You look at Cercle du Chêne‘s Récits d’Automne et de Chasse art and think, “Oh, this must sound lovely and cute—it’ll remind me of my happy days watching Disney movies.” However, a seasoned reviewer like me sees this art and thinks, “Oh no! This is probably going to sound like Watership Down and have a lot of talking because it’s French Black Metal, and they have to let us know it’s French, you know?” Still, I was curious to see what this strange mix of Dungeon Synth and Black Metal had to offer. I mean, we tend to not even listen to these kinds of albums at MER, but sometimes, the underdogs deserve a chance in life.
Imagine if you took Satyricon‘s Dark Medieval Times and made the production listenable while doubling down on the synth drama. That’s kind of what Récits d’Automne et de Chasse is going for here. Instead of focusing so much on the “evil times,” it’s more interested in the legends of the woods—the myths that build our culture and that we’ve all heard about in one way or another. There’s a clear Folk influence here that, while not as intense as in Wardruna, feels like the Western European version of it. I’d dare to say that if you deeply hate DSBM and Dungeon Synth but are still trying to move away from that hate, then maybe Cercle du Chêne is the band to break the spell.
Despite how much of the album is carried by the vocals and synth work, which constantly steal the spotlight from everything else, the drumming is surprisingly reliable. I mean, there’s solid drumming in this dungeon—that can’t be! Because, as you know, Black Metal drummers usually come in two forms: blasting machines that only know violence, or drummers who lag more than a Halo 2 server. Yet, on Récits, everyone is in sync, delivering an almost spiritual experience that keeps you connected to nature.
Now, I do have a few gripes with Récits. The main one is the obvious issue with this niche: many of the tracks are just too long for the ideas they explore. I understand they want to create a hypnotic atmosphere, but maybe I just get sleepy too fast. Don’t get me wrong, this won’t put you to sleep, but you need to be in the right meditative state to fully enjoy its writing. The more minor issue is just personal: the synth is great, but it makes me feel like I’m in an old ’90s video game (Castlevania style). Then again, maybe that’s a good thing for you!
Overall, I was intrigued by this album, and though it might not have converted me into a greasy, sad synth fan, it did open my mind to other possibilities within the most overdone niche of all. It shows that there’s always hope to find something interesting amidst the sea of geeky bands flaunting their devotion to a time that only exists the way they love it in their heads.
Label: Antiq
Release date: March 21, 2025
Website: https://cercleduchene.bandcamp.com/album/premi-re-rencontre
Country: France
Score: 3.0/5.0 with a potential revision later on!
Metal Eclipse Reviews 