The band has an adventurous take on the avant garde genre, if such a thing is possible. They display jazzy and classical sides strongly in their music. This is a tapestry of musical flavours that evokes hypnotic thoughts on the part of the listener. Vocally, there is a lot of high-pitched wailing present that is quite obtuse, but perhaps suits the strange musical passages relatively well. This is still my least favourite aspect of the release, however, as the remainder of the music features enough complexities to become fully entranced in.
The music is often theatrical, with multiple things going on at the same time to catch your attention. It shifts instrumentation at the blink of an eye depending on the mood that the outfit are attempting to create. The circus sounding portions of the disc that remind of Arcturus are more compelling in my opinion than the black metal sections, but others may have a different opinion. Regardless, this is the type of album that will take multiple listens to fully digest. The symphonic nature of “Thokk” is a highlight and displays a particularly nice melding of classical and metal. Though the music goes off on wild tangents at times, it usually remains quite focused.
This may appeal to fans of Mr. Bungle, even with their wild, but constrained musical tendencies. The band melds musical styles in a similar fashion, even if they don’t sound exactly alike. It is the ability Pensées Nocturnes to stimulate the listener with the use of a variety of sounds that makes them such a promising act. Grotesque is an album that will be better appreciated by the more open minded listeners of the metal genre and to those folks this gets a solid recommendation.
-Adam McAuley
VITALS:
Release: March 2010
Label: Les Acteurs De L’Ombre Productions
Avantgenre: Theatrical Avant-Garde Black Metal
Duration: 53:29
Origin: France
Official site: None
Review online since: 04.08.2010 / 17:41:37
TRACKLIST:
1 – Vulgum Pecus
2 – Paria
3 – Rahu
4 – Eros
5 – Monosis
6 – Hel
7 – Thokk
8 – Suivant
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