Alcest "Kodama Asia Tour" Live in Hong Kong 2017

Alcest is a French rock band from Bagnols-sur-Cèze, founded and led by Neige (Stéphane Paut). It began in 2000 as a black metal solo project by Neige, soon a trio, but following the release of their first demo in 2001, band members Aegnor and Argoth left the band, leaving Neige as the sole member. In 2009 drummer Winterhalter from Les Discrets (and formerly Peste Noire) joined Alcest's studio line-up, after eight years with Neige as the sole full-time member. Since its creation, Alcest has released five studio albums and a number of EPs and split releases. Their fourth album, 2014's Shelter, marked a dramatic shift towards a distinctly shoegaze sound, however their latest album Kodama marks a return to their earlier blackgaze sound. The band are widely credited with pioneering the Blackgaze/Post-Black Metal genre, particularly through their EP Le Secret released in 2005.

As a child, Neige had experiences of being in contact with a "far off country", which he generically refers to as "Fairy Land". Alcest serves as the musical adaptation of the memories from this "otherworld". Neige intends for Alcest to be a journey for the listener to this world through his memories. This change in concept was first introduced on Le Secret. Souvenirs d'un autre monde serves as a literal summation of the concept behind the band.

Musically the band's sound has changed over time. While their demo Tristesse hivernale displays a very raw black metal sound, their following EP is considered by many to be the first blackgaze record, and the band are widely credited with pioneering the genre. The band's sound is defined by a very atmospheric, uplifting atmosphere. From Le Secret to Shelter the band drew on both black metal bands like Burzum and Ulver as well as shoegaze bands like Slowdive to create a huge wall of sound effect, using abrasive, screamed vocals, blastbeat sections, as well as fast tremolo-picked guitar passages. Their 2014 album Shelter was a significant departure from this sound, a purely shoegaze album entirely eliminating any trace of metal influence. However their upcoming album Kodama represents a return to their earlier blackgaze sound.

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