Elyose – Évidence

Elyose
Évidence
Out: January 10^th, 2025
Playing time: 39:05

Elyose from the French capital Paris were founded in 2009, probably by singer Justine Daaé. Back then with a double ‘L’ in the name. A year later, the double was cancelled. There were various line-up changes until 2019. Three studio albums were released in these ten years. A live album followed in 2020, which was recorded in Paris to celebrate the band’s tenth anniversary. Towards the end of 2019, however, all the instrumentalists left the band, and the frontwoman was left alone. She initially continued solo. And released the EP ‘Persona’. She later started a collaboration with guitarist and producer Anthony Chognard. The first result of this collaboration was the album ‘Déviante’. The second album of this era, ‘Évidence’, was released in January.

The opening song ‘Mission lunaire’ already shows the trademarks of Elyose. Banging riffs enriched with industrial keyboard sounds. But when Justine Daaé’s ethereal vocals kick in, things calm down a little. Only the drums boom powerfully. ‘Tentatives échouées’ is also instrumentally harsh. This contrasts with the sometimes calm vocals. But they are also harder and hectic in places. ‘Étoile solitaire’ also starts with industrial noise gimmicks. And the vocals are driven by the drums right from the start. ‘Théogyne 2.0’ is a re-recording of the title track from the 2012 debut album “Théogyne”. The EP of the same name was released in 2009, the year the band was founded. Overall, this version is somewhat calmer and more melodic than the original. The following songs also start with industrial sounds. And are characterised by hard, at times brute instrumentation. In contrast to this, Justine’s beguiling vocals are mostly heard. You can hear this for yourself on ‘L’écho des délices’, ‘Ascension tracée’ and ‘Immuable’, among others. On the other hand, ‘Abnégation’ is almost like a point of calm. The only English-language song, ‘Rise And Reclaim’, closes the album, which is also notable for its sparing use of industrial effects and more melodic content.

Somehow Justine Daaé has created her own niche in Nu Metal with Elyose. And she consistently follows through with this concept in her solo/duo project. It’s certainly not to everyone’s taste. It takes some getting used to. And Elyose have never been easy listening. Far from any mainstream.

Elyose – Immuable: https://youtu.be/jJQS7KW__PM?si=ftF50LY5SbbZQbVX

Lineup:

Justine Daaé – Vocals, Keyboards, Programming
Anthony Chognard – Guitars, Bass, Drums

Track list:

• Mission lunaire
• Tentatives échouées
• Étoile solitaire
• Théogyne 2.0
• L’écho des délices
• Ascension tracée
• Prête au combat
• Immuable
• Abnégation
• Rise and Reclaim