Alcest

Born in the early 2000s in southern France around multi-instrumentalist Stéphane “Neige” Paut, Alcest initially developed an intimate black metal strand before moving toward a distinctive blend of blackgaze, shoegaze and post-rock with dreamlike atmospheres. Started as a solo project, Alcest stabilized from 2009 as a duo with drummer Winterhalter, which grounded the project in a real group dynamic both in the studio and on stage. The EP «Le Secret» (2005, re-recorded in 2011) marks a first step in the shift toward more melodic and ethereal textures, later confirmed by the albums «Souvenirs d’un autre monde» (2007) and «Écailles de Lune» (2010), where clean vocals, distant screams, saturated guitars and near-ambient moods coexist. Alcest continued this exploration with «Les Voyages de l’âme» (2012) and «Shelter» (2014), which accentuates the affinities with the shoegaze scene and features Neil Halstead’s voice among others, before returning to a darker and more contrasted dimension on «Kodama» (2016) and «Spiritual Instinct» (2019), released on Nuclear Blast. With «Les Chants de l’aurore» (2024), Alcest further deepens this simultaneously melancholic and luminous register, while maintaining strong roots in the international metal and alternative scenes, supported by numerous tours across Europe, North America and beyond.