A while ago, I wrote about the album Brána Chladu, describing it as a brutal onslaught of classic death-doom. It’s an album that showcases what death-doom can be when not shifting to its more melodic cousin. Following this thought, it makes sense that death-doom would start to veer into black metal, incorporating elements of it into its music DNA. This is where the band Viande lies, with their newest album, Monument aux morts bringing blackened death-doom to the forefront.

Now, before the review proper, I want to discuss what ties something like Brána Chladu to Monument aux morts within the genre lineage. When I first listened to Monument aux morts, I immediately thought of Brána Chladu as an interesting starting point of blackened/blackened-esque death-doom. While Brána Chladu does incorporate elements of black metal, Viande takes it up another step, fully cementing itself into that grimy atmosphere that comes with the more dissonant aspects of death metal. Monument aux morts works because it follows the genre blueprint established by older releases from the past, but it doesn’t allow itself to become a pastiche. Although some people may think of Monument aux morts as part of the experimental/avant-garde line of death-doom that makes one think of Floating (given their Transcending Obscurity connection), I like to think that Viande may have taken inspiration from bands like Phlebotomized in their early albums or even Thantifaxath, who are known to push music past their boundaries.

What can I say? I really like my metal to be fucking weird sometimes.

Granted, when I think of “blackened” music, there is a certain stylistic choice that comes with that commitment: the music must sound ominous and must carry a certain amount of dread. It must also sound filthy, as if covered in layers of grime and sludge. Death-doom, at its core, sounds grimy, unpolished – something slightly cantankerous and perhaps filled to the brim with sludge. However, at the same time, it must still sound cohesive and intricate – it must still sound like music, after all. This is where Viande excels, as they incorporate that blackened style into their death-doom with an intense fury that blurs the dissonant with the harrowing. However, they also excel in making the music sound good. It’s not just an onslaught of riffs, screaming and what sounds like blast beats throughout the 52-minute runtime. The music is well composed and orchestrated, one of the easiest ways to get into blackened death-doom without jumping straight into the deep end. It also helps that it’s just incredibly fun (subjective). Now, blackened death-doom shouldn’t sound fun on paper, given all the stylistic choices that are made, but Monuments aux morts is a fun album underneath the grime and atmosphere. Tracks like “Monolith de chagrin” and “Cercueil de vase” have this groove that makes me want to get up and headbang so hard I break my neck. “Monolith de chagrin” may be the groovier of the two, but “Cercueil de vase” is just bleak death-doom goodness, complete with blast beats, syncopated rhythms, and an atmosphere that oozes fear and splendor. It also has this icy tone that peeks out, and that’s one of the best uses of that tone I have heard in a while.

Monuments aux morts makes me want to go back and listen to black metal again, albeit something akin to this rather than the atmospheric and avant-garde variations I have come to love.

It took a while to get to this point, but, just like Brána Chladu, I actually will want to revisit this album. There’s just something about this album that appeals to my little black metal-loving heart, and I want to hear music that sounds like this kind of death-doom. Monument aux morts succeeds in creating death-doom that feels vibrant and grim, and I had such a great time with this album. May it become part of my listening rotation for the rest of the year!

–Hera

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Monuments aux morts is available now on Transcending Obscurity Records. For more information on Viande, visit their official Facebook and Instagram pages.