“These days, PR companies feel the need to come up with unique classifications and genres for the bands they are repping. I’ve lost count of the number of “new” genres we’ve had to add to our tag system this year. Great example: this new release from Angela Martyr, with a label prominently affixed to the cover declaring the music as ‘grungy, mechanical, pessimistic metalgaze.’ Okay. Why don’t they just say, ‘Sounds like Nine Inch Nails?'” They’re paid by the word, Huckster.
“Alcest’s trek to Shelter has been a long and gorgeous journey. Over the years, Neige has taken his most-loved project from black metal soil and sprouted upward, spinning his branches and leaves into beautiful, soothing soundscapes. His ambitions have long been combated by black metallers that thrive on ugliness and rebellion; Alcest’s inherent prettiness seemed at odds with the genre’s core ethos. Yet it was hard to argue with the results.” Does the beautification of black metal continue on Shelter? How much lush gorgeousness can the blackness take before turning that frown upside down? Valid questions all.
