Upon listening to Véhémence for the first time, I quickly decided that the French band’s debut album would probably be like early Desaster. Well, I had just heard the opening track here – a full-on battleground of rage, mania and bloodletting. If I’d taken the time to read their label’s description of ‘Assiégé’ though I would have realised that there is far more to these medieval black metal worshippers than meets the eye. In DTP’s words, this album is: “a perfect soundtrack for taking back from our memory images of struggle, battle and desolate battlefields together with a gasping of partly submerged melancholy.” Which, I think, sets up the album quite nicely.
Beyond the metallic scraping of blades on ‘De Célestes Cavalcades’ we are launched headlong into rasping, blasting black metal. As riffs bluster and blow, the initial vocal roar is an obscure humdinger – feeling momentarily as if it’s going to exit the music and possess your being. When they enter the fray fully, the vocals (a harsh black metal variant) are simply loaded with Gallic spit and rage. Against the rousing thrash of the opener, it’s obviously a winning start. Come ‘Assiégé’ itself however, and we start to hear the depth and breadth of Véhémence’s vision. Rather than opting for more high octane fury, the title track’s winding guitar lines rasp and weave their enchanting magic until the pace picks up, at which point it’s hard not to imagine figures on horseback racing through the forest to avenge some ill-defined wrong. As we continue along, medieval imagery is evoked further via some flute, sparse soundscapes, melodic nuances and thrusts of impassioned speed.
Undoubtedly the centre-piece of the record is track four ‘En Quête du Graâl’ which clocks in at a whopping eleven minutes. Unsurprisingly it paces itself from the start, with riffs furrowing and unfurling until a particularly cold guitar line bewitches the track. While a supernatural feel does underpin certain aspects of the disc up to this point, the haunted, repeated lyrics before the unorthodox solo here provide the first sense of something truly supernatural. The moment when thunder suddenly shatters the scene simply adds to the composition’s haunted credentials. Oozing medieval mysticism, other aspects of ‘En Quête…’ convey more of a thoughtful, reflective approach. At a superficial glance, all these factors of ‘Assiégé’ combined may make it appear somewhat of a disparate experience. Although there is absolutely no denying the delicacy and beauty inherent to a track like ‘Par Sombre Forêts et Vastes Plaines’, which acoustically conjures nature and purity.
Going somewhat full circle, the final track ‘Chant d’Honneur’ incorporates yells of defiance with blasting and gusts of riff work which assault the listener from all angles. After so much variety, it’s cool to end with another slice of chilling yet majestic and emotive black metal. Overall then, ‘Assiégé’ is quite an ambitious, expansive medieval project – and certainly far from the experience I was initially expecting. Fittingly it can be viewed as a tapestry of medieval-inspired moods, some of which merge effortlessly; others which definitely require time and repeated listens to appreciate more. For me, ‘Assiégé’ is not seamless in its entirety but a strong, bold debut nonetheless.
(8/10 Jamie)
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