Nordicwinter - Le dernier adieu (2021)^{Release ID: 32432}

Canadian one-man, atmospheric, depressive black metal artist Nordicwinter has been flying under my radar for some time it is fair to say.  Initially captivated by the use of Walter Langley's stunning painting on the album cover I was pleased to be equally enthralled by the musical content of the album also.  Le dernier adieu (the last or final goodbye) is Evilair's fifth full-length release and the second of 2021 alone.  Yves Allaire undertakes all vocal and instrumental duties whilst using programmed drums to lessen some of the workload on his shoulders.  This self-sufficient approach to working is something of a trademark of his with several other active and defunct projects all being projects where he completes all the work himself.

This sense of isolation is prevalent on this release as the album plays out a solemn soundscape of emptiness, solitude and death.  The grief stricken woman on the artwork truly does have her own soundtrack to accompany her mourning as Allaire layers morbid atmospheres with harsh vocals and abrasive riffs.  The atmospherics are especially poignant to the point of sounding rich but they are all too often punctuated by the intrusion of darkness in the form of some agonisingly hellish instrumentation or harrowing vocal invasion.

What these auditory attacks manage to achieve so well is the sense of the atmospheres that sit at the core of most tracks are being pushed and expanded constantly.  As a result the album sounds like it is constantly exploring the very depths of sorrow.  Every ringing tremolo creates this sense of a harrowing echo that resonates around this ever increasing space that each track inhabits.  When in full on blasting mode the programmed drums do lose impact somewhat, but every other instrument is kept clear in the mix and the bass can be tracked throughout most of what goes on over the six tracks that make up the release.

This is clearly a very personal expression of emotion by Allaire following the death of his parents over time and the use of melody to accentuate this grief is done superbly.  Second track La Nuit maintains this doomed-tremolo yet melodic riff for the bulk of its runtime, letting up only for a sombre, piano-driven passage in the middle of the track to add some ethereal beauty to this distressing atmosphere.  From start to finish, I find Le dernier adieu an utterly immersive experience and one that I find myself constantly revisiting despite the rawness of the content.  There's something about the way he displays these emotions that is alluring beautiful whilst being utterly despondent at the same time.