Gravenoire - Devant la porte des étoiles (2024)

Unleashing an extreme level of grimness and rawness, today we have France’s Gravenoire and their debut EP “Devant la porte des étoiles”. Trying to bring some of that 90’s Black Metal spirit, this relatively new outfit, featuring members (and ex-members) of bands like BA’A, Anorexia Nervosa, Seth and Diablation, delivers some of the most stripped down and yet intense BM music in the last few years. If you are a fan of uncompromising Black Metal removed from commercial gimmicks and current trendiness, this is the release for you.

Setting a regal mood with “Pavens”, the band really lashes out at the listener with the piercing “France de l'Ombre” featuring crafty drumming, intense riffing and the signature vocals of RMS Hreidmarr, perfectly augmented by Vicomte Vampyr Arkames equal rawness and sheer aggression. Besides the dual vocal onslaught, the music has that old-school rawness thanks to a lo-fi production, said to be recorded in a live rehearsal, which delivers a very organic and natural incisive edge to the music as tracks like "Ordo Opera Cultura” and “Aux Chiens” demonstrate.

One of our favorite elements is the excellent guitar work of Maximilien Brigliadori, who creates intricate and rich melodies on pieces like “Granit”, that nicely change tempos from furiously paced passages to more melodic and melancholic exploits. The subtle keyboards from Emmanuel Zuccaro nicely complement the crafty drumming. With a certain theatrical flare, “Gravenoire” closes the release with a nicely atmospheric piece to bring down the adrenaline levels.

As a whole, “Devant la porte des étoiles” is one hell of an introductory EP filled with quality songs and a very defiant and in-your-face attitude from this French outfit. We have long said that the French Black Metal scene has some truly impressive bands like Merrimack, Seth, BA’A, Glaciation and now Gravenoire. If you like punishing BM music that is well crafted and fierce, look no further and check this one out.

Label: Season of Mist Underground Activists

Release: August 23rd, 2024

Genre: Black Metal

Country: France