KODAMA

I move slowly these days. I did not even know this crew had released a new album.

After the relative disappointment of Shelter, Neige and co. seem to have decided to return to earlier times and sounds in most ways. These are thoughtful compositions...moving from contemplative to aggressive in the wink of an eye. Even my cat has been surprised by some of the sudden tempo or volume changes, and he snatches birds out of the sky. The vocals either caress or scream. Yes! the screams are back! Yes the guitar washes are back! Everything that I loved about these guys is here in spades. Overall the production seems more fitting which is to say there is now a bottom end, something I complained about on the earlier albums.

I read something somewhere that said this was their "Japanese" album. I don't know what a "Japanese" album is, though I've always liked that song Sukiyaki. I guess, yes, Neige said it was influenced by the film Princess Mononoke. Well enough. It is all full of light and darkness, of earth and air, of death and life.

Of course I still do not understand the words (my fault, I don't speak French). Welcome back Alcest. I'd forgotten about you and it's good to see an old friend can still awe.

Although I liked Alcest's first two albums and considered their particular take on the "Blackgaze" style of black metal/shoegaze mashup to be quite pleasing (albeit with a gimmick which didn't quite stand up to repeat listens), their third album Les voyages de l'âme seemed to find the approach wearing thin, Neige and crew seeming to lose interest in the black metal part of their formula. Their fourth album, Shelter, only served to confirm that impression in my eyes, since it saw them more or less entirely drop the black metal aspects of their sound for a more purely shoegaze approach.

However, perhaps just this sort of diversion was needed to allow Alcest to recharge their black metal batteries, because the full blackgaze style is back on Kodama, a concept album inspired by the conflict between the human and natural worlds as depicted in the classic anime movie Princess Mononoke. The concept isn't as awkward a fit for atmospheric black metal as you may think - after all, aren't Wolves In the Throne Room positively obsessed with just such ideas? - and though the delivery doesn't seem to draw very much on traditional Japanese music (or anime soundtracks) stylistically, it does feel like Alcest more confidently setting forth their particular formula, though it is a formula which I've grown weary of.

Great blackgaze, but that's all it is: 6.5/10

Blackgaze. Such a beautiful, aesthetic name for a genre. It combines shoegaze's immersion with black metal's heavy and bleak riffages, creating an atmosphere that feels simultaneously warm and melancholic; like a dismal cloudy day, whose dreariness is depressing but, strangely, comfortable. Alcest. Since their first EP, LE SECRET, they solidified their position as forerunners of the genre; however, in their 2014 album (SHELTER), apparently the band changed their directions to pure dream pop/shoegaze. Kodama. A beautiful, nocturnal, cryptic cover (one of my favorite covers ever! The only reason I tried this album, to be honest), with a strange concept (related to the movie Princess Mononoke), and ALCEST's return to their acclaimed blackgaze style.

I can't say as a knowledgeable authority this is ALCEST at the top of their game, but the production, songwriting, and musicianship seem to indicate that, at the very least, they're doing pretty well. Blackgaze's peculiar style is enticing and unique, and through KODAMA's forty minutes, my ears were engulfed in ALCEST's fogginess. While my experience was good, I found the sameness to be KODAMA's biggest issue. Offering little variation, repetitive riffs, annoyingly unintelligible screams (sound awesome but are absolutely impossible to decipher or accompany; additionally, the clean vocals are much better), there's honestly no effort to make the tracks feel different from each other. Perhaps intentionally, perhaps not, KODAMA is shaped, sonically, as a huge, forty-minutes-long song. But who is to blame? Not black metal nor shoegaze are known for eclecticism. ALCEST would naturally suffer from that hereditary dysfunction.

KODAMA (and ALCEST) didn't disappoint but neither did they astound me. While this will undoubtedly be a treat for shoegaze/atmospheric black metal fans, personally, I found it enjoyable but unmemorable.

Oh, let me add nuance to that last word: while I do remember my experience with KODAMA, literally any moment of it that pops in my mind sounds virtually the same.

There's no album like Kodama. This record has left me speechless every single one of those dozens of times I've listened to it. Pure ethereal beauty with a deep wave of melancholy in the mix. All the instruments layered perfectly together with the vocals creating harmonies that are out of this world. They tell a story. As I close my eyes and listen to this record I see landscapes. I see places that feel and look like they only exist in fantasy worlds.

Not only do I see these gorgeous visions, I feel indescribable emotions even more. A lot of wistfulness is what I hear. The melodies sound like smiling while crying. Pain, but beautiful pain. Really beautiful. Listening to this album specifically opened my eyes as a prog fanatic on the fact that seriously, you don't have to play really technically to achieve a diverse sound. Layering is a big part of this record and the way Alcest does it is a total success, as always. The soundscapes that this album holds are difficult to describe with words. The listening experience is always a feeling, a strong link of emotions.

What comes to analysing the music itself, this record beholds a concise collection of guitarwork that consists of impeccable chord progressions and riffs that play a huge part in creating the atmosphere on this album. Not only do we have heavenly, varying melodies made by multiple layered guitar tracks on songs, we also have rhythm sections that are really important in creating the intensity of the tracks. Compact double bass parts and astonishing work with the cymbals, really highlighting the metal aspect of the record.

Then there's the vocals?oh wow. Breathtaking. It's truly incredible how Neige is able to produce a perfect blend between raw, heart wrenching screams, transferring them to emotional and angelic clean vocals that bring tears in your eyes. The mixing is clear but not too modern sounding at all, considering that we're talking about an album that is partially black metal.

Speaking of which, I never thought I'd stumble across a band that mixes two really different genres so flourishingly. The best way to describe it is pure. Just like their sound and view on making music, it's not pretentious or fake, it's all made with emotion and feel, the band pouring their souls into their records with Kodama being one of the prime examples. It's the way everything is tied together so well and the 42 minutes of content this record has beneath it feels like the perfect amount. Nothing feels out of place and there's just the right amount of everything. Nothing is missing, nothing feels excessive. The balance is ideal and each song progresses just right. Not a single song is too long or too short. What this album really does is leave you wanting more. Alcest has a sound like no other, a truly irreplaceable one.

Best track: Kodama

Rating: 10/10