Locus Noir- Shadow Sun

 Hey, ain't you lucky! Two posts in one day. Amazing!

So, one style that I have always had a very love/hate relationship with is Gothic Metal. I love Type O Negative and some other bands but the style seemed, in the 2000's, to morph into what I call "Sad Bastard Metal" (to paraphrase Nick Cave). It lost what made it darkly triumphant and just became people whining about stuff and I've never been a huge fan of that. 

So here comes Locus Noir. This is a band that comes from the singer, Ben DMN, of Sybreed... who I know almost nothing about with the exception that they made some waves 10-15 years ago. The lead singer formed this project to reclaim the "spirit of 90's Gothic Metal". Well, I AM a fan of 90's Gothic Metal so let's see if he succeeded.

Actually I would say so. Locus Noir released two singles, one with Ben Christo (for those of you playing the home game, the guitarist of Sisters of Mercy). I rather enjoyed both songs. I played them pretty often. But listening to the record those are probably the weakest songs. The album bounces with keyboard driven darkness over metal guitars and clashing drums.  Ben's voice definitely has that low tone you want in a good Gothic singer but his voice has texture and character all its own. The keyboards set the right atmosphere and the guitars chug enough to remind the listener they are listening to a metal album. Even the Lady Gaga, "Marry the Night", works well and sets the pace for triumph in darkness as opposed to crying about stuff all the time. There are themes of tragedy, of course. They are just dealt with in a manner of more defiance than sadness, which I prefer. All in all an effort I have already revisited a few times since it was released in February. 

Highlights: Shadow Sun, She Haunts the Night and Death, that Elusive Mistress. While these are the best songs on the record the whole thing is worth the price of admission even the two bonus tracks (one of which is the cover I mentioned). So go on and check them out especially if you're a fan of Type O Negative, early Moonspell and Dreadful Shadows.