Dark, magnetic, and eighties-reminiscent, Palissade is the first full-length studio album by French-Canadian band, Palissade. Based in Quebec City, Palissade previously released 2 tracks from the album as a demo in 2016. They also released a 4-track EP, Éclats, in 2017 that does not share any tracks with this album. Palissade is a three-piece trio featuring Martin Labbe on bass, Catherine Roussel on synth, and Thomas Denux-Parent on guitar/vocals.
Palissade (the album) is a beautiful blend of early goth, post-punk, and wave influences, modernized by the mixing within current production technology.
The album was released on February 28th, 2020 and contains 8 tracks:
1. Peur de toi (Afraid of You) - The first track gives this album a powerful start. It begins by inundating the listener with sinister synthesizer and drum machine followed by the familiar jangle of old school dark, post-punk guitar stylings. Mid-range baritone vocals add a nice warmth to the track in contrast with the cold instrumentals. Overall Peur de toi is a captivating darkwave listen.
2. Jusqu'à la mort (Until Death) - In contrast to the first track on this album, Jusqu'à la mort allows the synth and drums to take a softer approach so the post-punk guitaring can take center stage. The guitar follows very catchy, alternating patterns and, at points, even overpowers the vocals. However, this sounds like a very intentional production choice that pays off for this mix.
3. L'hiver (The Winter) - The third track on this album begins with punctuated drum fill accompanied by strong bass lines and leading guitar. All three work in conjunction to create a melancholic tone. The synth comes in strong but not so strong that it overpowers the guitar, bass, and percussion. Similarly could be said about the vocals. Overall, the production mix was an equally-weighted blend that allowed all elements in the track to be present and in focus.
4. Ce néant (This Nothingness) - Ce néant begins with two drum beats that immediately set a slower tempo for the track. The guitar, bass, and synth quickly join in at once with the guitar having a slight lead over the others in prominence. The vocals came in to complete the sound into a mesmerising blend. This was a beautiful track overall.
5. M'éloigner (Move Away) - M'éloigner starts out with a mellow blend of synth and guitaring layered over subtle drum and bass lines. Deeper, more restrained vocals from Thomas enter into the mix after about half a minute of introduction as the song’s bass lines pick up to be more driving. M'éloigner maintains a relaxed and atmospheric tone throughout the track as it works its way into an interlude of beautifully piping guitar stylings.
6. Je ne peux oublier (I Can’t Forget) - The sixth track on this album starts with leading drum patterns, rhythmic bass lines, and cleaner guitaring layered over much softer synthesizer filling the background. The guitar patterns in this track are very catchy and accompanied by softer, deep vocals to allow the guitar work to shine. The melancholy of Je ne peux oublier is a very welcome compliment to the mellow tone of the previous track.
7. Lanterne (Lantern) - The seventh track on this album picks up the pace a bit from tracks 5 and 6. It begins with a heavily guitar and bass-driven introduction while the synth and percussion operate more softly in the background. The vocals are also somewhat softer than the leading instruments. The slightly faster tempo of this track makes Lanterne one of the more dance floor-worthy of the album and the instrumental interlude is nothing short of euphoric.
8. Trop tard (Too Late) - The final track on this album, similarly to a few others on the album, starts with two beats of the drum pattern and is quickly accompanied by prominent guitar and synth with more reserved bass presence. The vocals in this track were well mixed as Trop tard closes out the album by bringing it back to the dark, atmospheric, old-school post punk tone of its opening.
Readers can purchase the album on Bandcamp as well as follow the band on Facebook.