Catacombes - Des glaires et des briques (2022)

We are constantly impressed on how Sun & Moon records always manages to find very interesting underground bands like Selbst, Blaze of Sorrow, etc. The label has done it again with the incisive Catacombes and their crafty and engaging Black Metal on their sophomore release “Des glaires et des briques”. The band’s music is raw and direct, with a certain Peste Noire meets Monarque approach that will lead to plenty of weird headbanging sessions.

After a mood setting opener, “Cathédrale” creates a very decadent and moody atmosphere with fierce guitar riffs and hellish vocals. The pace is not always intense, allowing the atmosphere and tempo to accommodate more experimental and even Doomy passages. However, not all tracks are the same as pieces like the album title track and “Face à Godasses” are commanding and pummeling from start to end. The band can easily switch gears and they are not afraid of showing it.

There is also a certain more bizarre and mysterious side to the band as “La Brume” showcases a hellish mixture of shrieks and mid-tempo music, creating a very decadent and unsettling atmosphere. Filled with surprises, “Ma Rue” brings back that piercing fury thanks to intense tremolo picking and crafty drumming, while “ La bête d'acier” and its throbbing bass guitar line hypnotizes the listener into submission.

Leaving us with the excellent “Les Ames Oubliées”, Catacombes makes a great impression with this release. The band’s sound is the right mix of aggression, rawness, melancholy, and weirdness that we particularly love about French Black Metal bands. While purists of the genre might find some elements odd, the band’s attitude and crafty song-writing skills will surely captivate the more open minded end of the spectrum in this genre.

Label: Sun & Moon Records

Release: September 13th, 2022

Genre: Black Metal

Country: France/Canada