While I’ve often drifted to black metal albums to review during my time here, my first love was post-metal. My distinguished colleagues Emya, Carcharadon, and sometimes even Cherd of Doom are better at reviewing, while I often struggle to find the right words. Contrary to the frosted barbed wire guitar tone that skins my soul alive, crush my brain with the dark sludgy tones of Neurosis, the sunbathed environs of Isis, the brooding patience of (early) Blindead, or the textured assault of Cult of Luna. It’s a style borne in patience and conceived in nuanced songwriting. While a black metal musician can be relevant if they simply crank the distortion, record their tremolo with iPhone Voice Memos and call it “raw,” post-metallers need be a tad more discerning, fleshing out their epics with organic transitions and packing their offerings with the right production to enhance all its elements. Many have tried and failed, often to the repeated phrase “Isis ripoff” or “Pelican worshiper,” so there’s a lot at stake: it must be original and solid. Is DDENT up for the job?
DDENT is a French post-metal group from Paris, formed in 2013 and having released two full-lengths and an EP. Sporting a Pelican or Omega Massif vocal-less style, complete with post-rock dynamics, pummeling sludgy riffs, and a stunning sense of beauty within its uncompromising sound, this quartet’s third full-length hopes to “depict their own vision of reality as a life time-lapse. Inspired by Henri Bergson’s work on language, Couvre-sang conveys a poetic and philosophical mystique.” At first glance, DDENT appears a spitting pretentious image of fellow post-metal travelers Tempel, but in spite of the comparisons, the stunning balance of density, melody, and patience more than makes Couvre-sang a worthy instrumental addition to your music library.
Truly, the balance of all the album’s components results in a stunning listen, making its instrumental and vocal-less presentation all the better. recalling the best of Fire Walk With Us’ sludge density, Isis’ contemplation, and We Lost the Sea’s emotive post-rock melodies, the highlights feel truly transcendental. Tracks like “SONGE,” “VOLEMIE,” and “PUISSANCEREVEE” are epitome DDENT: patient slow burns whose expanses organically grow from brooding to contemplative to claustrophobic over the course of their respective six- to seven-minute runtimes. Tracks like “VIDESDECHOS” and “SOUVENIRSDEMATIERES” are led by stellar bass performances, balancing bottom-end heaviness with tasteful flourishes. “LIEDEVIN” and “VOILE” are excellent and epic conclusions to the album’s dynamics: the former seamlessly shifts between the brooding, transcendental, and crushing, feeling as fluid as the movements of a symphony; the latter is a no-holds-barred crushing sludgefest that conjures aggression and dread in equal measure. Harnessing a nearly cosmic atmosphere, Couvre-sang sports spectacular mixing: ethereal reverb-laden plucking, crushing distortion, and mammoth bass, rounded out by mountainous percussion that keeps the dense palette grounded.
While the meat of Couvre-sang is expertly constructed, its interludes are a different story.1 While intro “I I” appropriately sets the stage with dense riffs and choral samples, the interludes and the outro prove ultimately derailing. “YYYYYYYYY” sounds too similar to CHON in a jarringly bright surf-rock atmosphere, “OOOOOOOOOOOOO”2 simply has too much going on to establish a singular mood, and outro “V” is too electronic and glitchy, feeling too Nintendocore to be taken seriously. Passages in “VOLEMIE” are also symptomatic of the “too busy” complaint, crammed with electronic and hip-hop flourishes that feel awkwardly jarring in comparison to its journey-centered density. Some transitions feel abrupt, such as the beautiful ending of “LIEDEVIN” and the monstrously crushing intro of “VOILE.” Finally, in spite of their extremely solid offerings, DDENT nevertheless sounds remarkably like Tempel, enhancing the need for a more distinct edge moving forward.
As it stands, however, Couvre-sang is one hell of a journey. It’s stunningly evocative and expertly composed, with only minor hiccups between delicious bites keeping it from truly soaring. Providing a heavily philosophical background is often prone to misstep, but DDENT’s interpretation proves subtle and striking enough to avoid pomposity. As a result, it may not be original enough to become legend, but it is a stunningly solid outing for any listeners in the mood for a sunset journey full of scenic vistas, enigmatic landmarks, and profound contemplation.
Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Chien Noir
Websites: Bandcamp | Facebook
Releases Worldwide: July 3rd, 2020
