So earlier this summer, I got 2 Quebec Black Metal releases to review from Sepulchral Productions, both beginning with ‘S’, both featuring members of other Quebec bands and both being pretty good, atmospheric black metal. First up was Sombre Heritage and the one-man debut Alpha Ursae Minoris, which is pretty solid, and then this debut from Serment (‘Oath’) which is Moribond of the excellent Forteresse.
Personally, this is the better of the 2 releases, at least to these ears, as it delivers an epic, rousing, sweeping, keyboard filled 90s second melodic wave black metal, not dissimilar to Moribund’s other band, but with more keyboards.
The 4 songs and two bookend instrumentals deliver triumphant French spoken anthems of winter, Quebecian legends and such with tremolo-picked riffs, shrill vocals and some very cool synths.
After the opening “Ouverture”, you get the majestic, largely mid paced jaunt of “Sonne, le glas funèbre”, which to be honest isn’t that attention-grabbing. But the next track, “Par-delà collines et rivières” really ups the ante and melodic urgency with a swirling, melodic ice storm of uplifting blasting. “Flamme hivernale” mixes things up a bit with both mid paced and more urgent parts before “Avant que ne meure la gloire” speeds things up again with majestic intensity, with some truly rousing keys.
The keyboards are definitely the dominant factor of the music creating a frosty, windswept atmosphere that takes you to snow-covered peaks of the Laurentides, especially instrumental closer ” Hymne pour la patrie”, as the guitar are a brittle, almost background noise, and the bass is barely audible.
Another addition to 2020s killer black metal releases, Serment look to be yet another French Canadian black metal band that will be a rising star in the growing scene.
