Amesoeurs was a French

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

post-black metal Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, a shrieking vocal style, heavily distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, raw (lo-fi) recording, unconventional song structures, and an emphas ...

band. A side project of Neige of Alcest, the group was formed in the summer of 2004 in

Bagnols-sur-Cèze Bagnols-sur-Cèze (, literally ''Bagnols on Cèze''; oc, Banhòus de Céser) is a commune in the Gard department in the Occitanie région in southern France. History A small regional center, Bagnols-sur-Cèze was quite certainly a Roman town ( ...

with the purpose of creating music that "reflects the dark side of the industrial era and modern civilization". Teyssier initially left the band shortly after its creation, but returned in 2008, while Winterhalter, who would go on to join both Alcest and Les Discrets, joined in 2007. They disbanded in 2009.

History

Shortly after Amesoeurs's formation a few songs were written and the band performed a gig. Soon after, Fursy Teyssier decided to leave the band to go back to his studies. In April 2005, a first 3 track EP entitled ''Ruines Humaines'' was self-recorded. Neige was leaving the black metal band Mortifera at the time and he used two tracks ("Bonheur Amputé" and "Ruines Humaines") he had originally composed for Mortifera for Amesoeurs's EP. The EP was finally released through Northern Silence Productions from Germany in 2006.Lee, Cosmo (2009)
Amesoeurs ''Amesoeurs''
, Pitchfork, 29 May 2009. Retrieved 24 July 20209 In 2007 Fursy joined the band again and drummer Winterhalter (drummer in

Peste Noire Peste Noire are a French black metal band from La Chaise-Dieu, France. The band was formed by "La sale Famine de Valfunde" (Ludovic Faure), also known simply as "Famine", in 2000. Their music uses standard black metal elements mixed with traditi ...

between 2006 and 2008) was added to the mix for the full-length album ''Amesoeurs'', released in March 2009 through the Italian label Code 666 records.Begrand, Adrien (2009)
The Bleak, Beautiful Art of Amesoeurs
,

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

, 19 May 2009. Retrieved 24 July 2020 The first album was recorded during winter 2008-2009 in the Klangschmiede Studio E with Markus Stock from

Empyrium Empyrium is a German symphonic folk/ doom metal and (later) neofolk/ dark folk band. History Empyrium was founded in 1994 by Markus Stock (mostly using the pseudonym Ulf Theodor Schwadorf) and Andreas Bach, but later many other musicians pa ...

, and it is described by the band as "a kaleidoscopic soundtrack for the modern era". Pitchfork gave the album a 7, calling it a "journal of triumph and heartbreak" and "a fervid last gasp of genre-melding creativity".

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

writer Ned Raggett gave it a 3-star rating, stating "the most notable thing about ''Amesoeurs'' is how little of a unique identity it has in the end. Nearly every notable trend in recent French metal seems to crop up throughout, not to mention other sounds from elsewhere in Europe". Cam Lindsay of

Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...

stated that the album "furthers black metal's scope while ruffling a few feathers along the way".Lindsay, Cam (2009)
Amesoeurs ''Amesoeurs''
,

, 24 May 2009. Retrieved 24 July 2020 After the release of the album, Amesoeurs split up due to what the band described as "internal conflicts and different points of view regarding the band's future". Teyssier and Winterhalter went on to form Les Discrets, while Neige's focus returned to Alcest.

Line-up history

* Neige – screamed vocals,

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and ...

(2004–2009),

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

(2004–2007) * Audrey Sylvain – lead vocals, bass,

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

(2004–2009) * Fursy Teyssier – guitars, bass (2004, 2008–2009) * Winterhalter – drums (2007–2009)

Discography

* '' Ruines Humaines'' – EP, 2006 * ''Valfunde/Amesoeurs'' –

Split album A split album (or split) is a music album that includes tracks by two or more separate artists. There are also singles and EPs of the same variety, which are often called "split singles" and "split EPs" respectively. Split albums differ from "var ...

, 2007 * ''

Amesoeurs Amesoeurs was a French post-punk/post-black metal band. A side project of Neige of Alcest, the group was formed in the summer of 2004 in Bagnols-sur-Cèze with the purpose of creating music that "reflects the dark side of the industrial era and ...

'' – Full-length, 2009

References

External links

Roadrunner Records article
{{Authority control French black metal musical groups French rock music groups French post-punk music groups Shoegazing musical groups Musical groups established in 2004 Musical groups disestablished in 2009 Post-metal musical groups Musical quintets Blackgaze musical groups Musical groups from Occitania (administrative region) Profound Lore Records artists