Guerre Et Paix is that it's an album with a clear vision, or at least to me it *sounds* like an album with a clear vision. Quite often I hear albums that might be good, hell, even great, but I can also hear a lot of 'Throwing stuff at a wall to see if it works or not' at the same time. I feel like when I put this on I get a clear view of what Gildas was going for, and he succeeded in putting it all together. But it never comes off as some sort of mechanical, "false" thing, it feels like an organic, genuine beast formed of a creative spirit. In a world where that genuine, creative spirit seems to get stifled by one thing or another more times than I'd like to see, it's a great thing.
Already having gone on for awhile with this one, I will put this not only on my "Must buy" metal list this year, but "AotY Contender" as well. It's certainly on my regular playlist already(I have been listening to it while doing work with the miniatures and it's bleak soundscape is quite inspiring for the grimdark aesthetic that I like to paint.)
Hopefully this little writeup gives you an idea of what to expect from the album. It comes with my whole-heartedly positive thumbs up and a "Go buy this." I'm hoping that we get to hear more from the mind of Gildas Le Pape, until then I'll go spin this some more while doing some bleak art!
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