Stéphane 'Neige' Paut's relationship with is almost as volatile yet undying as Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne. The architect arguably invented the genre with the project’s 2005 EP , but since then he’s thrice tried to escape its shadow: on the wholly post-rocking and albums, then most recently with 2019’s more metallic and cathartic . Unsurprisingly, the singer/multi-instrumentalist – joined by drummer Jean ‘Winterhalter’ Deflandre since 2009 – has always immediately returned to blackgaze’s dynamics, and marks yet another reunion.
The guitars, razor-sharp on , are tempered this time out, opener pairing them with rich, symphonic strings. also dials down the aggro and, even when he occasionally picks up speed, Neige’s angelic vocals dominate the mix, their beauty washing away much of the brutality. This is nothing that longtime fans of the French duo haven’t heard by now, especially on such beloved opuses as and , yet Alcest prove that they can still wield the same cues to tearjerking effect.
Midpoint commences with blissful but bouncy guitar and then builds, with laidback percussion and sweet singing slotted on top. The one-two punch of and swiftly follows and expresses the full breadth of the blackgaze sound, as the former’s piano-centric interlude is contrasted with a seven-minute dynamo, composed equally of emotion and blastbeats. It would be easy to chastise Alcest for choosing the safe option on album number seven, returning to well-trodden territory aft.
