ALBUM REVIEW: Siste Lys – Ingrina

“Siste Lys is based on a metaphorical tale of the geological and oceanic trials that life forms go through when faced with civilisational nightmares.” It sounds pretty complicated, some might even say pretentious. But essentially it refers to the second album from the French post-metal six-piece INGRINA. It follows their 2018 debut, Etter Lys, a deeply atmospheric and often crushing record. This album continues in much the same vein. It’s a sound the band describe as a “maelstrom of post-metal, shoegaze and post-hardcore” – that pretty much nails it. As a result, Siste Lys is sure to please fans of YEAR OF NO LIGHT, ALCEST and ENVY, among others.

INGRINA don’t waste any time in proving their intensity on Siste Lys. The band tear straight out the gate with a pummelling intro on opening track Jailers which also shows off some of their black metal influences. The song itself is an early highlight. It’s a lengthy, dynamic and atmospheric piece, featuring ghostly vocals and reverb-soaked guitars. It also sees the band’s two drummers quickly make their presence known. At points, the unnamed duo play in unison to devastatingly heavy effect. At others, they play off one another for an intricate and interesting sound. In all, this dual attack makes INGRINA sound absolutely massive.

After Jailers, the band offer up a couple of shorter tracks. Walls is a driving, tom-led piece, with more haunting vocals and distant guitars. This song features significantly less traditional ‘metal’ elements than it’s predecessor, but there’s no denying it maintains a real ominous heaviness nonetheless. Next, third track Casual injects a little more pace. At just over two minutes, it’s the shortest song on the record. It also hits pretty hard, drawing comparisons to a chillier version of GOJIRA‘s more recent output. Placing these shorter songs after the lengthy opener is a wise move on INGRINA‘s part. Not only do they do a good job of showing off the various strings to the band’s bow, they also help the album to flow well.

From here, the band return to longer, more thought-out fare with fourth track Stolidity. Like many on Siste Lys, this song shows off INGRINA‘s strong command of dynamics. It’s another intense, atmospheric piece, with the band unafraid to spend a good amount of time on an idea, whether that’s quiet or loud. It’s also often quite beautiful and melodic, something true of several moments on the record as a whole.

While it’s very much so far so good, Siste Lys ends on two particularly strong tracks. Now is a shorter heavier song similar to Casual. It tears along at quite the pace, with the two drummers bouncing off one another in an almost trance-inducing manner. The album closer Frozen is another longer and more dynamic track. It opens with quiet clean guitars and distant synths. Other band members gradually come in, building to a driving tom-led verse. Things become more sparse again just over halfway through, before building back to a final triumphant and noisy outro. It’s a powerful and well-chosen song to close out the record, although it does end a little abruptly.

In what seems a rare feat for post-metal, Siste Lys clocks in at just under 35 minutes. This feels like a good length in INGRINA‘s case. While the band are good at making long songs feel short, and manage to maintain interest throughout, one wonders if they could have gotten away with it being much longer. That isn’t to say this is a bad record by any stretch of the imagination. If anything it’s a good thing INGRINA know when to stop when they do. In doing so, they leave listeners satisfied, rather than overstuffed, with a creative and interesting record that’s definitely worth a listen for anyone who calls themselves a post-metal fan.

Rating: 7/10

Siste Lys is out now via Medication Time Records/À Tant Rêver Du Roi.

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