Zeal & Ardor – GRIEF
Zeal and Ardor – GREIF
Redacted GmbH
Release Date: 23/08/2024
Running Time: 42:00
Review by Rory Bentley
9.5/10
The last Zeal and Ardor album, 2022’s self-titled opus, was nothing short of incredible. Manuel Gagneux’s thrilling mix of Blues, chain gang music, Gospel, Electronica and Black Metal has always been a highlight of the release calendar ever since the groundbreaking “Devil Is Fine” blew our collective heads back in 2017; but Lord almighty did the project really hit its stride on the third full length.
Despite loving every release, there were plenty of times in the earlier days where I was willing to give genre-mashing songs that didn’t quite gel points for having a go, rather than being truly great compositions. These noble near-misses gradually become scarcer the further forward one goes with the band’s catalogue, with the project absorbing and blending its disparate, mutant influences into a coherent utterly unique sound. “GREIF” sees this trajectory continue with Zeal and Ardor’s most accessible material to date. But don’t worry- it’s still mental in all the right places!
The eerie, whistled birdsong motif that crops up on ‘the bird, the Lion and the Wildkin’ before Manuel’s weathered, soulful croon segues in is the perfect example of this cohesion as the macabre melody makes a bolder, brasher appearance later on with full band backing. It’s also the perfect intro to the dynamic, triumphant ‘Fend You Off’, which really explodes in the chorus as Marc Obrist and Denis Wagner, present as ghostly gospel singers in the live show, add their rich vocal tones to the studio for the first time. Manuel has let his live band into the creative process this time around and this is obvious from the off, with “GREIF” having a more organic, live sound than previous releases.
Despite being peppered with skittering beats, tremolo picking and Industrial grit, ‘Kilnova’ is a great example of the album’s strength of making the avant garde accessible. All of these disparate elements are wrangled together, melted down and thrown back out of the speakers like the most natural thing in the world. Likewise the gut-wrenching ‘are you the only one now’ manages to strike the balance between Radiohead and Darkthrone with a whole load of twisted Soul thrown on top. Beautifully evocative one moment and brutally save the next, then both at the same time!
Other standouts (relatively speaking- this is an album full of standouts) include the wonky, discordant Blues freakout of ‘Disease’, which starts off relatively conventional swaggering rocker but adds angular Krautrock vibes as the song gradually mutates. Those wanting something more evil and sinister, however will find much to enjoy in the Nine Inch Nails-esque, lurching menace of ‘Clawing Out’ that sits somewhere between peak “The Fragile” and a broken fairground ride.
Closing with the ripping Gospel by way of Emperor beast of ‘Hide in Shade’, which reprises that whistled into I mentioned earlier, and the gorgeous ‘to my ilk’ which packs more drama into 2 and a half minutes than entire film scores, this is another stunning addition to a magnificent catalogue. I’m loathe to place it on equal footing to its predecessor just yet, time will reveal that, however the fact that I’m considering it should be an indication of the quality of this magnificent record.
Challenging, yet charming. Easily digestible, yet unfathomably intricate, “GREIF” is as good a Rock album as you’ll hear all year. The Devil is more than fine.
Zeal & Ardor – Fend You Off
TRACKLISTING:
01. the Bird, the Lion and the Wildkin
02. Fend You Off
03. Kilonova
04. are you the only one now?
05. Go home my friend
06. Disease
07. 369
08. Thrill
09. une ville vide
10. Sugarcoat
11. Solace
12. Hide in Shade
13. to my ilk
LINE-UP:
Manuel Gagneux- vocals, guitar, probably loads of other stuff
Tiziano Volante- guitar
Marc Obrist- vocals
Denis Wagner- vocals
Lukas Kurmann- bass
Marco Von Allmen- drums
LINKS:
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