That's a lot of French in that band name and title. It comes as no surprise then that Cantique Lépreux hail from Québec. Well, maybe a little. Looking at the album cover, one would think that if this band were truly metal at all, that they would be atmospheric black metal focused on nature or something of that sort. One would be wrong.
This is a surprisingly aggressive form of black metal, though not without its more melodic passages. The music is very cold, owing a great deal to Canadian black metal bands like Gris and Tenebrae, along with some Immortal and Mayhem thrown in. Featuring icy tremolo riffing and chilling shrieked vocals, you can almost see your breath while listening to this album.
There is an overwhelming sense of isolation and foreboding doom hanging over this entire album. The English translation of the title is "polar landscapes" and the title could not be more apt. This album puts into music the sense of terror at being lost in a frozen wasteland. It is cold and hostile and yet can be beautiful and atmospheric at some times.
This is an intriguing album that stays with the listener long after it is over. The band successfully captures a cold and lonely atmosphere throughout the entire album. It is incredibly effective. I am definitely looking forward to more.
When was the last really great gothic metal record? Moonspell? Type O Negative? Paradise Lost? Can we consider Cradle of Filth? Eh, probably not on Cradle of Filth. They are kind of their own beast. My point is that gothic metal seems to be a genre that has fallen by the wayside for the most part since it had kind of a heyday in the late 1990's/early 2000's. Moonspell is still decent enough, but most other bands have disbanded or worse (R.I.P. Peter Steele).
That brings us to Portland's Idle Hands, and, wait a minute. Another Portland band? Damn right, I could do a whole month with Portland bands lately. Idle Hands has released their debut full-length album earlier this year after a well-received EP from last year. I saw a lot of hype leading up to this release with many calling it a possible Album of the Year. I think a lot of the hype has to do with the fact that Idle Hands plays a genre that is mostly M.I.A. in the last several years. But the album is actually damn good.
One thing that Idle Hands does remarkably well is striking a balance between gothic rock and metal. Vocalist Gabriel Franco's crooning voice sounds like a cross between The Cure's Robert Smith and Moonspell's Fernando Ribeiro. The guitar leads are light and airy, but the heavy metal influence is obvious. The band also manages some truly catchy hooks and songs like "Give Me to the Night" and "Nightfall" stay with the listener long after the album has ended.
The second half however is a bit weaker, abandoning most of the aggression and the metal riffing prevalent on the first half. The band sounds much more gothic rock, which is fine, if that is what you are into. The songs are still melodic, somber and very catchy. They just do not hit as hard as those on the first half.
This really is a damn good album. I don't yet have any clue where it will end up on my end of the year list, but it does produce some of the catchiest songs of the year. This would fit in well on a playlist with Tribulation.
The Uada concert a couple months ago turned out to be one of my favorite concerts I have attended in quite some time. I thoroughly enjoyed each of the bands so much that I decided to buy an album from each of them. Wormwitch and Cloak will be coming soon. From Uada, I picked up the band's debut album which I was surprised to see still available at their merch table.
Uada seems a bit more influenced by a combination of the Polish black metal scene (particularly groups like Mgła) and the more melodic black metal bands from Sweden (Dissection, Lord Belial, Naglfar). Their music is cold, but has some impressive melodies weaving their way through the dark and cold atmosphere. Most of the songs are structured around one or two main riffs and layer solos, drumming and the gruff vocals on top. But this relative simplicity works for Uada because it makes the songs catchy as hell. The groove that Uada locks into certainly helps as well.
The last two songs are the big highlights. The first three songs are fine, but nothing really special, but Uada really gets going on the second half, starting off with the terrific "Our Pale Departure" and then continuing with the neck-breaking "Black Autumn, White Spring". I remember the latter quite well from the concert and was blown away by it then. It absolutely slays, particularly the second half.
This is Uada's debut album and it was a terrific initial release. Uada has made a lot of noise among the American black metal scene and this album shows that the hype is deserved. They are even better in concert.
