Stangala (France) "Klañv" (2016)
http://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Stangala/
Stangala plays a drug-fueled, vintage and occult doom rock with celtic influences and lyrics entirely in breton. Mind your head while entering the druids forest as your journey is about to begin… "Klañv" means "Ill" or "Sick" in Breton language.
Review to this release :
(Originally posted at valleyofsteel.net)
I'm excited to tell you that there's a brand-new album by Stangala, the Breton psychedelic-doom-with-Celtic-folk-elements band — who you might recall from their 2011 album Boued Tousek Hag Trau Mat All which I had reviewed here. Since the release of their debut album, apparently Stangala have moved to a new record label, Finisterian Dead End, who are based in the same city as the band — Quimper, capital city of Finistère, France. (As this area is at the outermost tip of peninsular Brittany, the name Finistère comes from the Latin Finis Terræ, "end of the earth"; hence the name of the label.)
The eight tracks here begin with a new version of the song "Bigoudened An Diaoul" from the previous album; this starts out sounding a bit lighter and faster-paced than before, while still being very psychedelic in nature (and maintaining the band's signature folk elements, with a klezmer-sounding clarinet or perhaps it's a soprano sax?), but overall it feels more like blues-rock than heavy doom. Several minutes longer than the original, everything sort of breaks down into a later introspective-sounding section that brings in a bluesy sax part; then it all expands, moving into various different tangents — ultimately it does introduce a heavier and doomier element that seems more reminiscent of the earlier version of the song.
This introduces the rest of the album fairly well: the clarinet-or-soprano-sax instrument makes guest appearances quite frequently, bringing in a folksy feeling, as do some of the other elements like the acoustic guitar intro in "Hent Loar" (which then leads into a more monolithic and doomy atmosphere, including some screamed/shrieked vocals), or the electric piano part in "N'eus Ket Dremmwel Hiviz"; elsewhere, things turn in a more jazzy direction, like the walking bassline and organ that introduce "Marv Int Ar Martoloded" (although this too becomes more doom-like later, with a bit of theremin and underwater-sounding vocals) and the mid-section of "An Ankou Hag Ar Vor" (bookended by heavy distorted doom) which features a Mancini-esque tenor sax solo followed in turn by a jazz-guitar and then jazz-piano.
One thing this band has always done well is deal in juxtaposition and contrast; setting the folk- and jazz-inspired parts against the heavier parts (and the incorporation of some of the folk instrumentation alongside the distorted guitars and fuzzed-out bass) demonstrate this, but many of the song structures also work in a way that alternates between different contrasting moods. For example, the title track, with its flurry of cymbal crashes throughout, keeps shifting between faster and slower parts, some heavier and some more dreamlike and wispy. Although "Jan," which is one song that stays relatively constant throughout, with a mid-tempo driving beat, is also a good highlight of the album, featuring a similar vibe to one of the debut album's more memorable tracks, "Doom Rock Glazik."
Klañv - 85%
valleyofsteel, May 7th, 2016
Written based on this version: 2016, CD, Finisterian Dead End (Limited edition, Digipak)
http://www.metal-archives.com/reviews/Stangala/Klañv/568938/valleyofsteel/384577
Track Listing:
1. Bigoudened an Diaoul: Orinoù 07:56
2. Hent loar 04:24
3. Lutuned an noz 04:03
4. Klañv 04:15
5. N'eus ket dremmwel hiviz 05:13
6. Jan 04:51
7. Marv int ar martoloded 07:30
8. An Ankoù hag ar vor 08:56
Total Length: 47:08
"Klañv" means "Ill" or "Sick" in Breton language.
Line-up:
Steven Le Moan - Guitars, Vocals
Thomas Coïc - Drums, Saxophone
Guest/Session Musicans:
Nicolas Le Bellec - Guitars (lead) (track 7)
Ivar Farup - Piano (track 8)
Alexandre Miossec - Vocals (track 2)
Fañch Le Corre - Vocals (track 7)
Jana Blahová - Vocals (female) (track 3)
Odran Plantec - Bombard
Fëarann - Bagpipes
Recording information:
Mastering at Unisound in Örebro, Sweden.
Dimitri Lissilour - Producer
Dan Swanö - Mastering
Steven Le Moan - Producer, Artwork
Steven Le Moan: guitars, voices, production
Thomas Coïc: drums, saxophone
Guest appearances by Odran Plantec (bombard) and Fëarann (bagpipes).
Mastering by Dan Swanö @ Unisound studio, Sweden.
Artwork by Steven Le Moan
Released on CD by Finisterian Dead End records (finisteriandeadend.com)
Released March 24, 2016
Bandcamp - https://stangala.bandcamp.com/album/kla-v
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Stangala/117154354982445
Myspace - https://myspace.com/stangala
ReverbNation - https://www.reverbnation.com/stangala
SoundCloud - https://soundcloud.com/stangala
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/BagadoomBigoudoom
