Can it really be approaching six years since French metallers Eryn Non Dae. left us and so many others drooling over their last album Meliora. It was a release which continues to lure and led us at the time to boldly suggest that extreme and progressive metal had a band which would “continually stretch the wide genres to impressive heights.” At last they have released its successor in the invasive shape of Abandon Of The Self; an encounter which more than justifies our claim.
Since the release of Meliora, unsurprisingly there have been a fair few bands and releases which have offered similar striking propositions. Many have pushed the boundaries of genres which are never slow in exploring new trespasses and adventures anyway. Abandon Of The Self now steps forward to join that collection of inspiring encounters, and we dare to say from the very frontline of the triumphant wave.
Formed in 2001, as The End, the Toulouse hailing quintet released their debut album, Hydra Lernaïa, through Metal Blade in 2009. It was a spark to attention and an already well brewed reputation the band had nurtured through their live presence and earlier EP. Meliora brought a whole new plateau of sound and imagination with its unveiling in 2012 which Abandon Of The Self has now escalated with its atmospheric drama and sonic invention.
Once again Eryn Non Dae. linked up with Mobo for the recording, mixing and mastering of Abandon Of The Self and swiftly gripped attention and the imagination with opener Astral. It looms in from a distance, static distortion shimmering in its air as a rhythmic shuffle soon infests ears and incites even keener attention. The raw throated scowl of vocalist Mathieu Nogues erupts against the track’s swing, the guitars of Franck Quintin and Yann Servanin gathering their wiry lures to subsequently wind around the pulsating surge of the growing trespass. Calm, clean vocals rise within the brewing tempest, conflicting atmospheres colluding rather than battling around the intrigue and voracity of the song. The rolling beats of Julien Rufié unite with the rhythmic grumble of Mickaël André’s bass to magnetically entice but it is the layers of contrasting textures and the immersive breath of the track which really pulls the listener in.
The compelling start to the album is thickened by the menace lined flirtation of Stellar. Nogues vocally walks through atmospheric intimation; his tones and expression becoming more intense as guitars weave a captivating almost feral aurora of sound as again rhythms court the predacious climate with their manipulative swing. It is a truly magnetic soundscape for ears to embrace and the imagination to explore, the band’s own lyrical and physical suggestion equally sparking fresh ventures in thoughts even as the senses increasingly cower before the brewing celestial storm.
Omni similarly sees Nogues with an initially controlled and provocative presence within a kaleidoscope of melodic and sonic wiring around the ever infectious craft of André and Rufié. Though inescapably invasive and disturbing, the ambient winds cast by Quintin and Servanin are tantalising, hinting and probing the psyche whilst allowing the volatility in the song’s heart and atmosphere to increasingly infest their mercurial weave. As with all songs and the album, every listen unveils new melancholic aspects, rapacious shadows, and dark depths to feast upon but equally a radiance which only draws you back time and time again.
The following Eclipse has a bubbling urgency to its predatory rock ‘n’ roll which arouses the senses just as potently as the atmospheric ferocity and seduction which entangles via the guitars. Every corner of the song and band unleash a compelling statement of emotion and enticement, again lust and fear hand in hand as submission to its evocative inferno was swift and inescapable before the epic flight of Halo invades and consumes, driven by further outstanding rhythmic engineering of song and the senses it manipulates. Getting lost in its soundscape was easy, immersing in its angst and emotional turbulence similarly certain, every moment of its ten minutes plus a refreshing intrusion of body and psyche.
The album closes with firstly Fragment, a pulsating inferno of intensity and untethered dissonance from voice to melodic toxicity and rhythmic incitement, and finally through the apocalyptic realm of Abyss. As with all tracks, the pair escort, no drag the listener through soundscapes which never settle and never allow predictability or an absence of adventure confront ears, the latter especially monstrous yet majestic as ire and fury merge with monolithic beauty and ravenous passion.
Though Abandon Of The Self made an immediate rich and irresistible impact, it was with time that is really gripped and thrilled as those dark corners and skilled layers were further exposed. The band describes their album as “a trip into the depths of the soul”, its press release, “a beast of a release!” We can only endorse both and suggest Eryn Non Dae. have not only sprung their finest moment yet but one of the year’s essential listens.
Abandon Of The Self is out now via Debemur Morti Productions; available @ https://erynnondae.bandcamp.com/ or https://erynnondae.bandcamp.com/album/abandon-of-the-self
https://www.erynnondae.com/ http://www.facebook.com/ERYNNONDAEofficial/
Pete RingMaster 21/05/2018
Copyright RingMaster: MyFreeCopyright
Opener Endless Expanse rises up from a distant sea mist; light and intrigue growing by the second as guitars weave their invitation. Swiftly the rich enticing tones of vocalist Davy De Schrooder add to the lure; the intimation of Jasper Bullynck and Kris Vannecke’s guitars uniting with his enticement as rhythms masterfully stroll. Ebbing and flowing in intensity, the track with an almost tender touch engulfs the senses as mystique laces its cosmopolitan melodic tendrils. The track is simply bewitching, a magnetic stirring start to the album and just a sign of things to come.
Currents embraces the widest array of flavours and styles in your sound yet, a truly expansive landscape weaved around bold yet often delicate contrasts but it still has that signature In Vain breath. Did you have to concentrate on keeping that character or it again just naturally evolved as indeed that broad tapestry of sound?
The album’s melodically seductive title track engagingly, almost lovingly, wraps around the listener but still holds a thick growl in its depths while Fire Escape prowls with a plaintive grouchiness as it flirts and challenges with a funk infused, predation lined shuffle. Each left a definite want for more, a lure pretty much all tracks within Earthquake sow as echoed by the melodically atmospheric Elysium. Like a heavy rock equivalent of The Christians meets Voyager, the song is pure mesmerism, its metallic touch addictive and harmonic heart irresistible.
It is an ear and imagination stirring start which still gets eclipsed by the following Fade. With predacious beats from Joe Farrell stalking an electric tease, the song is soon a jungle of grooves, melodic tendrils, and invasive rhythms led by the compelling groan of Eifion Sweet’s bass. The song’s initial growl mellows out as Young swings from his raw attack to warm emotions, melodic radiance twinkling within the heavier grooved netting. As with its predecessor, things barely settle for more than a few breaths before fresh turns are made, the individual craft of the band as gripping as their united mastery and exploration of their sound and songwriting. It is less of an examination than the previous track but still nurturing some moments of almost primal creative hunger before Mind’s Eye takes over twisting the senses.
The following Seed of Hope makes a calmer entrance, Rousseau and piano aligning their melodic suggestiveness before a rise of dark drama erupts, settling down again to begin repeating the dramatic cycle. As its predecessor, the track has many familiar aspects to it and plenty of unique features which combine for a compelling and increasingly striking proposal. The individual craft of the band is inescapable; Bohny and Riario especially grabbing attention within the song though as it evolves everyone makes a rich impact.
It is an impressive start quickly backed by the tantalising endeavours of Red Eye. Though its air is warm and melodic prowess magnetic there is a dystopian tone to its breath shaped by the raw throated vocals and dark hearted grooves. It is a compelling blend which, as simply the gait of the song has the body bouncing, has ears and thoughts hooked. Raw but beauty laded, the track swiftly and increasingly gets under the skin, its strength in its instrumental prowess but potently backed by vocal suggestion and intensity.