Location: Ljubljana / CUK Kino Šiška / Slovenia
Date: Friday, 28.02.2020
French outfit Alcest have been making regular trips back to Slovenia in recent years. The day finally came when the band got to step up and headline the show — which, given their popularity, was only a matter of time. Nuclear Blast clearly noticed their rising profile too, signing them for last year’s latest album Spiritual Instinct. The band has also grown a solid fanbase in Slovenia over recent years, and for this show they were given the Katedrala hall at Kino Šiška, which already promised a strong turnout.
First up was Kaelan Mikla, an all-female trio from Iceland who had already drawn in some early arrivals. The young three-piece came armed with dark synth punk that showed a genuine edge — at times it even veered into avant-garde territory. Above all, the whole thing radiated a heavy sense of darkness, which fits perfectly with the band’s taste for bleak, melancholic styles. The trio get filed under darkwave, post-punk, goth, and then some. Their set had a distinctive character, though a fairly niche one — the kind that would feel right at home at Roadburn and similar events.
Next came Birds in Row, a French trio who had already played Slovenia back in 2018. This time around they got to play to a bigger crowd, running through tracks from their latest album We Already Lost the World. The set was tight and polished — the band leans heavily on hardcore elements, with hardcore punk and melodic hardcore both well-represented, while the quieter passages brought a clear post-hardcore feel. Birds in Row have enough punch, chaos, and smarts to back up their potential. There’s still room to grow, but what they showed won over plenty of people in the room.
Expectations for Alcest — by now one of the defining names in blackgaze — were undeniably high. And the band have never let anyone down. The driving force was of course guitarist and vocalist Neige, but the rest of the band more than pulled their weight. Particular credit goes to guitarist Zero, who kept adding real texture and dynamism with his guitar lines.
They opened by diving into the current album Spiritual Instinct, released towards the end of 2019. Opening track Les jardins de minuit set the tone right away, with the black metal side coming to the fore when the tempo kicked up. But things shifted quickly as the band eased into the more restrained Protection. The crowd’s euphoria only built from there — naturally, as Alcest, performing live as a four-piece, followed up with Oiseaux de proie and the infectious Autre temps.
Alcest closed the main set with the excellent Kodama, which holds its dynamic across its entire length thanks to some slick transitions from the quiet stretches into the heavier parts. You could almost call it the peak of the night — but Alcest still had more to say. And honestly, given what they’d played so far, nobody wanted it to end. The encore brought Là où naissent les couleurs nouvelles and the epic Délivrance, one of the most beloved tracks among fans.
Neige and company proved beyond any doubt why they’re considered one of the leading names in what gets called post-black metal or blackgaze. The guitar work and vocals were undeniably rich and varied — the bass and drums slightly less so, but the whole thing worked beautifully as a unit. The stage lighting was restrained too, and yet the atmosphere was absolutely there. Alcest delivered a performance and setlist that more than lived up to the hype — their show can simply be described as nothing short of magical.
author: Primož Novak
photos: Nina Grad
