L'esprit Du Clan-Chapitre 5: Drama

So, for our second full length review of the day I bring you a Parisian band called L'esprit Du Clan. They are a modern hardcore act with a major thrash feel to them. This band epitomizes brutality, with heavy tones that even Meshuggah would be proud of. They have a big sound too, meaning that even on a low volume this band can be overpowering. The guitar work is very solid and extremely fast giving everything a high energy level. The same goes for the bass as it drags you into a brutal prison made of metal. I also find the drumming to be an awesome mix of standard hardcore with more thrash and death metal related influences. Finally, the twin singers have a huge power and when they are together it is impossible to stop them from dominating the music.

The guitar work is fast and vicious, you can not help but headbang to the powerful riffing. Taking a page out of Slayers book the twin guitarists have a brutally fast attack that never lets up. The bass work is very brutal and at times simply unforgettable. I would also like to point out that the breakdowns here are pretty much perfect. They get so slow and so heavy that its impossible to hate them. Even the biggest -core hater will have to find some merit in this bands incredibly brutal breakdowns. The best breakdown on the record is probably Belzebuth & Jesus but the others are all pretty brilliant. I would like to point out that they are very well fit into the record too. Rather than just showing up and being obnoxious the breakdowns are fit in very nicely to the songs. They add a lot to the music other than brutality. All in all the guitar work on this album is pretty awesome.

I really like the bass madness on tracks like Declaration. It shows the true speed that this guy is capable of. It can be pretty impressive at times to here him roll off 16^th notes for so long. Again, his role in the breakdowns is huge and none of the killer breakdowns would be the same without him. In addition to this he has a pretty nifty bass solo on Royaume de la Peur which is worth checking out. The drum playing is incredibly fast and adds a great thrash metal feel to a lot of the music. He has a certain craziness in his playing that reminds me a lot of the old school death metal bands like Carcass. His double bass drum is stellar and it really gets the heads banging. I can not complain about this guys playing. Its fun to hear somebody go so crazy at first and then get so powerful during the slower bits. In brief, the rhythm section of this band is pretty awesome, and very, very fast.

It makes everything seem a bit more grounded in the sound. The use of two different singers is another thing that makes this album great. The singers complement each other and make sure that the raw attack never lets up. One song that they do a great job bouncing off each other on is Fils de Personne where the singers compliment each other perfectly. The dynamic going on between the two of them actually reminds me a bit of hardcore punk vocal battles from the 80s. I'm assuming that's where the idea came from. There is an awesome anger to be had here and it raises the hair on your back to hear the sheer heaviness of the music. The lyrics are reasonably sophisticated but also in French. I find them to be pretty intelligent and show that these guys are a bit more than angry punks with a fondness for Satan. All in all, the vocals in this band are truly awesome.

In conclusion, Chapitre V Drama is one of the greatest hardcore records of the year. There is a little something for every death metal fan and there is no way you can not want all this awesome brutality. The guitar playing is fast and vicious, with a hardcore meets thrash edge that is hard to forget. Meanwhile the bass is very solid and keeps pushing no matter what. The drums are excellent and really come crashing through on this bands stellar breakdowns. The twin vocalists are true masters of the trade and get your heart pumping and your body ready to mosh. In addition the production is also pretty solid and ensures that nothing seems out of place. This record is a true testament to the excellence of one of the best French metal bands on the modern scene. So go check out this record, you will headbang until you die!

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