Cebren-Khal - A Mass Of Despair (CD)

Review
Metal Review
7/10
22.11.2010

You can probably surmise from the cute album title that when you crack this thing open it’s going to greet you with a warm hug, a cup of hot chocolate and a smile, right? And the cover is just ridiculously bright and warm, like John Baizley penning a Stratovarious cover. It begs the question, why is this a Fall release? Clearly these guys should have released a split single in June with Andrew W.K., no?

Okay. The fact is this LP is as depressing as the title suggests, and it makes for a fitting Fall / Winter listen. With the dark, ominous and beautifully illustrated cover and the ambient opening complete with the sound of wind, rain and a ringing bell, it would be hard to arrive at any other immediate conclusion. What follows is an intriguing mix of death/doom and black metal. Given that there are only a handful of bands of note delving into that particular corner of extreme metal, at least with much success, I was anxious to wrap my head around A Mass of Despair.

Cebren-Khal’s first official release quickly proved to be quite the affair, and it wasn’t just the juggling of sub-genres or the lengthier opening track. One doesn’t always know what to expect when jumping into a lesser-profile album by a relatively green band, but it’s easy to walk in with low expectations. However, these are some pretty tightly orchestrated songs, demonstrative of a professionalism most bands aren’t able to achieve on a debut. Playing with such a rich palette would have been a total and utter mess in less capable hands.

One of the stronger elements keeping A Mass of Despair afloat is its diversity. It’s a little much to take on the first time around, but with repeated listens it starts to sink in. And it helps that the album is on the shorter side at about 37 minutes. I remember watching an interview not too long ago with Tom Warrior of Triptykon, and he spoke of how 1349 were able to write songs that sounded like entire albums. He admired that sense of scope. I think the same could be said of Cebren-Khal’s songwriting. A Mass of Despair adopts that same aesthetic. It requires a different approach than we are accustomed to as listeners, and it’s a refreshing challenge.

However, some of these albums within an album work well while others come up a little short. “The Lunar Tragedy Act 2” is an example of the former. One gets the impression after a while that these men and woman are most comfortable blending the blackened and death/doom elements of their sound only after establishing a more gothic tone first. They’re particularly adept at building tension that way, whether it’s a creepy narrative spoken over the music, increasingly heavier riffs or simply an ominous keyboard passage. A Mass of Despair would certainly be a lesser album without those heavier bits, but the clear driving force is the band’s unapologetic embrace of epic goth metal. Where that embrace is more obvious is where Cebren-Khal seems to find its balance.

The band doesn’t always sit on perfect ground, though. There were places where they lost me completely. One of those places was “The Lunar Tragedy Act 1.” Normally I like me some chaos, but the effect here was jarring. Grating, even. An almost symphonic black metal opening was a poor choice given how beautifully the previous track ends, and it seems all the more unnecessary when the band switches pace and slips into thrash mode with a nasty little riff. It’s a relatively rare and atypical moment where Cebren-Khal seems to crumble under its own ambition. Thankfully, it’s a minor slip on an otherwise meticulously arranged album.

If there’s a defining record among the bunch it’s probably album-closer “Where All Faith is Lost.” It also happens to be the longest of the five at just over 10 minutes, all of which are equally hefty and purposeful. When we think of certain bands, at least ones worth thinking about, we hear a distinctive sound. This is where Cebren-Khal firmly establishes that identity. The vibe is effectively chilling as they stretch and pull the supposed limitations of goth metal until the balloon bursts under the crushing pressure of an air being slowly choked by the stench of death. When the band finally kicks into death/doom mode the tension is almost overwhelming. The sense of timing is what makes the song work so well. I can’t think of too many bands that could so deftly pull the listener in like that without losing grip after the seventh-minute mark.

While I don’t make a habit of listening to this brand of metal, I now know I have a sympathetic friend to look to when I am feeling depressed. At its best, A Mass of Despair manages to find a nice balance between gothic or dark metal and a meatier, riff-based sound. At its worst, it seems a little too ambitious. That’s not a bad worst trait to possess.

Author: Chris Chellis

Review
Doom-metal.com
07.11.2010

Cebren-Khal are far from being an unknown band to all who are a bit seriously following the French Doom scene. Responsible for a good first demo in 2005, the band from North-West France had then entered the Drudenhaus Studios to record their first official album. It was in 2007, and despite some vague interest in it, it still wasn’t enough for Cebren-Khal to find a decent label.

It took 3 more years and the perseverance of their friends from Wedding In Hades for 'A Mass Of Despair' to be eventually released by BadMoodMan Music, the sub-division of the Russian Solitude Productions. Like a lot of bands on this label, Cebren-Khal play a fairly melodic Doom / Death, but their originality lies in the incorporation of some Metal parts I tend to associate with the French scene. Listening to the clear voice, more declaimed rather than sung, it is difficult not think of Forbidden Site in ‘La Chouanne’ e.g., Anorexia Nervosa in its most tragic moments or the first Misanthrope (the second part of 'The Lunar Tragedy’ sounds like a half-brother of ‘Maudit sois-tu Soleil!’ re-recorded by My Dying Bride with Robert Smith on vocals!). And here lies the originality of Cebren-Khal: The band doesn’t hesitate to break the stranglehold of the territories where Doom / Death usually dwells, venturing in faster tempos (think Dark Tranquillity at its best ), but without ever losing sight of its original ground.

The songs are long but never boring, and the alternation of styles is well balanced. Too bad the album is so short (less than 40 minutes)! I’d really like to hear what the band would be able to offer on a longer run. In any case, the potential is there and Cebren-Khal clearly deserve the attention of those who were longing for originality in that ‘literary’ Doom / Death branch, so to speak.

Author: Laurent Lignon

Review
Metalkrant
10.10.2010

Cebren-Khal, een onheilspellende doch veelbelovende naam. Een intro die begint met onweersgeluiden die steeds sterker en sterker worden… en op het moment dat men een apotheose verwacht, krijgen we (zeer verwonderlijk) een slopende doomriff te horen. Niet hetgeen ik verwachtte, maar dat ze verrassend uit de hoek komen is des te beter. Toch laat het echte werk even op zich wachten. Het album komt wat traag op gang, maar vanaf het 2e nummer laat Cebren-Khal werkelijk zien dat ze zich ook aan black en death kunnen wagen. Snijdende riffs, wanhopige vocals en ijzersterke thema’s met hier en daar een verwijzing naar Friedrich Nietzsche. Zo hoort onderstaande het graag. Het ene lied na het andere beukt er volop tegen aan en blijft keer op keer verbazen. Zo erg zelfs, dat de repeatknop ingedrukt bleef en de CD intussen al aan een 4e luisterbeurt toe is. En bij elke beurt, ben je steeds meer en meer onder de indruk van dit Franse collectief.

Conclusie:
Een zeer sterk doom album en ongetwijfeld een naam om te onthouden. Dat dit full album 5 jaar op zich heeft laten wachten, heeft de band enkel goed gedaan. Cebren-Khal brengt een stevige, boeiende en werkelijk fascinerende mix van death, black en doom metal, aangedikt met een filosofisch sausje. Een must-have voor de liefhebber van meer gesophisticeerde doom metal.

Author: Gert Maris

Review
Kronosmortus
9/10
21.10.2010

The songs are so impressive that they have their effect by first listening. It is beyond description how varied and subtle the throat grasping atmoshphere is.

A franciák tudnak valamit. Most nem elsősorban a konyhaművészetükre gondolok. Még csak nem is az erotikában kivívott jellegzetes dominanciájukra. A testi öröm, a buja élvezet hamis illúziója fel sem merülhet, egy olyan sötét, reményvesztett, lélekmarcangoló érzésvilág által vezetve megrajzolt albumnál, mint az A Mass Of Despair. Az utóbbi években számos félelmetesen jó anyaggal találkoztam, ami Frankhonból származott. Időnként a gallok kitűnő érzékkel nyúlnak azokhoz az eszközökhöz, amelyekkel a lélek legsötétebb, legmélyebb bugyrában megbúvó, majd onnan elementáris erővel felszínre törő kínokat az emberiség torkának szabadítják.

A Cebren-Khal név mögött megbúvó, nem kifejezetten metal fazonokról, finoman szólva, túl sok információ nem áll rendelkezésünkre. Pőrén, röviden a banda myspace oldala ad némi támpontot, arról hogy honnan jöttek és hol tartanak most. De nincs is ezzel semmi gond, remekül ellensúlyozza, előtérbe helyezi mindazt, amit csinálnak. A lényeg az, amit hallhatunk. A 2005-ös Charon’s Path demo már felhívta a zenekarra a figyelmet, amelyet az underground zenei világ határozott megelégedéssel fogadott. Az A Mass Of Despair az első nagylemeze a bandának. Soha rosszabb kezdést.

Nem mondhatnám, hogy a hagyományos doom metal közel áll hozzám, s ebből kifolyólag kissé tartottam is attól a ténytől a Cebren-Khal név mellett folyamatosan a doom címkét láttam. Ami tartotta bennem az érdeklődést, az a black-death mellékcímke volt. Szerencsére nem kellett csalódnom, a megérzésemben. A doom jelzőt szívem szerint én inkább gothicra cserélném. Sokkal közelebb áll a valósághoz. Anélkül, hogy a zenekar bármely tagjának érdemeit csorbítanám, ki kell, emeljem az énekes, Yves munkáját. Nehéz szavakba önteni azt a gazdag, árnyalt eszköztárat, ami a torkából előtör. A középkori bárd hősies orgánumától a deathes hörgésen keresztül a kínoktól tépett, a világ kitaszítottjaként, a suttogva elenyésző lélek kommentárjáig széles palettán mozog az előadásmódja. Miközben a lemezt hallgattam, egy-egy pillanatra felmerült bennem néhány zenekar neve, de előrebocsájtom, csak benyomásokról van szó, nem pedig párhuzamról, s még kevésbé koppintásról. Volt olyan pillanat, amikor a korai Anathema rokonságát véltem felfedezni, de a Moonspell sötét, gótos dallamvilága is felsejlett, a nem kevésbé említésre méltó a My Dying Bride, valamint a korai, klasszikus Paradise Lost finom érintése mellett.

A dalok annyira impresszívek, hogy már első hallásra komoly hatással vannak a hallgatóra. Szinte leírhatatlan, ahogy azt a torokszorító érzésvilágot, melyet a zenekar képvisel, mennyire árnyaltan és változatosan tudja kifejezni. Mint akár egy festőművész miként a szénrajzot alkotja, ők hasonlóképpen, leheletnyi árnyalattal, finom kontrasztokkal, de nem ritkán határozott, erős kontúrokkal viszik fel, hangszereik segítségével, az érzéseiket mondanivalójuk vásznára. Viszont úgy érzem ez a vászon nem lett teljesen felhasználva. Nem mondhatni, hogy a rövid az anyag, de engem mégis hiányérzet töltött el, amint az öt dal végigment a lejátszón. Igaz, így még inkább csontig hatol a lemez, s nem ereszt, nincs mit tenni, jöhet a repeta. A franciák tudnak valamit.

Author: Azagtoth

Review
Hymnes Funeraires
7/10
26.09.2010

Before describing the album in several short words, I’d say it would be accurate to mention several words about the band as well, even if they have a past of quite a few years.

Cebren-Khal were born in Rennes, France, at the beginning of 2004.
During summer 2005, Cebren-Khal recorded their first demo, entitled “Charon’s Path” Including 4 tracks, this demo was released at the beginning of November 2005. The “Charon’s Path” demo got a warm and even enthusiastic reception by underground press. Some gigs, including in May 2006 French final of the “Metal Battle – Wacken Open Air”, proved also good audience reactions.
During February 2007, Cebren-Khal begin with the recording of their new album, entitled A Mass of Despair.In 2010, “A Mass of Despair” is finally released under the russian doom metal label Solitude Productions.

Cebren-Khal belongs to the sphere of doom/death metal bands, but with a very strong influence of melodic black metal. Through the album entitled “A mass of Despair”, there is a track with 3 parts in which we notice this transition from death/doom to influences of melodic black metal in the most accurate manner; I’m refering to the three parts that belong to the song named “the Lunar Tragedy”. When you listen to these parts, you have the sensation that you’re passing through an initiation in these genres, a switch between a track with a stronger doomish accent.. And then another, with a more defined mold towards melodic black metal.. Or even both of them, combined. Of course, we also encounter transitions from melancholic passages to furiously fast black metal guitar ridds, which could confuse you at a certain point if you’re not familiar with these transitions. The lyrical work is filled with philosophic knowledge and ideals and the vocals range from gloomy, spoken words to guttural expulsions. The vocals mingle very well with the emotional impact of the song ( for example in: “Where All Hope Is Lost”, „The Lunar Tragedy – Act 2. Mouroir, Mouroir, Suis-Je Le Plus Mort” ). These two songs are also the ones that caught my ear the most, maybe because they keep a straighter line of doom/death metal.

Eventually, I can say that “A mass of Despair” was a bit too avant-garde for my tastes. The passage from harsher tracks to more doomish ones, to fast tracks with aggressive black metal riffs was too fast, too sudden. It was a bit hard for me to let myself sink into the atmosphere created by the slower tracks when I could be prodded towards reality right afterwards, anytime. However, these things don’t steal any merit of the album, which is very well composed.

Author: Zamo