ALBUM REVIEW: Jehanne – Abduction

ABDUCTION are one of many hidden gems of France’s fantastic black metal scene. Forming back in 2006 and quickly releasing their debut EP Heights’ Shivers followed by their debut full-length, Une Ombre Régit Les Ombres, ABDUCTION swiftly garnered critical acclaim for their impressive, progressive take on blackened death metal, a style that they further developed over the course of their discography. Jehanne, the bands third full length and first concept record, chronicles the life of Joan of Arc with the music being every bit as interesting and enduring as its subject matter.

Aux loges les dames starts Jehanne on a high note. A slow burning intro built around clean, folky guitars and haunting chants quickly gives way to a razor sharp, speed-driven piece of black metal with soaring vocals, thunderous drumming and tight, ethereal guitars, providing an excellent benchmark for the rest of the record. Par ce cœur les lys fleurissent takes the powerful, focused black metal of the previous track and blends it with sublime guitars and epic vocals to craft a sprawling, monolithic slab of progressive black metal. An early album highlight. La chevauchée de la Loire sees ABDUCTION lean more towards their heavier elements, with intricate, cacophonous drums and slick, imaginative lead guitars adding a fierce aspect to the dramatic foundation. It gathers momentum and intensity as it progresses, with the music taking on a dizzying, feral edge as it proceeds, with only the bombastic vocal deliveries remaining constant.

Dieu en soit garde, a song with a much thicker sound and great, discordant hooks, again sees ABDUCTION‘s darker side come to the fore, with acerbic vocals, robust guitar hooks, interspersed with polished, hypnotic moments, and more subdued drumming making for a sound that is monstrous and immersive in equal measure. Acting more as an interlude, Foi en ses murs jusqu’aux rats breaks the album up nicely with glorious, angelic guitar melodies and a second half launches into a vast, cavernous black metal motif. Battue par les flots jamais ne sombre is perhaps the most straight forward affair on Jehanne with airy guitars, punishing drum parts, and vocals that shift seamlessly between caustic shrieks and authoritative invocations.

Très fidèle au Roi et au trône is absolutely saturated with riffs, and sees the guitar sound reach its most varied and experimental, with a variety of different playing styles and tones making for a punchy, diverse sound that keeps the listener enthralled, with a palpable ambience cloaking this song and injecting plenty of atmosphere to the proceedings. It’s a great, climactic number that stands head and shoulders above most of the music that has preceded it. Aux marches de Lorraine, with fantastic acoustics peppered throughout, is a fittingly powerful end to the record, with a huge sound and pounding, primal drum patterns giving this a massive sound from start to finish. The vocals, as always, are great, jumping from sonorous cleans to feral, venom-soaked howls and providing a stark contrast with the crisp and polished nature of the music.

Those expecting to hear a more traditional blackened death metal sound are likely to be disappointed; the guitars are decidedly lighter and utilise cleaner distortion, as well as more acoustic and borderline folk elements in the songwriting, which gives this whole album a much more varied and atmospheric sound. It’s hard not to appreciate this album, in particular the excellent vocals, which oftentimes carry the music. When comparing Jehanne with their previous record, À l’heure du crépuscule, it’s clear that ABDUCTION are going from strength to strength, and this album is a prime example of a brilliant band at the peak of their creative abilities.

Rating: 8/10

Jehanne is set for release April 29th via Finisterian Dead End. 

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