Metalcatto
We still have some fresh reviews out of the oven for you before the holidays doom us all. I’ve loved all sorts of weird French Metal, you know that. However, we don’t get Darkwave Heavy Metal every day. In fact, my real fear is that The Losts’ Venom Within ends up being some kind of cheesy ride just like many other albums in the subgenre, but the season says I should be hopeful. So, I’ll do my best to not be a total snob today.
There’s nothing cheesy here. This is serious, digestible Metal. I can’t believe I just wrote that, but it is what it is. It’s melodic, dark, but surprisingly aggressive, full of sections that could make MeloDeath and traditional Metal fans find common ground in all sorts of uncomfortable ways. Also, it finally happened: a French band that doesn’t have an interlude with people whispering random stuff. Yet Venom Within isn’t direct in the simplistic sense of the word. It offers layers of ideas that slowly reveal themselves.
Before you ask, yes, there are growls and long, sad riffs that almost make you wonder how this can still be considered old school. Still, it retains a fun structure and focuses heavily on the hooks it throws at you. Most of all, The Losts know how to write not just tracks, but a cohesive album. Every song builds on the previous one and jumps between radio-friendly vibes, Gothic moments, and straight-up Death Metal. The band is clearly multitasking without collapsing, which is why I now need to stop all this positivity and be the jerk you sometimes expect me to be.
It’s strange, because I don’t have many real issues with this album, aside from the fact that I usually like my Metal more convoluted. I wouldn’t even dare say that Venom Within is too idiosyncratic, but at times it leaves me wondering what the band is truly capable of. It feels like these people could give us even more, take even bigger risks, and while that’s something we can forgive, ambiguity can sometimes hit harder than a Hardcore moshpit.
Either way, this album reminded me that I shouldn’t assume everything decent has already been released this year. There’s still time to salvage something worthwhile, even if it lives in the more traditional corners of our Metal world. There’s still room for further life disappointments, fueled by the hope of finding that one album that sticks with you through dark, rainy mornings and trashy coffee.
Label: Inverse Records
Release date: December 19, 2025
Website: https://www.facebook.com/TheLostsBand
Country: France
Score: 3.5/5.0
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