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DÉCEMBRE NOIR
A Discouraged Believer

FDA Rekotz (2014)
Rating: 6.5/10

Germany’s Décembre Noir are new on me; a doom-laden quintet that combines a My Dying Bride-style of grief-stricken glumness with death metal elements.

The band is fronted by Lars who has a gruff approach to proceedings; his vocals also flirt with clearer narration to give the opus a sombre edge. Musically, the band are rather tuneful as they express an air of the melancholic in the aching guitar tones of Sebastian and Martin, who do their best to connect a traditional metal rumble with gloomier aspects. Kevin provides the fluent percussion, which walks hand in hand with Mike’s robust bass.

As a unit, Décembre Noir are not the heaviest band you’ll hear this year. In fact, if anything, it is the vocal growls which supply the weight on this seven-track debut which opens with the accessible yet rainy funereal strains of the title track. The good thing of course about doom metal is that there are many avenues to explore, so when there is an abundance of melody it still works within the rain-soaked atmosphere. Rarely does ‘A Discouraged Believer’ plod to the point of boredom, and as it closes to a soggy march of whining guitar and nodding drum I’m finding myself enchanted by the expression of Décembre Noir.

‘Thorns’ begins with a sweeping acoustic, dream-like sequence which is accompanied by subtle bass and drum tip-toe before a chugging riff provides extra menace. ‘Thorns’ has more in common with death metal as it traipses through the mire and hints at black metal aesthetics with a scathing segment of tight, abrasive riffing.

Sadly though, there is something all too unremarkable about this opus – the album becomes a sort of bog-standard doom metal release lacking the meat and fire to suffocate the listener. The likes of ‘The Forsaken Earth’ have an air of familiarity as they begin with subtle acoustics before attempting a mighty yawn of soiled death metal.

There are areas of this ruinous platter which hint at early Paradise Lost, but again the music rarely matches the conviction of the earthy vocals. ‘Décembre Noir’ for instance introduces itself with a slow, pensive guitar and the militant drum prod gives the track a traditional metal feel. The narration is effective, but rarely does it provide a true air of the melancholic as the band seem to opt for simplistic measures, meaning that the record lacks depth in spite of its fluency.

A Discouraged Believer is an album that is easy to get into, but one which doesn’t really stay with the listener for long. The crushing aspect that seems to litter so many quality doom / death metal albums seems bereft here, and while tracks such as ‘Stowaway’ are well crafted they lack the bite and sinister prowess to hit home. Although I enjoyed the clammy groans of closer ‘Escape To The Sun’, I came away from Décembre Noir’s debut album feeling a tad empty but not fully discouraged, and hope that their next offering comes with added potency.

Neil Arnold

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