From the very first notes, Le Cloître establishes a heavy, suffocating atmosphere. Givre is not trying to charm or reassure: the album presents itself as a path of suffering, a deep dive into faith seen through the prism of pain. Each track draws inspiration from a saint, whose writings and visions become chapters in a mystical and tormented narrative.
These six stations are traversed like the icy corridors of a deserted cloister. The riffs rise like stone walls, unyielding, while the vocals tear through the air with their anguish. The music carries a silent fury, but also a profound sadness, a melancholy that never fully detaches from the turmoil. At times, the violence erupts like a storm, only to give way to more contemplative passages, almost luminous, yet always tinged with latent unease.
The intelligence of the work is immediately apparent. Le Cloître avoids both easy provocation and caricatured rejection of religion. Givre fully embraces the ambiguity of these female figures, exploring a faith that can only be experienced through the trials of body and soul. The album does not claim to deliver a truth, but illustrates the strange link between suffering and transcendence.
Listening closely, it’s clear that every detail has been crafted to immerse the audience. The sound is massive, oppressive, yet never excessive. The musicians create a landscape where every note carries weight, every silence resonates, and every scream leaves a lasting impression. One does not emerge unscathed from this record: it seeps into the skin, exhausting and captivating simultaneously.
Le Cloître goes far beyond the boundaries of a traditional black metal album. It is a work that questions the meaning of suffering, and the way it travels through history and spirituality. Rarely does an album combine rage, sorrow, and intellectual depth with such intensity.
Released on March 29, 2024, via Eisenwald, and available on vinyl, CD, and digital formats, Le Cloître marks an important milestone for Givre, confirming the band’s place among the most singular and ambitious voices in Quebecois black metal.
To follow Givre and explore their work, or to get a copy of Le Cloître, visit their Linktree page: https://ffm.bio/givre There, you’ll find all album formats as well as their social media to stay updated on upcoming releases and news.
- BANDCAMP GIVRE : https://givremetal.bandcamp.com/album/le-clo-tre
- BADNCAMP EISENWALD: https://eisenwald.bandcamp.com/
