Abstrusa Unde is a musical project founded in 2007 by percussionist Thibault to mix his different musical directions like Jazz, Metal and Chamber music in one project. The band brought its avant-garde influences from bands like Arcturus, Borknagar and Solefad and added clarinet, violins, cellos and electronic arrangements to the mix. Four vocalists provide Death / Black growls and operatic vocals to give this band a legit unique sound in the growing international Avant Garde Metal scene.
The band released its first album Introspection in 2010, packing 50 minutes of Avant Garde Black Metal experimentation along dense atmospheric layers and dark moods. The album ends with a 15-minute opus entitled “Suune Kvalta”, a song which brings Abstrusa Unde’s entire musical range to play and defines the overall mood of Instrospection; dark, grandiose and certainly not music for the lighthearted.
You can stream the entire album from the Soundcloud player below.
As to the Chamber music influences, they are scattered across the entire album in the form of a Gothic-like passages. These passages along with the female operatic vocals give the album a nice contrast from the main Black/Death Metal songwriting. Songs like “Al Aklorodan” and “Lost for Life” give a clear example of Abtrusa Unde’s Avant Garde sound.
Fans of Le Grand Guignol, Mirrorthrone, uneXpect and Borknagar should definitely give Abstrusa Unde a listen, and if you’re interested in discovering more French Avant Garde music, give Pin Up Went Down and Wormfood a go as well. Fans of Heavy Metal keep out!
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