verlies-ledomainedeshommes-reviews

Review from Disfactory Webzine

Tue, 15 Dec 2015 20:55:38 +0100

From: Disfactory Webzine

Published: December 12, 2015

E’ giunto il tempo di scrivere qualche riga nei confronti del primo album del progetto francese Verlies intitolato Le Domaine Des Hommes. Come sempre più spesso accade le buone cose rimangono confinate ai margini, poco considerate dalla “platea che conta” anche in un genere elitario come il black metal. Ma solo lavori come questo finiscono a “pungolare” in maniera adeguata l’animo, dischi capaci di “parlare” da subito senza il bisogno d’essere annunciati ai quattro venti. Il black metal del monicker Verlies, diventa così piacevole motivo di studio interno, un’opera sofferta, abile nel rilasciare un denso quanto personale sapore lungo tutto il suo “alettante” tragitto (a mente fredda i responsi saranno ancora maggiori).

Le Domaine Des Hommes agisce per via di un minutaggio rilevante (cinquanta minuti possono essere infiniti a volte, fortunatamente non in questa circostanza) ma le cose rimangono così soffuse e penetranti che il tempo diventerà l’ultimo dei nostri pensieri. C’è raffinatezza nella musica dei Verlies, una raffinatezza per niente stucchevole o esagerata dal lato “elegante” della questione. Sulle note rimane incastrato un senso ruvido, di sofferenza (espressa a tutta forza nei momenti più “accesi” e violenti) e spiccata praticità. I dieci minuti di Nouvelle basterebbero per delimitare il campo visivo scelto con accortezza dalla formazione, la capacità di variare, di fare costantemente il punto della situazione mentre si lascia un momento per un altro sono fatti così bene che l’indifferenza non potrà venir assolutamente presa in considerazione. La loro forza sta nel non “ammiccare”, di fare le cose prima per se stessi e poi per il pubblico (se vorrà), impossibile non cadere prigionieri di Maladie e dei suoi affreschi melodici, esageratamente perfetti come virtù da “contrasto” a quelli decisi e tritatutto.

Momenti malinconici sconfinano placidamente nell’eleganza, molto spesso finiremo per sentirci confortevolmente “abbracciati”, anche se per poco, piccole situazioni che finiscono per fare la fortuna di un andamento comunque non semplice da descrivere, figlio di un gusto spiccato e sincero, che in un modo o nell’altro riesce sempre a condurre verso l’evasione o l’agognato “risveglio”. La certezza di stare davanti ad un gran bel disco si manifesterà subito, ma saranno solamente nuovi giri a consolidare il “successo totale”, la vera fortuna di Le Domaine Des Hommes. Così come le già menzionate anche L’abime du guide pensa a rilasciare la sua particolare aura persuasiva (in qualche modo inafferrabile), a noi non rimarrà altra soluzione, solo il “concederci”, il lasciarsi andare finirà per premiare un disco così viscerale ed ambizioso. I picchi di L’absolution non passeranno di certo inosservati (la voce si fa sospirosa, sgraziata, velenosa, interpretativa, ogni gusto sarà debitamente saziato) così come l’ultimo affresco Marcher sur le vide, dove la conoscenza con il metodo d’esposizione diventa in qualche modo “pratica”.

I Verlies ci consegnano il coraggio, lo fanno con la volontà di creare senza dover scendere a facili compromessi. Le Domaine Des Hommes tocca in alcuni casi vette importanti, vette che saranno determinanti per la riuscita degli eventuali futuri prodotti. Ma oggi non possiamo esimerci dal prendere questo “strano” oggetto per metterlo sopra un piedistallo.

Rating: 75/100

Reviewed by: Duke Selfish Fog

Review from Extreme Metal Voyager

Sat, 31 Oct 2015 22:54:18 +0100

From: Extreme Metal Voyager

Published: October 28, 2015

Original Link

Continuously unearthing exciting and edgy Black Metal that acts like it has a purpose, Verlies debut album further solidifies that strange, experimental edge of the style that´s rooted in France. From the city of Lille, comes a band that has a more claustrophobic character in contrast to the prominent “Shoegaze” wave that´s been in focus the last few years.

Originally self-released, “Le Domaine Des Hommes” secures a competent release platform via a joint venture cooperation between Canada´s unique Hypnotic Dirge Records and Mexican underground label Throats Productions. Listening to this album has been quite an undertaking, there´s a glimpse of developing musical prowess to be traced within these five lengthy and compact tracks.

Take the four minute intro for example; the progressive feel of the slow buildup, the attacking distortion and dissonances mixed with Brave Murder Day´esque melody in the center, the epic brutality at the end… the listener definitely gets a taste of raw and bold songwriting before the first real track sets in. Forward to the opening minutes of “Nouvelle” and you´re served with a range of eclectic passages that you´re not sure what to make of.

Not surprisingly, this french outfit thinks outside of the box. Post Rock buildups, Black Metal aggression jazzy/progressive intersections, this is some unconventional music that takes a few spins to sink in, and once the pieces fall together, therein lies an interesting work of Avant-garde music burdened with sourpuss lectures about life and the distress it entails. Furthermore, the vocals accentuate the oppressive/romantic ebb and flow nature of the songs, ranging from madman screams to drowsy opium consuming deliveries that ring like a true pessimist. The purposeful restlessness of the band´s songwriting skills is tamed with the relaxed outro piece “Luna Liquor” with a leading clarinet letting off a baroque styled atmosphere later accompanied by expressive guitar work.

A challenging listen, but certainly an interesting one as well. Verlies qualities lie in their unorthodox songwriting, bending instrumentation and a somewhat discernible “tortured musician” approach in the vocal department. Grab this if you want a savvy and visceral music experience.

Rating: 8/10

Reviewed by: Fróði Tórálvsson Stenberg

Review from Aristocrazia Webzine

Tue, 29 Sep 2015 19:46:21 +0100

From: Aristocrazia Webzine

Published: Septeber 28, 2015

Original Link

Verlies è il nome del progetto di N. (chitarra e voce) nato dapprima come un atto solista e che ha pian piano mutato forma, divenendo una vera e propria band con l'ingresso di T. (basso), V. (chitarra; precedentemente appannaggio di F.) e Psycho (batteria). La prima uscita di questa creatura è datata 2014 e intitolata "Le Domaine Des Hommes", album che probabilmente ai più attenti fruitori di certe sonorità black metal atmosferiche, post-, melodiche e tendenti allo scenario shoegaze non sarà poi passato del tutto inosservato. Dopo essere stato distribuito in solo formato digitale attraverso la pagina Bandcamp, e lo troverete ancora anche in free download, è stato stampato tramite il supporto dell'etichetta canadese Hypnotic Dirge Records.

La proposta per molti aspetti sembra giocare in casa la propria partita, in più di una circostanza c'è infatti da tenere in considerazione come il gusto e l'impronta compositiva di gruppi connazionali ben più noti quali sono Alcest e Pensées Nocturnes facciano capolino all'interno dei brani e in altrettanto modo come altre compagini di valore tipo gli statunitensi Agalloch e i canadesi Gris — seppur con minor insistenza — prendano parte allo scenario musicale. La composizione è apprezzabile per il dinamismo che ci consegna all'udito situazioni frementi e instabili quanto delicate e orecchiabili in maniera malsana, tuttavia al contrario di quanto elaborato dai colleghi poc'anzi citati non è sempre in grado di attrarre e incantare, a causa di una forzata tortuosità o di uno spegnimento repentino che di tanto in tanto non collima con l'esplosione o l'implosione atmosferica del pezzo in corso. Il lavoro mostra il meglio di sé nei brani in cui l'equilibrio fra la componente prettamente strumentale e quella ambientale raggiunge quasi la perfezione, mi riferisco a episodi come "Maladie" e "Marcher Sur Le Vide" nei quali il graffiare e i toni discordanti vengono talvolta piacevolmente contrastati da un'aura d'impronta quasi doom.

Imperfezioni o meno, "Le Domaine Des Hommes" nel suo essere acerbo, istintivo e lievemente discontinuo sa di prima prova superata e trovo sia un ascolto che qualsiasi fruitore abituale di questo panorama potrebbe ritenere quantomeno intrigante. Di conseguenza, qualora non l'aveste già fatto, concedetevi un primo passaggio esplorativo, visitando il Bandcamp dei Verlies, e successivamente — nel caso in cui vi riteneste soddisfatti da quanto esposto — potreste seriamente pensare di fare vostro il disco.

Reviewed by: Gabriele Strano

Review from Teeth of the Divine

Mon, 27 Jul 2015 20:28:18 +0100

From: Teeth of the Divine

Published: July 17, 2015

Original Link

Translated as ‘loss’, France’s Verlies is a new three piece act, and Les Domaines Du Hommes was self released back in 2014, but the re-release has been picked up fittingly by Hypnotic Dirge Records. So the combination o the band name, country of origin and the label should clue you in as yo what to expect here.

Yes, depressive, but layered and typically ambitious and atmospheric French black metal is on tap here, and it’s got a certain j’ne cais pas to it that’s complex and progressive within the paradigms of black metal and depressive/atmospheric music . Amid all the tenets of the style such as long songs, ambient builds and acoustics, pained shrieks and tremolo picked fury, there’s a poetic, avant garde aura. Whether it’s the French spoken words or the underlying post rock and jazz hues or the fuzzed out guitar tone and rich anti black metal bass, its forms a tapestry that’s darkly experimental but alluringly somber.

Subtle hues of Fleurety’s Mid Tid Skal Komme, dance amid more delicate and maybe other 90s Norwegian avant garde black metal or even the likes of Agalloch as heard on 10 minute opener (after the intro), “Nouvelle” or more languid 9 minute “L’absolution”. The French allure throbs underneath when the band explores more scathing, discordant turns like “Maladie” or “Marcher sur le vide” with its loping funeral march conclusion. It’s both harmonic and atonal, sullen but harsh, and though it isn’t quite the new era or wispier nice black metal a la Alda, Woods of Desolation, Obsequiae and such, but certainly might have some appeal to that crowd if they were on Lexapro while at an art museum signified by instrumental closer”Luna Liquor”, ending the album perfectly with a clarinet laden despondency.

Le Domaines Des Hommes is a hard album to put down into succient words, but regardless of my vain efforts, it’s up there with Atten Ash‘s The Hourglass and Obsidian Tongue‘s A Nest of Ravens in the Throat of Time as young label’s best releases as the label continues to dig up expressive and depressive music across the globe.

Reviewed by: Erik Thomas

Review from Ave Noctum Webzine

Mon, 06 Jul 2015 19:19:14 +0100

From: Ave Noctum Webzine

Published: July 5, 2015

Original Link

Verlies is black metal band from France with their debut album. Yes but there is so much more to this than you might expect from such a simple sentence. Naiwan or N from Lille in France has been involved in a couple of other projects such as Desperation Angel and it is very obvious on first listen to this new act that he is an accomplished and versatile musician who doesn’t go down any formulaic or particularly conventional routes. He is joined by T and F on bass and lead guitar but I am guessing that most of the ideas here are his and there is a lot of depth and emotion packed within this artistic album and it is in a constant flux, throwing many strange and genre shifting ideas and oblique time signatures into its blackened mainframe. It’s time to enter this ‘domain of men’ and see exactly what it is going to throw out at us.

An instrumental intro sets things up and is strong in melody with acoustic refrains giving it all a bit of a post-rock sort of flavour that builds up into a shuddering crescendo and a piercing scream. ‘Nouvelle’ builds upon new territories, gentle again at first with clean vocals and a style that wouldn’t be out of place to the likes of Alcest before suddenly rearing up and getting talons in with piercing and hateful snarling vocals and a musical rugged surge with some really fast tremolo shredding and avant-weird signature changes that belie convention. From here you know that any complacency that you had at first is out the window and you should expect the unexpected for the rest of the album. Songs are on the whole long and twist and turn many times although after a few listens they are easy enough to follow moving between storm and gentle sunnier breezes. It’s difficult to throw comparisons around here although the vocals at their most guttural remind of Vaerohn of Pensees Nocturnes, there are also the shoegaze elements that again bring back to Alcest and I guess the native tongue helps keep the feel here very much Gallic. Add to this some stylistic nuances within the music that seem like they would fit as much into a jazz composition as anything else and you do definitely have an album that is really designed for you to sink your teeth into.

There are swaggering passages of windswept black metal to punish you on tracks such as ‘Maladie’ which goes off like the clappers and runs out of control like a freight train about to crash before a crooning waft that would not be out of place on something done by our favourite Australian Tim Yatras really comes out of nowhere. Just as it starts hammering away again it all drops out for a section of gloomy melancholia totally suiting the track name but again catching you a bit by surprise. If you are into the extreme side of things, no fear another windswept passage is never far away even when it is as here mixed with some uplifting, jubilant melody and crooning vocal histrionics.

Going fully track by track over this albums seven numbers and 50 minutes running time would be a fool’s errand and too in depth to do the album real justice. It’s one of those ones to just put on and go with the flow, seeing just where it’s going to take you. It’s a beguiling and enjoyable journey and for those willing to get their heads slightly stewed it’s certainly a rewarding experience especially after giving it the requisite amount of plays necessary for the songs to start to sink in.

Rating: 8/10

Reviewed by: Pete Woods

Review from Metallifer Webzine

Sat, 04 Jul 2015 01:16:01 +0100

From: Metallifer Blogspot

Published: June 30, 2015

Original Link

Le premier album des français de Verlies se nomme Le Domaine Des Hommes et vient de sortir comme coproduction via le label Hypnotic Dirge Records et Throats Productions. Avant de rentrer dans les détails de la chronique, voici deux petites réflexions. D’abord il faut savoir que Le Domaine Des Hommes est sorti d’abord en numérique et ensuite en format physique via deux labels, le mexicain Throats Productions et le canadien Hypnotic Dirge Records. Notre exemplaire a été acheté via Hypnotic Dirge Records. La deuxième réflexion, plus générale est à propos de la démocratisation de la musique. En effet grâce à la diffusion de plus en plus vaste d’ordinateurs puissants et de logiciels de plus en plus performants, la musique ou mieux la MAO (musique assistée par ordinateur) est à la portée de plus en plus de monde. C’est pour cette raison qu’il y a, je crois, de plus en plus de groupes qui se lancent dans la musique. De même, grâce aux réseaux sociaux (ou même blog, comme le mien), on est noyé sous la masse d’informations. Alors parfois je me demande comme un groupe peut tirer son épingle du jeu puisque il faut qu’il puisse d’abord être bon, ensuite il doit avoir un vrai message à faire passer. Si on rajoute à ce discours, l’actuelle crise de l’industrie musicale qui voit les Indies miser sur les produits les plus surs ou les formats les plus impossibles (vinyles de toutes les couleurs, coffret en bois, en métal, éditions hyper-limitées) il y a de quoi se questionner.

Finalement avec Verlies et Le Domaine Des Hommes je pense tenir un bout de réponse. Oui parce le travail, la qualité, la passion, donnent toujours des résultats. Peu de groupes peuvent se vanter de sortir un premier album si abouti, intéressant et accompli. Verlies nous amène dans un voyage très loin dont on n’est pas sûr d’abord de revenir et ensuite d’en revenir sain d’esprit.

Pour rentrer dans le monde de Verlies (mot qui en néerlandais signifie « perte ») il faut trouver la clé voire une clé puisque les niveaux de lectures sont multiples. Nous pensons en avoir trouvé une grâce à ce texte qui figure sur la page facebook de Verlies :

Verlies est un arbre qui brule et se consomme, brûlant comme la chair les yeux et

les oreilles de ceux qui la portent, soumis

Si à coté de cette citation on observe le logo du groupe on trouve un arbre. Et encore dans le titre L’Abîme du Guide on peut lire : « Ma souffrance en vaut la peine, ici naîtra un arbre ».

Si l’arbre est très célèbre dans les mythologies du monde entier puisque avec ses racines il communique avec le monde des ombres, avec son tronc avec la terre (le monde des hommes) et ses branches avec le ciel (le monde des dieux), dans l’iconographie de Verlies l’arbre brûle et se consomme et en faisant ceci consomme et brûle aussi les hommes qui le portent, qui l’écoutent. C’est un arbre de feu, un arbre de mort. Il est très intéressant qu’au-delà du message véhiculé par Verlies il existe en vrai un arbre de feu, il s’agit de l’Hippomane mancinella. L’Hippomane tient son nom du grec ancien « hippos » – cheval et « mania » – folie puisque on pensait que les chevaux qui se nourrissaient de ses baies devenaient fou. Le poète grec Théocrite en parle dans son deuxième Idylle Les Magiciennes (vv 47-49). Les baies de l’Hippomane mancinella sont toxiques, les feuilles, la sève peuvent bruler grièvement celui qui les touche. Cet arbre, qui se trouve dans les régions d’Amérique tropicale est connu aussi comme « Arbre de Mort ». Dans l’Europe du nord on trouve un autre arbre, l’if, appelé aussi « arbre de mort » car très toxique.

Musicalement Verlies évolue dans un black metal très sombre avec son chant guttural et ses blast beats abrasifs très convaincants. Mais le groupe va plus loin. Il puise dans un univers que l’on peut définir comme atmosphérique par ses ambiances sombres, ses tempi qui ralentissement par moments, ses arpèges de guitares qui zèbrent les compositions en les dynamisant et en allant plus loin dans le désespoir. Verlies maitrise aussi le chant clair qui se trouve tantôt en alternance avec le chant guttural tantôt mixé avec. Les deux voix ainsi superposée donnent une réelle profondeur à chaque titre et poussent l’auditeur dans ses derniers retranchements. A la manière d’un Deicide qui mixe deux voix, Verlies, en jouant sur plusieurs registres, dispose d’une palette extrêmement vaste.

L’album Le Domaine Des Hommes s’ouvre avec l’instrumental Intro et se clôt par l’instrumental Luna Liquor. Mais si la présence de deux titres instrumentaux pourrait faire penser que la boucle est bouclée, ce n’est qu’une impression. Luna Liquor est un titre rehaussé par la clarinette d’Hélène Miani qui résume toute la noirceur de l’album et la transpose dans un au-delà encore plus intime et personnel.

Finalement Verlies se plaît à décrire un univers noir où les mots clé sont l’eau (flots, vague), le feu (qui brûle et consomme), la haine, le sang, l’ombre. Le noir, le mal de vivre de l’homme face au Cosmos, est relayé sans cesse pendant tout l’album et ses accélérations et ses divagations plus acoustiques sont là pour essayer de décrypter cette souffrance. Si on me demandait qu’est-ce qu’est Le Domaine Des Hommes, ma réponse (mais pas la seule possible) serait, c’est l’Enfer.

Verlies avec son premier album signe une très belle réussie. Le black metal est féroce mais estompé par des pans et des ouvertures plus atmosphériques. La noirceur est assurée et manifeste. Assumée, même. Verlies comme un arbre, prend racine, dans le corps de l’auditeur et ne demande qu’à être écouté et propagé. Comme le propre d’une œuvre d’art.

Reviewed by: Cristiano Basso

Rating: 9.5/10

Review from The Metal Observer

Sat, 04 Jul 2015 01:04:51 +0100

From: The Metal Observer

Published: June 29, 2015

Original Link

Debut albums can be a difficult proposition. On one hand, they can show band with some real talent in a completely surprising affair. On the other side, the bands can show a lot of promise but ultimately fall short of making an impact. Luckily for the French project Verlies, the former proves to be true. Mostly a one-man act (save for some guest studio performances) this full-length comes out of nowhere and creates one of the better atmospheric/progressive black metal records in some time. Finally getting a physical release via Hypnotic Dirge Records, Le Domaine Des Hommes is a continually impressive album, and is worthy to be part of the wonderful catalogue of French black metal.

From the get-go, Verlies make an impression with the perfectly paced “Intro” which begins with the slower, melodic guitar slowly becoming more and more dissonant, while the additional instruments join in one by one and the piece’s speed increases ever so slightly. All of this comes to great crescendo once the screams hit and really sets the table for the remainder of the record. Where as intro tracks can seem almost like throw-aways at times, or superfluous, this is a much needed track to really drive home that this is far from a typical black metal release. The remainder of Le Domaine follows suit, with never sticking to conventional ideas or sounds. Musically, there is plenty of slower and faster sections. Tremolo picked guitar lines are of course here in plenty, but the usage of other influences is what really set Verlies apart from the pack.

The bass is very audible, and has some real nice jazz and funk structures to it, while the drums give plenty of memorable grooves, but do not shy away from blasting when needed. Guitar solos make a few appearances on the album as well and never fail to impress, being both flashy and tasteful at the same time. Vocally, the album is as varied as can be, with screams, growls, cleans and even some modulated “croaking” style vocals that sound like they could come form an Inquisition album. The layering of the vocals works wonders as well, with some of the more DSBM screams on top of the more traditional black wails, and it all comes in at the right time to accentuate the intensity of the songs.

There are some great themes in play as well as some of the musical passages will repeat throughout a track to bring things back into focus and really show that this is a well planned out album, which helps with the staying power these tracks already have. The excellent production employed doesn’t hurt either as the album sounds clean and “modern” for sure, but packs such a punch and the mixing is phenomenal in capturing every nuance and element Verlies brings to this recording. There is a slight bit of a lull near the halfway point of Le Domaine but it is not enough to really bring down the overall quality.

I can safely say this album was a major surprise. Not being familiar with the project before this, I was impressed from the first listen, and it grew on me more and more with each repeated spin. For fans of black metal, both traditional and with more of a progressive flair, this is an album that should be paid attention to. An incredible debut, and one that shows unlimited promise for the future of this act.

Reviewed by: Neill Bird

Rating: 9/10

Review from Heavy Blog is Heavy

Fri, 26 Jun 2015 08:42:44 +0100

From: Heavy Blog is Heavy

Published: June 23, 2015

Original Link

Atmospheric black metal is a genre known for a fairly specific style: shrieking vocals, clean leads soaking in reverb, and guitar riffs that create crushing walls of noise. Giants in the genre, like Wolves In The Throne Room or Weakling, pioneered this blend of ambience and aggression in the early 2000s, and 15 years later, the genre still sounds pretty much the same. Sure, there are plenty of groups that have taken the sound and twisted it around, like Saor and Panopticon, who both add folk instruments to their music, or Epitimia, who throw in jazz and electronic elements to spice up their sound.

Verlies twist this whole idea on its head. On their new album, Les Domaine Des Hommes, the band keeps melody to the forefront of the music, allowing it to lead the way instead of being lost amidst hazy cliffs of distortion and blast beats. The songwriting on this record is succinct and to-the-point in the best of ways: the leads are noticeable and give the music a sort of precision that is almost entirely alien to the genre. Through these techniques, Verlies earns themselves a special spot in the growing pile of atmospheric black metal/post-black albums from this year: being the only one to totally abstain from the genre’s typical meat and potatoes, and to instead focus heavily on creating atmosphere and emotion through leads. It’s a brilliant twist on the genre and creates some truly special moments, but, the flipside of this is that often, time feels wasted on sections that do little to develop the overall sound of the album.

Starting with the aptly-named “Intro”, the album twists and turns, sometimes crawling, sometimes running, through five tracks averaging about nine minutes in length (and a two-minute outro). Throughout the entire record, the music carries melancholic vibes through both the leads and the vocals, communicating the band’s ire and sadness with various mood shifts and tempo changes. This record’s sound is extremely dynamic; the songs present themselves as rivers, not lakes, and are at times placid and other times raging, but no matter what, always moving forward. That’s one thing that definitely sticks out about this album: the songs never feel as though they’ve stagnated. The sense of progression is always there, and that’s not something one often gets with atmospheric black metal. Be the current sound of the album a ferocious black metal riff with screamed vocals, or an echoing arpeggiation with the vocalist’s deep, clean voice, the album always feels as if it’s on the move to the next crescendo or valley of ambience.

The production is another quality of the album that begs discussion: the guitar is rich and full instead of the brittle and overloud tones of most albums in the genre, and every note carries with it a warmth that belies the album’s tone. The bass is full and present, and the drums are punchy and powerful. This record forces the listener to consider the music within, instead of the usual spacing-out that so many atmospheric black metal/post-black bands seek as an optimal listening experience.

Unfortunately, this 360-degree twisting of the atmospheric black metal ideology does carry some inherent problems with it. The sound of the genre simply wasn’t built to handle this in some ways. The repetition and atmospheric components don’t work nearly as well here as they do on more traditional albums in the genre, and oftentimes, because there’s just less exploration to be had with the sound. Far too often does the listener find themselves wishing a section would end, only to find out it continues for another minute or two. The form of writing where dynamics are usually hidden or just plainly not there, it does a disservice to an album this lead-oriented. The leads feel quite often like they’re tugging the rest of the album in tow, and it creates a problem in the album’s dynamic where it ends up feeling very sluggish at times.

In the end, it bears saying that Les Domaine Des Hommes is worth a listen for any fan of post-black, atmospheric black metal, or blackgaze. The way it experiments with subverting the archetype of the genres is impressive, especially in that for the most part, it pulls it off quite well. This album is equally heady and raw at different times, and the sheer disparity between this and other records within the genre means this holds a place entirely its own. Whether one walks away disappointed or satisfied, this music is a unique look into the other side of modern black metal and worth anyone’s time.

Rating: 3.5/5

Reviewed by: Simon Handmaker

Review from ZWareMetalen

Fri, 12 Jun 2015 04:32:44 +0100

From: ZWareMetalen

Published: June 11, 2015

Original Link

Vandaag een wat oudere release, van begin vorig jaar. In januari van 2014 kwam Le Domaine des Hommes uit, het eerste album van Verlies. Deze Franse band maakt een soort post-metal vermengt met blackmetal. Let op: geen post-black dus (even lekker zeveren), want daarvoor hangt het geheel te veel naar blackmetal toe.

Post-metal en blackmetal dus. Verlies heeft duidelijk geluisterd naar de grootheden uit het eerste genre, maar heeft toch meer raakvlakken met atmosferische blackmetal. Geen onbekende combinatie, maar hier wordt het een beetje dogmatisch toegepast: óf we hebben een heel duidelijke passage post-metal óf het is blackmetal. Ook binnen de vocalen wordt dit toegepast, maar daarbij zijn ook cleane vocalen toegevoegd. De muziek vertoont veel progressie, met veel afwisseling in de dynamiek. Van een beukende blackmetal passage, gaan we plots over naar een heel rustig moment met cleane zang om vervolgens over te gaan naar een melodieuze passage met een slepende ritmesectie, zoals gebeurt in L'Abime du Guide. De muziek zit goed in elkaar, met de verschillende onderdelen die moeiteloos in elkaar doorlopen. Verlies laat een sterk staaltje songwriting zien, met een aantal interessante wendingen op het album. Voor mij is het grootste probleem op dit album het gebrek aan interessante riffs. Nergens weet Le Domaine des Hommes me echt te pakken, terwijl er genoeg kansen zijn: de rustige riffs zijn net niet catchy genoeg en de blackmetal riffs net niet tragisch genoeg. Daarnaast zijn er een flink aantal gitaarleads die niet op dit album thuishoren: zo is op L'Absolution een hoge riff te horen, met een toon waarvan ik de keuzeniet begrijp en bevat Maladie ook enkele leads die simpelweg niet op dit album thuis horen. Sterkste track is in mijn ogen Marcher Sur le Vide, dat een sterke balans tussen de verschillende muzikale elementen laat zien, met een goede blackmetal riff, maar ook een erg doomy aanvoelende riff waarop met cleane vocalen wordt voorgedragen. Het is het laatste nummer voor de outro en leidt het album passend uit, met een trage riff, die langzaam wegvaagt. Zoals gezegd zijn de vocalen erg afwisselend, van clean naar hard en alles daar tussenin. De teksten worden in het Frans afgeleverd, wat op zich geen probleem is, al moet ik zeggen dat de passages waar de cleane zang wat langer duurt, wat dwepend over kunnen komen en daar moet je van houden.

Met Le Domaine des Hommes levert Verlies een plaat af die een aantal fans van Alcest en Les Discrets zeker zal kunnen bekoren. De sterke songwriting zorgt voor een dynamisch geheel, waar door wat saaie riffs helaas afbreuk aan wordt gedaan. Het zou echter zomaar kunnen dat het eerste album van Verlies een groeier is en dat we nog best wat van deze band mogen verwachten.

Rating: 70/100

Review from Dead Rheteric Webzine

Wed, 10 Jun 2015 19:11:35 +0100

From: Dead Rheteric Webzine

Published: June 9, 2015

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If there is one label that seems to be able to sift through the underground to find metal bands doing off the beaten path stuff, it’s Hypnotic Dirge. French avant-garde Verlies is their latest acquisition, in collaboration with Throats Productions. Le Domaine des Hommes was originally released independently through Bandcamp, but is now getting a proper, label-backed release.

Le Domaine des Hommes has an eclectic mix of genres within its black metal foundation. There are moments of unbridled black metal for sure (complete with furious blasts and shrieks) but the band often forays into less caustic territories. There are moments of jazz, post-rock, gothic, and even some traditional metal influences to be found within the seven songs presented here. “L’Absolution” has it’s fill of acoustic moments that move between more traditional black metal and spoken word, near-gothic metal moments. “Maladie” is full of twists and turns, going from post-rock to heavy death metal riffing towards the end of the track that leads into a tremolo picking assault with clean vocals. “Marcher Sur La Vide” has a more traditional metal feel to it, with catchy melodies within the guitarwork and the overall decrease in abrasion with this track.

The atmosphere switches between menacing and melancholy, and never does anything feel forced or contrived. Verlies moves between a number of strange bedfellows, but everything clicks. There’s a rawness and emotive quality to the album, where you aren’t sure where it’s going to take you next but you want to be along for the ride. This is an album that is more than the sum of its influences and parts.

Rating: 8/10

Reviewed by: Kyle McGinn