L'ordure à l'état pur

Peste Noire have for a long time shown little concern in opinions of the general audience. Falling generally under the umbrella of black metal, the band has exhibited a creative and often unorthodox approach to song writing; black metal riffs intersperse with traditional melodic rock soloing, audible, distinct bass lines, gentle acoustic interludes, and occasionally bursts of electronics. While the results of this have seen various levels over time, one can’t fault them for being generic photocopies – other than, perhaps, themselves. So when the new album was announced, there was certainly plenty of excitement, - and plenty of scepticism.

The music of Kommando Peste Noire is often as serious as it is comical. Beautiful melodic arrangements are typically recorded and played in such a way that they sound off, as if melting or rotting, leaving the harsher and more explosive passages to portray the picture of genuine chaos and disturbed mind. This remains true for L'Ordure à l'état Pur; opening with a shimmering guitar progression reminiscent slightly of Primordial, it proceeds to tear apart any conceptions of how this music should be played. Vitriolic staccato verse riffs and the acoustics mentioned earlier are interspersed with militant beats, electronic sections with an almost industrial feel, waltz-like interludes and, infrequently, soft soprano over the top of the more subdued chord work, all in the course of just over 50 minutes. The musical insanity and perversions are spearheaded by Famine’s depraved, unsettled vocals. Yet despite all of these elements, there are few – if, indeed, any – conflicting or jarring moments within the record. Everything is tied together seamlessly, so that absurd and normal don’t seem like such strange bedfellows all of a sudden. One gets the impression that behind all the messy tones and challenging ideas, there is a deliberate and calculated effort bent on leaving behind nothing but ruins.

For those who are already familiar with PN’s work, the concoction on offer is perhaps not too out of the ordinary – after all, what’s presented here is almost a trademark of their sound. However it is worth noting that the writing on this album has been a return to form, with more memorable compositions and a returned sense of creative freedom. Peste Noire have always been an unstable element, and it’s difficult to predict their future, but if their prior two full-lengths haven’t been quite your cup of tea and you long for the return of “La Sanie…” era, then this may be as close as they’ll ever come to it. Grandeur and filth are quite a pair.

‘La Sale Famine de Valfunde’, or Famine as he shall be known from here on in, is somewhat of an enigma. The only way to describe his take on black metal is ‘unique’. He’s done almost it all, from bone grindingly raw to thrashy and post-punk to epic neoclassical dirges to eventually now what I can only describe as ’Carnival Black Metal’. “L’Ordure A L’Etat Pur”, the fourth full length to emerge from Famine’s deranged mind couldn’t be further from the magnificent, almost romantic “La Sanie Des Siècles”. This will only further the criticism of those exasperated at the direction Famine has steered the band in since then. Admittedly a return to that album would certainly be well received, but Famine doesn’t appear to be a man for nostalgia, and to these ears it’s almost as if “L’Ordure...” is another ‘fuck you’ to those who try to dictate what Peste Noire should sound like. I don’t think Famine himself knows half the time what he wants them to sound like if this album is anything to go by. So what’s it like then? In short, one of those car crashes where everything is so mangled you can’t take your eyes off it.

The only traits that “L’Ordure...” keep in common with any of the previous Peste Noire albums is the huge amount of nationalism ever present throughout the course of their career. From borrowing various works from French poets to naming your album “Ballad Against the Enemies of France”, it’s something Famine is obviously hugely passionate about. And of course the fact it’s black metal, albeit very different from anything they’ve ever really done before. “Casse, Pêches, Fractures et Traditions” sets the ball rolling with some light acoustics and peculiar guitar work before we’re lashed with Famine’s vocals, which if you’ve not heard before can be hard to get your head around initially. They cite themselves as ‘Hooligan Black Metal’, and you can see why when listening to his crude throat scraping howls which at times sound like a drunken Frenchman throwing a tantrum. Initially it doesn’t sound too far off “Ballade...”, and contains some fantastic strong riffing before the freak show comes around; horns, trombones, accordions and various samples including Famine belching and a cockerel proceed to warp what initially sounded like a solid black metal tune into something which leaves you with that initial thought of wondering just what the fuck you listened to. If I had to make any sort of comparison at all I’d compare it to a black metal carnival on the banks of the Seine full of zombies. I even hear what almost sounds like a French Tom Waits in there at times. I realise that sounds a little absurd, then again so does half this album.

Now we come to the hard style-esque (yes that’s right) “Cochon Carotte et les Sœurs Crotte” with its incessant horrible thumping drum track and Famine’s demented wailing, it’s like a black metal equivalent to the music you’d hear at your local funfair. Only with lots of drugs.

“J’avais Rêvé du Nord” continues with the repressed pulsating electronics with added munitions sampling for around three minutes before transforming into an acoustic, folky passage with our ever enchanting Audrey Sylvain providing her alluring vocals as well as dove impersonations (that’s talent right there!). Eventually we get some welcome unashamed black metal after some medieval guitar work, thundering drums, razor wire riffing and slightly less bizarre vocals and the relief floods in that Famine still definitely has it. For a twenty minute song it’s incredibly diverse and engaging throughout, though monotony was never a problem for Peste Noire; one of the attributes that set them apart from the others in the first place.

The final two tracks are more straight forward with the anomalies less frequent, though Famine still sounds as if he’s shouting random incoherent nonsense than singing lyrics more often than not. “Sale Famine Von Valfoutre” still has that melodic yet piercing guitar tone and altogether unattached and chaotic attitude Peste Noire are known for while “La Condi Hu” for me is the highlight of the release. It’s shockingly laid back for Peste Noire never mind the album itself, sounding more like something Neige would release with its light picking coupled with heavily distorted melodic riffs, Famine’s rather distressed vocals and spoken word by Audrey. This showcases Famine’s song writing abilities at their very best, proving that when he’s not fucking around he can write some extremely stirring music.

Casual fans of black metal I would suggest avoiding this, for it’s not an easy listen. The first half of the album is basically a menagerie of deranged inspirations and obscenities that Famine has concocted in his bizarre mind and unleashed them onto a disc. The latter half is unique, but still unmistakably Peste Noire as we know them. At times it’s utterly fantastic and immersive, sardonic and brash; others will just end up giving you a headache and the rest will leave you perplexed, bemused and feeling a little bit used. You want a perfect representation of the album? Just look at the cover, their own amusing take on “Liberty Leading the People”. There’s a guy with a fucking toilet seat for a head for god’s sake.

It's no surprise that Peste Noire is a band that is inconsistent and is frequent to change. I was a huge fan ever since I first heard La Sanie. The following two albums were quite a change as I had unexpected, both of them different than each other and incorporating lots of new ideas while being a small shadow of its former self. I knew that this time coming into this album. It's just more apparent than ever here. Famine seems to have a great deal of passion for his home country, France, and this album is his expression and criticisms of modern day life there.

The first thing that strikes me off the bat on this album is the large use of samples, experimentation, and lots of industrial/electronic influence in some parts such as the beginning of J’avais rêvé du Nord. There are moments when I'm reminded of Finnish folk metal bands like Korpiklaani or Finntroll, even if only a little. The album is full of melody, acoustic guitars, female vocals, and oddities of all sorts that are being played in the background, making for an interesting listen no matter how many times you revisit the album. It's a shame I'm not a french native speaker because I'm sure the use of lyrics accompanied with the solos supposedly tell a tale yearning for an old France coupled with frustrations of today's society which would be interesting to hear. Not all is lost in the transition through albums though as there is still a ton of black metal on here. Each song has a handful of awesome riffs played by very skilled musicians. The drumming is very well done with lots of really fast tempos and blast beats that really offer a lot to focus on if you chose to do so. The guitars are hazy, but still clean. Nothing is foreshadowed or hard to listen to, and the bass is very audible and is mixed very well, having a loud booming thunder against the tinny guitars. A great job at adding to the experience. A lot of solos are to be expected here as the guitarist is fairly technical in his playing. The songwriting offers lots of progression and doesn't stick around one idea for too long.

Classic Famine vocals are back in action and are just as good as ever. Dare I say they are better this time around. He has amazing range and a perfect mix of rasp/shriek to his voice and it's just right for the music; it's never a dull moment when he is singing. There's also some very nice additions from female vocalist Audrey Sylvain (Amesoeurs fame) who is one of my personal favorites. Her voice is very somber, soft, and passionate in contrast with the pissed-off drunken sound that Famine gives off and makes for a nice mix between the two. One problem that I have is sometimes there can be too much sampling/experimentation. At times it comes off as tacky and almost feels like I'm being drowned in noises just to cover up non-existent or lazy songwriting. While it doesn't happen very often, it's enough to deduct points. Maybe it's what is intended, to come off as sounding so frustrated or insane to presumably(?) mock something, I'm not sure. To an English speaker like myself it leaves me unsatisfied and wanting more. The fact of the matter is I'm here for the music, not ideology. About halfway through J’avais rêvé du Nord is a very catchy, chanted chorus with a melodic riff that goes on for about 5 minutes that is one of the highlights on this album. It sounds very patriotic and proud, yet again this would be a nice time to know what they were saying, but that's my own personal problem.

Something a little different here is the length of each song that roughly averages 10 minutes. I don't feel like I ever feel the need to skip any of them out of boredom or disinterest. The songwriting is strong enough here that Famine does a good job at progressing and fleshing each song out to have its own personality and strengths that can easily be differentiated with each track and be comfortable with listening to them again and again in their entirety. This is where the experimentation is a good part. You sometimes get folksy, upbeat riffs, almost ska-like parts such as the first track, and other times sad, gloomy sections. If I had to classify this, which is no doubt very hard, I'd call it a nice piece of punky, experimental black metal. The last track on the album, La condi Hu, is a slow, almost depressive song. It wraps everything together as it crawls along, playing what sounds like post-rock with silent, clean chants before picking itself up with a hefty violin part. What comes after even sounds a little shoegazy. Here again the bass proves itself as an amazing asset to the album, providing a very clear booming sound underneath the destructive screams of Famine. No samples or electronic stuff on this track, just pure emotion.

This is a worthy addition to the Peste Noire discography. I enjoy it more than the last two releases and am happy to have picked it up. You should as well if you are a fan of Peste Noire or just want really original and innovative black metal.

La Sale Famine de Valfunde, frontman and multi-instrumentalist for French black metallers Peste Noire, has always been rather a nutcase with his vocal style, always making throaty rasps and harsh shrieks that sound outright painful. However he consistently makes up for his schizoid vocals by keeping a rather tight rein on his music, creating well-refined yet lo-fi black metal with a definitive folk side.

Apparently, that all ends with L'Ordure a l'etat Pur.

At first everything seems normal and in typical Peste style: an eerie fade-in with acoustic guitar and creepy voices. La Sale Famine's voice is familiarly gravelly. However, when one begins listen to 11-minute opener "Casse, Peches, Fractures et Traditions" in its entirety, you'll quickly notice the considerable change in Peste's sound. Across the album the Burzum-y lo-fi fuzz is completely absent and while folk elements were in wide use in prior Peste albums, the influence here is far less classical. The usual blackened riffing is replaced by something often strongly resembling gypsy punk (think if Gogol Bordello played black metal). The whole "circus metal" aesthetic shines through with "Casse" making heavy use of brass, including a minute-long Parisian interlude featuring trombone and accordion.

Although still black metal at its core, this album is rife with decidedly unblack material. The guitarwork is often atypical, following styles from post-punk to hard rock and occasionally dipping fingertips into doom and death metal. Dozens of other uneXpected oddities show up on L'Ordure. Samples ranging from chickens squawking to swamp noises to cart wheels creaking to a woman's horrified screams pop up, and often there are random people speaking in frantically spat French. Occasionally in "Cochon Carotte et les sours Crotte" an electronica beat comes in, instilling momentarily the fear that this will turn into a Nachtmystium record. The beginning of the 20-minute opus "J'avais reve du Nord" sounds like something written by cargo-shorts-wearing Pantera worshippers, complete with the sounds of cocking guns and eventually a shot firing. This somehow twists its way into a folk-y acoustic guitar solo and classical female singing before going full crushing neo-black metal. The last track on the album, "La condi hu", could easily be considered post-black metal.

Conceptually, everything seems to run amok on this album while La Sale Famine satisfies his oddball musical fancies. He seems to have taken his already strange regards for his home country from folksy to outright punk. The lyrics are worlds apart from those of Peste's first album, now obviously societally and politically driven rather than referencing stereotypical death, darkness and depression. The artwork displays this change most prominently, as the Renaissance sketches have been replaced by a graffitied version of Eugene Delacroix's "Liberty Leading the People", featuring a man resembling Zakk Wylde sucking down liquor and a figure with a toilet seat for a head.

"L'ordure a l'etat Pur" translates roughly to something like junk or refuse in a pure form. True to the title, La Sale Famine seems to have taken a sort of "Let's just throw all this bizarre shit in here." approach to creating this album, while not completely letting go of the metaphorical reins. L'Ordure a l'etat Pur still retains a consistent sense of coherency, and La Sale Famine ties up all his loose ends in a relatively neat package. Despite being quite distinctly bonkers and far more unpredictable than previous Peste Noire works, it never feels like it strays from its focus, nor does it lose the pure enjoyment factor. While probably not their best work, L'Ordure definitely has a leg up for their most interesting.

-originally written for www.sputnikmusic.com

Peste Noire has always been a strange band. I have never been one-hundred percent into this band, but I will say that I think their first album, La Sanie des Siècles - Panégyrique de la Dégénérescence is a must have for any metal fan, not to mention the black metal enthusiast. They have always had that dark and twisted side to their music, much thanks to Famine, who always sounds like he is going to be sick when he sings. He seriously sounds like he is in agony. His vocals are fantastic, which is part of the reason the name "Peste Noire" has always stuck with me. To be honest, I have never really liked french black metal. Les Legiones Noires have always been really boring to me and I never really liked the french language, but this band does it right. It's just something about them that captivates me. This record could be contender for best black metal album of the year.

This record is by far the weirdest of any of their releases. It is the first to feature ex-Amesoeurs singer, Audrey Sylvain. She has one of the most beautiful singing voices and she has always captivated me with her screams and melodies. It is really strange that when Neige left, they grabbed her (I guess they really like the vocals of Amesoeurs...). It made me happy though, when I heard L'Ordure à l'état Pur, I was very thankful that it wasn't another Ballade cuntre lo Anemi Francor, because to be honest, that record almost turned me off of them for good.

This record, as I said, was very weird. It had industrial influences, it had some french folk melodies and it had opera-esque vocals, so it drew influence from so many aspects of music. Audrey and Famine really fed off each other, switching you from being sick and angry to being sad and lethargic. It was so amazing that they could switch so well between the vocal types. The parts in J’avais rêvé du Nord where the two of them harmonized were the best parts of the album.

To be honest, the industrial and electronic influence was a bit weird...I mean, I understand that electronic drum beats are getting more and more common (thank you, Morbid fucking Angel...), but I didn't expect a black metal band, especially this one, to jump on the band wagon. I thought it was a bit weird, but I think it worked, especially with the super-distorted guitars. It felt almost like a black metal Godflesh with opera-esque vocals in some parts. I loved it. I thought it was so interesting and a good way for a band to experiment.

As I said, this record is probably one of the best records to come out this year in black metal. I thought that not only did they switch from their sad and depressing stuff to their angry sounds, but they also flowed well into drunken chanting and folky melodies very well. The industrial influence just enhanced the mix, especially with the stops and hard-hitting symbol crashes. It's one way to see where black metal is going, and honestly, I can't wait to hear more.

While Peste Noire effectively reinvents itself with every album, there is a remarkable consistency to be found in the track record of this controversial black metal band. Ever since the Frenchies released 'Folkfuck Folie' in 2007 and abandoned the rather orthodox (though not any less brilliant) black metal they had played up until then, the band seems to succeed in consistently splitting the fanbase in two with every new release. The outspoken and cynical frontman Famine has, in one of his rare interviews, even admitted that this was precisely the aim of Folkfuck Folie. According to him, this successor to the band’s 2006 debut album 'La Sanie des siècles – Panégyrique de la dégénérescence' was a successful attempt at chasing away all the “trendies”. The third album, 'Ballade cuntre lo Anemi francor' (2009), consciously or not, continued this trend and managed to surprise everyone with its satirical mix of elementary black metal and rancid rock ‘n’ roll.

Ironically, the recently released 'L’Ordure à l’état Pur' is not very surprising in this respect, exactly because it sees the band head into an entirely new direction yet again. The result is an album that is near impossible to classify genre-wise and hard to compare to the style of any other band. This fourth full-length is still a typical Peste Noire album, though, because despite some seemingly farfetched elements ranging from dubstep beats to French chansons and gypsy music, 'L’Ordure à l’état Pur' still offers bucketloads of the band’s characteristic French cynism, which sardonically yet subtly ridicules absolutely everything.

From the very first song, not only the musical but also the lyrical conventions of the black metal genre are crushed beneath Famine’s Dr Martens boots. The lyrics don’t resort to stereotypical, prepubescent wailing about drawing pentagrams or hiking through the forest after dusk, but instead provide a near light-hearted reference to the hate for France and its inhabitants: “Salut c’est nous! Les durs de la France / Nourris au vin, au Cochonou / Les seuls toujours pas à genoux / Les gros chauvins bouffeurs d’ail rance" (roughly: “Hey, it’s us! The strong ones of France / Nourished on wine and pig sausage / The only ones not yet on their knees / The big, chauvinist eaters of disgusting garlic”). It doesn’t take long before this mocking attitude starts being reflected by the music, when, during a rather long interlude, an accordeon takes us to the ridiculously stereotypical France that you always see in French cheese commercials.

This immediately raises the point that it can be very handy to at least know some high school French, as the true meaning and character of the music are bound to fly over the heads of people who haven’t a clue what the lyrics are about. As such, it is possible that some reviews will place the experimental tendencies of the music outside of their context, seeing as it is tempting to write them off as experimenting for the sake of it, or being ‘cooky’ under the monniker of artistic freedom or being 'avant-garde'. And even though intentional weirdness may very well be part of what made this album so batshit insane, there is a meaning behind most of it. A meaning that might even be a tad more serious than the comical character of the most songs would, at first, suggest.

The song 'Cochon Carotte et les sœurs Crotte', for example, utilises tons of electronical elements, with Famine even going as far as incorporating dubstep beats. However, this should not be seen as a vain attempt to add some creativity to the usual formula by means of resorting to industrial elements (like the new, desastrous Morbid Angel album, for example). In the case of Peste Noire, the reason behind using these elements is of a somewhat opportunistic nature, for in 'Cochon Carotte et les sœurs Crotte', they refer to the present-day street culture of France. The lyrics reflect this and contain a plethora of intentional spelling mistakes, SMS-style language and the bizarre anti-feminine attitude that one would identify with street culture. The song is effectively parodising modern French street culture, an attitude that seems to refer to an obviously cynical quote from the (legendary) interview with Famine on Diabolical Conquest: “I am very fond of nihilist rap with lyrics dealing with black supremacy and the white sexual slave trade, now that’s my kind of thing.” The title of the album, which roughly translates as “Garbage in its pure state”, could not have been more appropiate.

In the abovementioned interview, Famine’s contempt towards southern, Mediterranean culture and his subsequent preference for the cold northern cultural hemisphere were also discussed. This philosophy serves as the main theme for the 20 minute epic 'J’avais rêvé du Nord'. Like the previous track, this song starts with an electronic beat and even features samples of gunshots, giving the first few minutes of the composition a sleazy industrial touch. Rapidly enough, though, the band starts playing a borderline cheesy chanson-inspired chorus before switching to the more traditional black metal style that Peste Noire became ‘famous’ for. Here, too, the relation between the lyrics and the music is rather clear, seeing as the initial description of the hated Mediterranean culture is accompanied by industrial beats, gun shots and fragments from news reports about anti-white racists, while the segment about the ‘pure’ northern culture is supported musically by black metal, a genre that is of course mainly identified with Northern Europe. It’s almost as if the song, by invoking the black metal, cleanses itself of the undesirable elements that are described initially. It’s another example of the intricate synchrony between lyrics and music that, while making this album so special, can easily be missed if you fail to understand the lyrics, or at least the concept of the band. Consequently, a song like the aforementioned 'Carotte et les sœurs Crotte' could indeed seem like superficial experimentation.

While the majority of the 5 songs on this 60-minute long album are characterised by a healthy dose of cheerful cynism like only the French can deliver, more research and listening will reveal that the concept of light-hearted nationalism present on 'Ballade cuntre lo Anemi francor' has been expanded on this album to a point where there’s a pretty serious undercurrent gradually seeping through the fundament of carnavalesque cynism. It is not without reason that, in the booklet, the picture that accompanies the lyrics of 'J’avais rêvé du Nord' features two gorrillas (one of them with a golden dollar sign hanging around his neck) standing on a sinking ship. “France of the 21st century“, the description of the same picture on the record label’s website reads. It has been obvious for a while that Peste Noire is, both conceptually and ideologically, not too fond of the modern age. Previously, though, this dislike was mainly voiced through (twisted) odes to the medieval times. Despite some of the subtlety, L’Ordure à l’état Pur takes a more direct approach and has frontman Famine pointing out rather specifically what he thinks is wrong with the modern world. Fortunately, this ‘social criticism’ (in lack of a less tainted and, dare I say, moronic term) is delivered without resorting to the clichés often invoked by today’s politically correct punk bands that kick against the system while almost simultaneously whoring themselves out to MTV or participating in commercials “because it’s easy money“. Peste Noire opts for genuine lyrical provocation by incorporating nationalist and antirepublican (“je suis un fist dans le cul de Marianne” / “I am a fist in the ass of Marianne“), while at the same time breaking nearly every musical convention of the paradoxically orthodox black metal scene. The odds of Peste Noire actually offending a fair amount of people are thus considerably higher than those of your random (quasi) anti-authoritarian punk band that limits itself to the safe territory of angsty one-size-fits-all whining that just about any confused teeny bopper could identify himself with. An indication of the truth in this statement has already been provided generously by quite a few reviewers of this album and previous Peste Noire releases, and the laughable politically correct attitude with which they try to distance themselves from Famine’s uncompromising attitude and controversial views, even implying that they are not in the least interwoven with his music.

The increased profoundness of Peste Noire’s disgust towards the modern age is the most clearly expressed on the album’s closer, 'La condi hu' (i.e. La condition humaine / The condition/state of man). Lyrically, this song starts out with the listing of all kinds of horrid diseases, such as aids, typhus and malaria. Later in the song, phenomenon such as MTV, Big Brother, the Republic and even humanity as a whole are added to the list of unpleasantries. Near the end of the song, Audrey S. reads out loud what seems to be a description of what aids does to the body, with its relation to the present state of the world of course not being difficult to imagine given the band’s perception of it. As a result, the music carries a significantly darker, almost desperate atmosphere, which stands in shrewd contrast with the clownesque free-spiritedness that dominates most of the earlier songs.

On 'La condi hu' it is also confirmed that Peste Noire has at its disposition some very capable musicians. Especially in this song the (fretless) bass, played by the returned Indria (he was absent on 'Ballade'), is used with an amount of creativity that is uncommon in the extremer branches of metal music. Indria’s authentic style, which is above all characterised by a high amount of different variations on the same theme and the avid use of high notes, was already present on previous albums (just listen to the opening riff of 'La Fin del Secle'), but on 'La condi hu' it really becomes apparent that we are dealing with a rather talented bass player here. This is also promoted by the crystal clear production of 'L’Ordure' in comparison to 'Ballade'.

Naturally, however, the star of the show is frontman Famine, who, being the band’s main (or rather, only) driving force, is yet again responsible for all of the album’s lyrics and compositions. Apart from that, he really proves more than ever that he’s one of the best vocalists of the genre, as he manages to put an extraordinary amount of character and passion in his voice, something which still seems to be a problem for a lot of black metal singers (Celestia, anyone?). Because of this, the aforementioned carnavalesque elements and the overall insane nature of the album are transmitted all the better. As expected, Famine’s typical guitar work is a joy yet again, both in composition and performance. And while I could dedicate several more paragraphs to this, it will suffice to say that there’s little you can do wrong if you manage to play a black metal riff over a dubstep beat.

As is usual with Peste Noire albums, 'L’Ordure à l’état Pur' has a few session contributions as well. Audrey S. is back for the clean vocal parts, and the new drummer, who is credited under the noble title Vicomte Chtedire de Kroumpadis takes a rather simple but effective approach that is not too different from Winterhalter’s work on the first two albums. There are also quite a few other contributions in the areas of backing vocals and session instruments such as the accordeon and the trombone, and Famine himself even plays the dulcimer, a traditional string instrument from the Appalachians. All in all, the music on this album comes across as a lot more professional than before. It was no secret that Peste Noire is and has been home to some talented musicians, but the intentional simplicity and sloppiness on especially the last two albums occasionally managed to mislead some of the less aware listeners in this respect.

Despite the seemingly fragmented structure of some of the compositions, the biggest quality of 'L’Ordure à l’état Pur' is still its completeness and consistency. The music and lyrics go hand in hand, the compositions are very strong and the performance and band concept are as solid as a rock. Even the CD box aptly reflects the nature of the album. The booklet, for example, is full of idiotic band photos and brilliant illustrations, varying from pest doctors with dicks for noses to a combination of the logo of the far right party Front National and a bastardised version of the cow mascot of cheese brand La Vache qui rit, with the acronym ‘FN’ being replaced by ‘PN’. In reference to the stereotypically French elements present on the album, the CD has a layout akin to that of a random French cheese brand, giving the term ‘cheesy’ a whole new meaning.

'L’Ordure à l’état Pur' is the ultimate evidence that an album can (or should) be so much more than an arbitrary collection of MP3s on a computer. This is exactly why at least a chunk of the reviews you’ll find on the internet will not be sincere or to be taken seriously. If you download the album and give it 3 spins before you voice your opinion, you will never be able to capture the essence of the music, or rather the album. Contrarily, this means that the more you delve into this album, the more appreciation you will likely harvest for the work in question. (Musical) Purists will perhaps criticise Peste Noire for its unorthodox approach, but let us not forget that the original intention of black metal was to break all conventions, both musically and socially. And in this respect, Peste Noire is the most ‘true’ of all modern bands in the genre.

(originally written for: http://degtyarov.wordpress.com)

Peste Noire’s discography is full of odd and quirky moments you never thought you would hear in a black metal recording. Front man and songwriter DJ Famine is like a cook that is willing to throw anything into the stew at least once just to see the look on the customer’s face. Surprisingly, this technique has often led to original and entertaining songs. With “L'ordure À L'état Pur” Peste Noire push their eccentricity to the limit, overloading the album with everything from accordions to electro beats to medieval madrigals and everything in between. However, little time seems to have been spent on considering how to put all these pieces together. The vast array of elements is whimsically tossed together in massive songs ranging from 8-20 minutes, leading to an erratic and disjointed album.

First, let’s look at the good news. The opening track, “Casse, Pêches, Fractures et Traditions” is easily one of the best songs Peste Noire has ever recorded. It is the only song on the album that is aesthetically and musically coherent, but more importantly, it is just a lot of fun. Black metal is fused with punk rock and French street music (accordion and trumpet included) to create a wild, playful and spirited song. If Gogol Bordello decided to go metal, it would probably sound a lot like this.

Unfortunately, the other tracks lack the songwriting and coherence of the opener, wondering from one style to the next, often without rhyme or reason. Take the twenty minute “J’avais Rêvé du Nord”. The first three minutes are composed of a dull, plodding riff peppered with sounds of sirens and guns. Then out of nowhere, the music turns into a beautiful acoustic folk with Audrey Sylvain’s excellent soprano vocals. What follows is about a ten minutes of epic, dramatic music that fluidly shifts between acoustic and metallic passages. However, instead of ending, the song continues with six minutes of dark, militant black metal, which is quite good, but in no way fits in with what came before. In sum, “J’avais Rêvé du Nord” is like three totally different songs mushed together.

Even more problematic than the composition is the fluctuation in the quality of the riffs. When Peste Noire isn’t surprising the listener with musical oddities, one often finds uninspired passages of metal. For example, the core riffs of “Cochon Carotte et Les Sœurs Crotte” and “Sale Famine Von Valfoutre” are quite innocuous. No matter how many horns, electro beats and audio samples Peste Noire throw on their albums, they are still a metal band; if the riffs are not up to par then all the oddities are reduced to smoke and mirrors hiding subpar black metal.

In general, long songs do not accentuate Peste Noire’s strengths. It takes a very good songwriter to make songs of this length work. While DJ Famine can piece together a few solid riffs into a kick ass cut of black metal, he lacks the craft and subtly to write the kinds of epics attempted on “L'Ordure à l'état Pur”. Still, there are enough interesting moments scattered throughout the album that any Peste Noire fan should give it a listen. Just don’t be shy to press the fast forward button.

(Originally written for http://listenwell-nocturnal.blogspot.com/)

While its song structures prove more epic and substantial than those of Peste Noire's last effort, Ballade cuntre lo Anemi Francor, their latest album L'Ordure a L'etat Pur is every bit as eccentric and scatterbrained as nearly anything the French oddity has produced to date. Famine, or shall I say La Sale Famine de Valfunde has crafted another startling absurdity, this time through his own new imprint 'La Mesnie Herlequin', for which he's also managing a record store and 'zine. As usual, expect the unexpected as you're listening through this, for while the prior album might have shown some degree of restraint in its core, black metallic-inclined tracks, this albums lacks the uncanny vignettes of its precursor, incorporate the abstract and versatile directly into the loaded, bizarre nationalist hymns.

Strange as it might seem, my favorite constituent within a Peste Noire album is ever the guitar tone, and I was certainly not unsatisfied with the natural, humble authenticity of the riffing in "Casse, Pêches, Fractures et Traditions" or closer "La condi hu". A solid balance of distortion, fuzz and creativity. As much as the band might seem to get off on its own ridiculous parameters, its the actual metal that shines. However, this album goes all over the place, both in its more overt bastardizations of genre, like the cheesy techno beat fueled "Cochon Carotte et les sœurs Crotte" with its eerie sampled perversions and Famine's rank howlings; or the first segment of "J’avais rêvé du Nord"and its pulsing ghetto beat. What's fascinating is that the elements which should absolutely destroy any semblance of sanity or seriousness are rather fluid alongside the metallurgy. This is a man capable of selling you any used lemon on the lot, because he's just that good of a composer of these dynamic and laughable contrasts.

I do feel that some of the five pieces here feel 'padded', a bit too thick with ideas for their own good. It's interesting to explore a 10-20 minute tune when you're constantly being bombarded with such surprises (rhythmic bird calls? They're in here), but some of the actual riffing suffers. I greatly preferred "Casse...", "La condi hu" and "Sale famine von Valfoutre" to the other two tracks, but there are bits of each that stand out against the sum experience. Also, the production to this album is quite cleaner than any of the prior full-lengths. Not exactly a drawback, per se, but if you fancied the raw aesthetics of Ballade cuntre lo Anemi Francor (which I loved), then you might be a little reserved. I can't say I enjoyed this quite so much as the last two records, but nonetheless its a bastion of risks that yet again proves its worth, that Famine is one of the most distinct voices upon the European black metal landscape. He will continue to be loathed or adulated based on the listener's relative political and social beliefs, but there's simply no denying the charisma he infuses into his releases. L'Ordure a L'etat Pur might not have entirely stuck so glue-like to my ears and conscience as its predecessor, but I can promise that its a trip you will not be taking elsewhere.

-autothrall
http://www.fromthedustreturned.com