Funeral Rain Press Corps

Where: Starlite Room, Edmonton, Alberta
When: October 7, 2011

Last night I was expecting only to see one band, Alcest, but as it turns out I got to see two.

Junius opened up the show with their brand of American post metal. Isis, Pelican, and Deftones all smashed up together into a gorgeous, heavy blend. These guys are phenomenal live, and even Mrs. Blaspheme is a certified fan now. I hope they feel their reception was good enough for them to come back to Edmonton soon, because I know I’ll be there, at the front. We definitely grabbed one of their CDs on out way out, The Martyrdom of a Catastrophist, as well as a pair of patches.

After Junius awed the crowd, Alcest took the stage with a very warm reception. There were quite of people there for Alcest, rather than the headliner. Neige and his full band (I wondered if he would have a band as the albums are pretty much just him and drummer Winterhalter) were quite the atypical stereotypes of Frenchmen: quiet and polite, rather than loud and polite. And not a cigarette was lit once the whole set! I wish I could have filmed Neige say “We are Alcest from France”, it was the perfect introduction to them.

This is another band that Mrs. Blaspheme has come to love, just as I told her she would. Shoegaze and black metal combine to create a mesmerizing effect on the listener, and the viewer too. I wondered how Alcest would translate live, and they translate just fine. Deep fog shrouded them most of the time, with blue backlighting outlining their obscured forms, but on occasions where the fog dissipated, the whole band was smiling, really feeling the music and the crowd. Along with the Junius CD we left with Le Secret on vinyl and Écailles De Lune Digipak CD.

After Alcest Enslaved were going to play, but we had to leave before then. Which, I must say, is not to slight Enslaved. Rather it’s because we work too much and had been up at four in the morning and had to get up again at five. So a late night was not going to be possible, as my eyes were heavy before Junius even. Also, to be honest, we’ve seen Enslaved before, opening for Dimmu Borgir on their last trip through town, and it was awesome. So hopefully they come back again soon because I would love to see them again. Sorry guys. Next time.

In all, it was a near perfect night. The only blemish on the proceedings was the “7 o’clock” doors (7:45ish) and the 9:15 start time. If only Starlite actually opened their doors when they said they would. Also, if only they weren’t still purporting that Ghost were to be playing the show. Junius were their replacements.

Genre: Progressive Black Metal
Label: Debemur Morti

Blut Aus Nord, also known as France’s Darkthrone to some, are a fantastic band, and have been since their inception, and this re-release of their somewhat underrated 2001 album shows them at some of their most unsettling.
Odd riffs, fast drumming, and a very distinct lack of bass guitar tones (they’re really buried in there) gives the sound of very grim black metal, but it’s the avant-garde aspects of the band that are really starting to show their colors with this album, and even more so on the bonus disc.
The second CD is consisting of “The Fall: Chapter 7″ in three parts, and it’s at times extremely raw and violent black metal with parts very much an avant-garde shoegaze black metal (think of a more depressing and creepy Alcest or even Netra without the trip-hop). From what I gather, this second disc was recorded recently, for the re-release of The Mystical Beast of Rebellion, and it’s worth the price of the album alone.
If only more new black metal sounded this fresh and mind expanding.
8.5 out of 10.

Genre: Progressive Depressive Black Metal
Label: Hypnotic Dirge Records

For most people, hearing this album might result in a big “what the fuck?” Literally, there is trip-hop on this album. Mixed with depressive black metal. I’m still trying to wrap my head around this.
This is definitely the most unique BM release I’ve heard in awhile, and it’s something that I’m going to be listening to for awhile too. Things being as they are, I honestly don’t know if this is a good review, simply because I’m still trying to digest the album.
Either way, what I’ve heard so far I love. It’s actually something FRESH and it’s actually BLACK METAL. Two things that don’t always go hand in hand unless you’re a fringe band on the furthest reaches of black metal, and this definitely is one such band.
If you think you’ve got the balls to try something really new and you’re a black metal fan, check out Netra. Mélancolie Urbaine is a fucking win. For fans of Alcest, Ausserwelt, Les Discrets… wait a minute… these are all French bands! Hm. Maybe there’s your hint.
8 out of 10.

Netra on MySpace.

Genres: Black Metal, Depressive Black Metal, Shoegaze
Labels: Apparitia Recordings, Drakkar Productions

Celestia bring a cool sounding black metal to the table with Archenae Perfectii…, and it’s definitely more original than many two-person black metal bands’ output in recent years. Not content with trying to write Darkthrone or Mayhem clones, Celestia actually have something here that, although not a completely groundbreaking new sound, is genuinely solid and very much their own.
I can hear elements of their fellow countryman Neige’s project Alcest in it, as well as touches of Norwegian and Swedish black metal, some punk and classic metal, and even some gothic metal, all tossed together and mixed up nicely. Add in the fact that there is some production going on rather than just putting some lo-fi shit to tape, you’ve got a nice listen too.
7 out of 10.

Celestia on MySpace.

Genres: Black Metal, Shoegaze
Label: Prophecy Productions

This is one fucking gorgeous sounding album of French blackened shoegaze. It definitely reminds me of My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless with a definitely more heavy approach.
Lyrics are beautifully done in French, sometimes screamed and sometimes sung, and the songs themselves are fairly lengthy and full of melancholic emotion. From what I’ve been able to read, Neige wrote the concept to be about someone who leaves this world to go to another, “…Like a passage to another reality, another state of existence….”
It’s an easy review folks. It’s a killer album that’s full of complexities that bend the mind.
8 out of 10.

Alcest on MySpace.