Genune are the first band from Romania that I’ve ever encountered. The post-black metal outfit have landed firmly under my radar with their third album Infinite Presence. As a measure of their quality, the record comes to you via Consouling Sounds. Conceived as a “reflection on the fleeting nature of life and a celebration of memory and gratitude”, (the PR says) this album pulls off the rare feat of being uplifting black metal. Despite the heaviness of the guitars, the might of the blasting beats and the growling vocals, this record will make you feel better after listening to it. Mission accomplished chaps.
Opening with ‘The Sun Will Always Shine’, the song fires hard on a fuselage of blast beats and shoegazey guitars before dropping into a dreamy passage of clean vocals and shimmering guitar sounds. Drummer Abel Păduret explores every facet of his kit, as the track shifts dynamic from the calm to the stormy. The harder black metal vocals (from Victor Neicutescu) only intervene halfway through, pitched at a nice level that I don’t find off-putting. So many black metal bands fail me when it comes to the vocals. The clean vocals here are nicely layered and harmonised which will hopefully give the band some crossover appeal. Showcasing their vision, they add in some piano before the final gorgeous section of lovely gazey guitars and melodies.
‘Little Fountains’ jumps straight into the black metal beats and roaring guitars, yet the overriding factor is melody, melody, melody as the guitars sweep over you. Drifting into a hazy section of swooning guitars they shift the dynamics at just the right moments between the lusher passages to the harder hits of blackened metal. There are some heartbreaking melodies at work here before the band lean into the home straight of pummelling beats and heavy guitars. The twinned guitar work of Dragos Chiriches and Cosmin Farcău, coupled with some tidy bass work from István Vladăreanu is exceptional.
The powering riffs and angular guitar lines of ‘Stay A Little Longer’ align closely to Kvelertak who expertly fused black metal to straight up rock n’ roll. I’m all for this as it adds another element to their sound and offers a wider sonic spectrum for future releases. The clean vocals sound distinctly Eastern European and that’s not a bad thing either as it gives the band their own unique identity. Taking a completely unexpected twist the track veers into lovely Van Halen sounding synths with a weirdly off-key element that I hope is intentional. It’s oddly disorientating, so I reckon it is intended.
Title track ‘Infinite Presence’ is a delicate acoustic instrumental track that acts as little moment of quiet reflection amidst the bluster. It’s pretty but the inclusion of string squeaks (is that even the right term?) distracts me somewhat. ‘To Not Grow Old’ wastes no time getting down to business with speedy blast beats and waves of distorted guitar. The clean vocals have a lovely late 80s goth vibe to them, yet another feather in the cap. There’s another nod to the 80s with some class burbling synths that redirect the nastiest sounding track into something more tangible.
I do like the dichotomy when bands who present bright artwork and romantic song titles for black metal. Yes, Deafheaven pioneered that concept over 10 years ago with the classic Sunbather but I’m still a sucker for it. The gorgeous ‘I Want You Here’ ends the album with a driving black metal attack that subsides into a beautiful sea of swooning guitars that borrow heavily from Deafheaven’s ‘Come Back’. Hey, at least the band admit that the San Francisco act are an influence. The song showcases Genune’s ability with song structure as the crushingly heavy sections are driven by an emotional vocal. The switches between melody and metal are fluid and give the song a dramatic flow. Ending with the sound of the sea lapping against the shore is another lovingly little nod to Deafheaven.
When you identify upfront your influences as Deafheaven and Alcest I’m going to be drawn in. Genune state it loud and clear and actually deliver. The cover has a lovely bright orange hue giving no indication that it might be a black metal band. The song titles don’t have dark connotations, and the inclusion of clean vocals now and then always wins me over. Having said that, there’s enough going on with this album to give Genune their own little slot in the pantheon of great crossover bands. Infinite Presence is certainly closely related to Sunbather, and I have absolutely no problem with that. Highly recommended.
