Alcest - Les Chants de l'Aurore (2024) [Official Digital Download 24/48]

Recorded by Neige and Winterhalter themselves, with a little help from talented friends, Les Chants de l’Aurore pulls off the neat trick of sounding both huge and intimate. From the opening Komorebi onwards, Alcest sound reborn and revitalised, as their most cherished trademarks are reinvented for a new era, and with new depths and sophistication on display.

“We bought some new equipment, and we recorded the album like bands were doing it in the ‘70s,” Neige explains. ”We went into this big house, and the drums were recorded in this big attic, with a really nice reverb! So it was interesting to do it ourselves, because we could spend as much time as we wanted to, to perfect the takes. We wanted some really organic production, but also I wanted this orchestral approach, with lots of arrangements and different kinds of sounds, like real piano and real choirs. It was quite an ambitious recording.”

A band known for their empathetic ethos, Alcest have never sounded more blissful than they do on Les Chants de l’Aurore. As Neige explains, new songs like recent single L’Envol and the epic L’Enfant de la Lune aim to counteract the negativity and darkness that surrounds us in the so-called real world, with hazily expressed visions of a different place and time. After dealing with the abstract horrors of mortal existence on previous records, Neige has returned to the comforting cocoon of his spirituality, and with the specific intention of spreading some love and positivity.

“This album is really coming back to the original concept of Alcest,” he notes. “It’s really about exploring this other world, in the same way that I wrote about it on the first album. The music should be a key to open the door to this other world. It’s like a gate to something else, and it’s a place that is the most beautiful thing you could imagine… but it’s difficult to describe, so that’s why I choose to make music. Because music can speak much more than words. There is a lot of beauty in it, as opposed to what is happening in the world, and I guess it touches people. I’m very thankful for that.”

Five years after their last album, Alcest have reconvened with a refreshed perspective on their epoch-altering musical endeavours. Les Chants de l’Aurore arrives at a tumultuous point in human history, laden with gentle charm and ferocious conviction, and doggedly determined to push Neige’s musical identity ever further into an expansive future. More importantly, perhaps, Les Chants de l’Aurore gives Neige a fresh opportunity to connect with his adoring fan base, armed with some of the most beautiful and mesmerising music that he has ever written.

“We always put all of our heart and soul into making a new record, but when it is released, it doesn’t belong to us anymore,” Neige shrugs. “People will decide if they like it or not, and that’s it, but I really love this album and I have a very special attachment to it. I’m never going to say ‘It’s the best fucking thing!’ [Laughs] That’s not our style, you know? But from the perspective of the latest feedback and the excitement people have expressed, I think it’s going to be great. We’ve got a 35-show tour booked for the end of the year, and we’ll play in some really nice venues, like the Olympia in Paris, the most iconic venue in Paris. Even the Beatles and the Rolling Stones played there! I’m so excited and honoured to play there. Then we will do the States and Asia next year, I hope. We don’t release albums very often, and this one took five years, so I think we’re going to tour a lot over the next three years.”

Tracklist:
01 - Komorebi
02 - L'Envol
03 - Améthyste
04 - Flamme Jumelle
05 - Réminiscence
06 - L'Enfant de la Lune
07 - L'Adieu


Thanks to the Original customer!