Douve affirms its musical commitments.
Created in the Paris region by Chloé Casasola (guitar/vocals, ex-Moonreich, ex-Mortis Mutilati), Asphodel (vocals, Mortis Mutilati), Eva-Lou Chevet (bass), and Atc (drums, Homecoming, ex-Creeping Fear), released their first album, Sol, in 2025 via Mort sur Musique.
From the very first track, Heureux ceux qui nous violent, we discover an as raw and abrasive sound as possible, but also a crude and brutal discourse that perfectly serves the purpose and fits in perfectly with the violent rhythm. Although quite lively at first, the riffs calm down slightly for a haunting finale before moving on to Vestige, a much longer but also more jerky composition that takes the time to create a heavy and disturbing atmosphere while the vocalist delivers her lyrics with the same vehemence. However, there is a palpable melancholy in the slower passages of the instrumental, but it is replaced by savagery when the blast returns, finally announcing a chaotic solo before charging into Rien jamais personne n’existe, which also adopts this suffocating dissonance. A few touches of DSBM make the screams even more visceral on this choppy rhythm, but the oppression ends as soon as Interlude offers us a moment of respite with the acoustic guitar, which we savor before returning to the rage on the poignant Un mur blanc couleur pilule, favoring aggressiveness. There are a few moments of calm in the storm, but the track stands out above all for its sharp riffing before giving way to the ethereal Novembre, which allows itself some haunting, albeit relatively tormented, harmonics, as well as a passage of clean vocals that contrasts with the rhythm section, perfectly serving the ambient distress. Anamnèse takes over, starting very softly, then with a sampled voice whose intimate discourse makes us uncomfortable, and we barely feel the progression of the instrumental until a few jolts that make the moment even more disturbing, leading up to a striking explosion that sounds like it came out of an old radio. The moment is still painful to listen to until Tout brûler comes to deliver us, reconnecting with a more direct violence at first, but also with a gloomy and almost nostalgic melody that slows things down before letting go of the reins and allowing the musicians to unleash themselves until the final notes.
With its raw discourse and openly queer stance, Douve is already making waves in the black metal scene, and listening to Sol can only convince you of one thing: the band knows exactly how to get a reaction with its riffs and screams.
85/100