Review Summary: emerging from the shelter to frolic on the hill
I could throw lots of pretty if unsurprising adjectives at
Les Chants de l'Aurore, and while they would be appropriate descriptors for this new Alcest album, they wouldn't quite capture its essence. Not that a review should strive to do so - I'm mostly here to pretentiously say “album good” or “album bad” - but it's quite striking how the French outfit's music has, sometimes quite literally, transcended words. Even when the band sought out the furthest corners of their blackened dreamgaze sound, songs felt all-encapsulating: the type of music to shush you into full-on aural submission. As such, the most appropriate compliment I can give
Les Chants… is that I keep having to turn it off to actually write this review.
Alright, cool, it's a captivating album - what's new? Not much, to be fair:
Les Chants… sounds like an Alcest album, and thankfully it sounds like a
good Alcest album. While it would have been cool to hear Neige and co. experiment a little beyond their recording setup, it's hard to think of a band more deserving of a sonic victory lap. Admittedly, 2019's
Spiritual Instinct already felt like a victory lap of sorts, but where that album embraced a darker, more immediate comfort zone, this new album is a little lighter.
Les Chants… is a little more summery hill and a little less clouded mountain. Its guitars shimmer on a near-
Shelter level and each song feels highly organic rather than deliberate: best of all, the album is entirely balanced and does not rely extensively on one particular songwriting trick. Alcest seem content crafting an atmosphere, and subsequently allowing it to naturally evolve songs into unique experiences. From acoustic meanderings to explosive climaxes and lots of trademark reverb-drenched “
ooooooohh”s,
Les Chants… finds a way to weave together just about every sonic location the band have visited before.
This does mean that it's not a particularly surprising album:
Les Chants… mostly finds its own spot in Alcest's discography by being the most complete and accurate representation of what the band are all about. It's unlikely to turn naysayers into fans, but if you need an album to introduce newcomers to Alcest, this might just be the one to show them. You know what, make it a flowchart: what's your favourite aspect of the album? The climaxes -> check
Kodama, the delicate dreaminess -> check
Shelter, the lushness -> check
Écailles de Lune. Either way, happy summer, and don't you dare yap or write through this album: meadow-frolicking only, please.
