Proud Québécois act Ruine present us with their debut full length Révolte et Crânerie Paysanne. A beautifully tragic album with triumphant undertones and deep meaning behind the lyrics. I wouldn’t go out right and call this a black metal album, but there are some stylistic similarities that they for sure took influence from. The melodic style shines through on this album, especially coming off from the more raw and intense self titled EP that came out before, though this release feels more full and has so much emotion put behind it that is very present within the music its self.
The unique stylistic approach is apparent right off the bat, the jangly guitars, shouted vocals, and a drum beat that melts in the background, really sets the mood and atmosphere for the album. Like a gothic peasant revolt against the elite. The triumphant guitar riffs and the heroic lyrics, when translated, create for some very powerful imagery that almost takes a jab at today’s society. There are also some added synths in the background for a nice touch, really rounding out the sound to giving a full and vibrant feel. There are certain passages where the guitars and synths blend together and adds a nice psychedelic touch to it all.
The vocals are fantastic and I think my favorite part of the album. They range from almost punk style shouting to cleaner folk style singing. I found my self singing along to the music in broken French, truly captured by the performance of it. And what helps too is that, given the imagery of revolt, the vocals create an image in my minds eye of some sort of resistance leader riling up his peasant army with tragic speeches of death, famine, and most importantly, proving your worth to those you love the most. Its powerful imagrey, and I think the best showcase of that is the fifth track Figé, Foutu ! It also ended up being my favorite off the album as well. The mixture of the harsh growled vocals and the more folk style singing and chanting in the background is simply perfect, I was completely swept away by it.
If you’re looking for an interesting album with black metal, post punk, and folk influences then you’ve come to the right place. Ruine has really out done themselves with this release. There’s so much emotion and passion put behind this that its rather hard not to be moved by it personally. Its easy to dismiss the band and say that they just sound like a modern Peste Noir copy, or some sort of Lifelover worship, but you’d be doing the band a huge disservice by doing that. They’re able to really make a unique sound that is distinctly theirs and nails the atmosphere and imagery I think better than those two bands. I know I’m going to be coming back to this album again and again, and will be keeping an eye on what ever else they release in the future.