Locus Noir – Shadow Sun
Locus Noir – Shadow Sun
Listenable Records
Release Date: 27/02/26
Review by Jon Deaux
7.5 / 10
Shadow Sun doesn’t just cast a shadow, it does it with attitude. It comes in black and checks its reflection in a broken mirror and deems itself sufficiently miserable to continue. Locus Noir keeps the musical element in the foreground of the ceremony, which is a good thing, because otherwise, you would sink into self-parody like a fog machine during a fire alarm test.
Thankfully, the riffs arrive right on cue and tariffed for the occasion. Claire Genoud’s guitars give the record just the right measure of shine and heft – moving from the polished finesse of Post-Punk to the dark weight of Gothic Metal with the same assured finesse as someone with the knack of knowing just when to whisper and when to shatter the coffin lid with the full weight of foreboding intent. This is the sound of brooding with maximum efficiency.
It’s the bass work that really gets the job done. Ales is the designated driver of despair, the anchor to the rest of the band’s dramatic posturing. It’s melodic, aggressive, and very much cognizant of the fact that, in gothic rock, the bass is not just an instrument—it’s a personality disorder. Ben Marmier’s drums are determinedly not about overwrought drama, instead favoring ritualistically measured tempo and carefully considered weight. No unnecessary solos here, just the steady crunch of proof.
It’s in Ben DMN’s vocal delivery where the dark humor of the album becomes really apparent. He sings with the passion of a man who understands exactly how much of an utter joke all of this is and how, despite its ridiculousness, it’s also deeply profound—and, importantly, how he isn’t budging an inch on this. The vocal melodies push the act towards theatricality but never quite into camp, walking that fine line of the gothic where you can be as melodramatic as you want as long as you’re serious.
The tracklist is like a journey through your own mistakes in emotional order. ‘Walpurgisnacht 1996’ starts the album like a memory you wished therapy erased. ‘Cemetery Youth’ is the romanticization of the sort of youth that included excessive eyeliner but insufficient sleep. ‘A Dismal Romance’ is refreshingly upfront: no character change, only two people passionately ruining each other for the sake of a good chord progression.
‘She Haunts the Night’ and ‘Thicker Than Darkness Itself’ become even heavier in the Gothic Metal direction, demonstrating that the duo has no trouble going heavy without, say, drowning all in sonic quicksand. ‘In Despair We Trust’ could well be the mission statement of the album—a serious, hook-laden, word-dizzy word-spew that communicates its fanatical ideas with the straightest, most seriously impassive face possible. ‘Death, That Elusive Mistress’ (Unlike my usual mistress it turns out that APPLES isn’t her chosen safeword) proudly sports its best Heavy Metal monogram, its punchline being the seriousness the duo brings to the punch.
‘Full Moon Theri-anthropy’ is the ultimate gothic self-consciousness. On paper, it’s one gimmick short of a parody; in practice, it proudly paces forward with fang bared, challenging you to disagree. And then there’s the Lady Gaga cover. This is the ultimate darkness alchemy. ‘Marry the Night’ is transformed into a slow-burning darkness opus devoid of polish and polishable parts in favor of darkness itself—that is, being in a minor key.
The final bonus track, ‘How Harsh Is the Light of Dawn’ feels like the next morning, after all the radical things this record celebrates, with its darker tone, heavier in an altogether different way, slightly annoyed that the world still exists, that the sun still shines.
The thing that makes Shadow Sun so good is its realization that all along, the gothic music has had an undercurrent joke within it. The tragedy itself is serious, the emotions are genuine, but inevitably comes the realization that it’s all taking itself too seriously. Rather than the music being undercut with the joke, Locus Noir honed it to be serious, as well as funny.
The night is long, the mood is heavy, and yes—you’re allowed to smirk in the candlelight.
For fans of Type o Negative, The Sisters of Mercy, Lacuna Coil, Katatonia, Paradise Lost.
TRACKLISTING:
01. Walpurgisnacht 1996
02. Shadow Sun
03. Cemetery Youth (track featuring Ben Christo of The Sisters of Mercy/Diamond Black)
04. A Dismal Romance
05. She Haunts the Night
06. Thicker Than Darkness Itself
07. In Despair We Trust
08. Death, That Elusive Mistress
09. Hollow
10. Full Moon Therianthropy
11. Reburial
Bonus tracks:
12. Marry the Night (Lady Gaga cover)
13. How Harsh is the Light of Dawn
LINKS:
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