Wntrhltr unveils us its first album.
Created in 2018 in France by Thomas Winterhalter (vocals/guitar), the project releases a first single in 2019, then announces Deu.Ils for 2022, independently.
The album soberly begins with Prologue, a melancholic and dark introduction which welcomes very soft vocals, but also the voice of Laure le Prunenec (Öxxö Xööx, Corpo-Mente, ex-Igorrr), unveiling an intense and terrifying before Sonar comes to crush us with this weighing sound. Very haunting, the riffs can also be aggressive and dark or unveiling Prog influences into this abrasive Post-Metal which continues with Caught, a heady composition. Very soft melodies are covered by saturation and ghostly howlings, but also by a weighing languor and an airy final, which drives us to Light, a massive and impressive composition. I felt an oppressive regularity on this song, which offers a heavy and permanent dissonance before Adored comes to offer us airy harmonics. The song is still dyed with this raw reality on vocals, but we feel hooking influences are working, just like this quiet and soft touch we hear on clean sound, above on the final part, which lets place to Deuil, the last track. We have Laure le Prunenec, who accompanies the musician, creating a disturbing and interesting duo, completed by massive dissonance, until the sound dies.
The Wntrhltr project offers an interesting half-hour. Whether the first and the last track of Deu.Ils are intriguing, we have a weighing and regular heaviness on the other songs, creating a crushing, melancholic and sometimes majestic ambience.
85/100