What do we know about Grenoble? The city, located in southeastern France, is sometimes called “the Capital of the Alps”. In light of the today’s events, Grenoble hosted Winter Olympic Games in 1968. My company has been privileged to do business a few times with some respected European science and technology institutions located in the city. Avignon, being more of a flagship in the French black metal scene, Grenoble now shows that the black metal fires are also burning in the foothills of the Alps.

Being French, Aldaaron do not necessarily follow in the footsteps of their more famous underground French colleagues. As opposed to the more theological, nationalistic or depressive black metal, Aldaaron is playing in the style significantly closer to the orthodox, but riff oriented, Norse tradition, albeit with a native romantic twist. Immortal certainly should have been proud they way their early legacy is felt on Seigneur de l’hiver or their latter day approach plus the local French bend finish of Propheties with tightly structured rocking riffs. At the same time, amidst the gallery of stoically proud pagan riffs often going in melodic circles (Nirnaeth Arnoediad, Parts 1 and 2), Aldaaron adds in a clean acoustic line, to break the crushing double bass drumming. It is if long forgotten past, individualism, toughness and misanthropy are combined with a cold hopeless romantic in Aldaaron’s compositions. Unlike in the Norwegian forbearers’ masters’ art, not everything is frozen in the French Alps and it shows.

En Route vers la Bataille adds more adrenaline rush and blasting, rushing the olden warriors into battle. Royaume also has soldiers first marching on the plaza, before racing them into combat. Yet, Aldaaron warriors, while proud and tough, always display the sense of the inevitable loss the battle will bring. Dual vocal approach, between Ioldar and Voldr, where maddening berserkers run into ravens circling overhead suits Aldaaron well. Not to be wanted to be remembered as raging maniacs, the band weaves in enough traditional metal riffs (Instrumentale) and probably achieves its signature sound in relentless melodic waves of Nirnaeth Arnoediad.

Not allowing the Scandinavians and Eastern Europeans to claim pagan black metal as their prerogative domain, Aldaaron, their faces thoroughly painted, join their countrymate Loic Cellier (Belenos) as full-weight members of French pagan/Celtic black metal landscape.