For Those Aboot to Rock: A Countdown to Canada with Quebec's thriving black metal scene

By: Conor O’Dea

Not without irony, given the deeply separatist feelings of some in our belle province - for Canada Day, I want to celebrate the unique voice of Quebec's black metal scene by acknowledging the amazing talent behind some recent musical projects. Inarguably one of the best black metal scenes in the world, Quebec has given us the fury of black metallers such as Forteresse, Monarque, Gris and others. This is a quick list of some newer and perhaps slightly less well known bands that are doing amazing work in the genre.

Délétère

Around since 2009, though their first full length, “Les heures de la peste”, came out in 2015. Brutal, raw, arcane and haunting. Their 2017 EP, “Per Aspera ad Pestilentiam”, is a riff-intensive, vocally dynamic tour-de-force, and is out now via Sepulchral Productions:

Ossuaire

Fantastic band that I was lucky enough to see in April. “La Diatribe Infernale” came out late last year on Productions Haineuses and Morbid Moon. Traditionalist in all the right ways, occult-tinged, and dark as an unearthed tomb

Sanctuaire

Side project of the mastermind behind Monarque, Sanctuaire's music is an excellent hybrid of pagan-influenced black metal and nature-inspired ambient. 2016's “Le Sang sur L'acier”, released via Les Productions Hérétiques, is like the wild hunt incarnate; savage and soaring

Cantique Lépreux

Formed in 2014. Icy black metal with streams of epic melodicism. Their debut, “Cendres Célestes”, was released on Eisenwald in 2016 and is a masterpiece:

Tsar Tsangra

Probably a push to classify these guys under metal noir quebecois, but Slavic Quebecers Tsar Stangra just released their first full length in late May. Very different from the above, bringing in a wider range of orchestration, but well worth the listen:

Ossuaire - Le Troubadour Necrophageophile Demo (Review)

Album Type: Demo CS

Date Released: 1/2/2015

Label: Nihilistic Holocaust

‘Le Troubadour Necrophageophile’ Demo tape track listing:

1). ‘L'Eveil des Morts’ (intro)

2). ‘Le Troubadour Necrophageophile’

3). Le Fléau

4). ‘Necrofistum Prima Nocte’

5). ‘Trolla infectum Phallus’

Review

‘L'Eveil des Morts’ (intro) kicks off this demo tape re-release from French death metallers, Ossuaire  and I can safely say that up until I received this record, I had never heard of them.  It's dark, twisted and very deathly.  The sound is way above that of death metal demo tapes I listened to in the 90's (albeit in MP3 form). Modern technology, eh? The band conjures a distinctly old school atmosphere- right down to the odd snare sound and overdubbed leads. Good quality death metal this surely is.

‘Le Troubadour Necrophageophile’ is wickedly fast with its blast beats and veritable maelstrom of noise.  ‘Le Fleau’ follows a sound effect laden outro with chugging fury. This is great stuff- real death like early Morbid Angel, perhaps, with more unusual reference points such as early Samael (to my ears, anyway). The tempo is kept in check and the track brings real menace and grinding fury to proceedings.

‘Necrofistum Prima Nocte’ is an all out assault with thrashing riffs and tank-like rolling bass drums. The band blasts on this one too, but this is not a tech-death affair. Old school all the way in sound and approach, but the quality is way above what you would expect from a demo.

‘Trolla infectum Phallus’ gives us a horrible song title and an opening that is atonal but almost Deicide like in the vocal pattern and rhythms- great, because I love Deicide!

So, what you get is five tracks of old school, leather clad death metal. Cracking stuff.

Words by: Richard Maw

You can pick up a copy here

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