{"id":540727,"date":"2026-03-23T16:32:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-23T16:32:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/540727\/"},"modified":"2026-03-23T16:32:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T16:32:09","slug":"via-doloris-guerre-et-paix-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/540727\/","title":{"rendered":"Via Doloris – Guerre et Paix Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Sometimes a record practically introduces itself with a shrug. Take Via Doloris and their debut Guerre et Paix. The band name? A shortened nod to the Via Dolorosa. The death of Jesus and some \u201csuffering-as-identity\u201d vibes that we\u2019ve seen a thousand times in black metal. The album title? Literally War and Peace in French. The cover art? You\u2019ve seen it. You have seen it\u2014some grayscale, vaguely haunted expanse that could just as easily front a dozen other releases clogging up the \u201cgive in to your anger\u201d section. None of this is a crime on its own, but stack all these choices together, and they start pinging that lizard-brain reviewer alarm: this looks like a mid-tier black metal album before a single note even plays. Then there\u2019s the promo copy, dutifully promising \u201ca passage through pain in search of meaning, and the distant, flickering promise of rebirth.\u201d Is this thing good, or is it just another entry in the ever-expanding catalog of metal-by-numbers?<\/p>\n

Via Doloris is the solo project of guitarist Gildas le Pape, who spent several years performing live with Satyricon, and Guerre et Paix marks his debut under the moniker. The sound is a comfortable middle ground between more straightforward, blast-driven, 2nd-wave riffing and more expansive, atmospheric impulses, with le Pape\u2019s melody-forward riffs driving the compositions. His guitar work never veers too far off the blackened path, but he imbues each riff with a sneaky melodicity and deploys a fair amount of variety in his 6-stringed attack. There are notes of Havukruunu-esque pagan black melodies (\u201cCommunion\u201d), swirling Blut Aus Nord icy arpeggios (\u201cOmnipr\u00e9sents\u201d), and searing, Anaal Nathkrakh-flavored bouts of black metal destruction (\u201cFor The Glory\u201d). Throughout it all, le Pape\u2019s knack for catchy, multi-faceted blackened riff-craft shines through. The parts are at once hypnotic and aggressive, and often deepened through intricate guitar layers, allowing songs to flow seamlessly between movements. I\u2019ve found the entrancing outro to \u201cUltime Tourment\u201d or the Fluisteraars-like motif of \u201cVisdommens Vei 1\u201d stuck in my head for weeks during the review, a testament to the strength of the guitar parts on display and to their immersive effect.<\/p>\n

The songs on Guerre et Paix largely sit in the 6\u20137 minute range, and while Via Doloris doesn\u2019t always wring every possible peak out of that runtime, le Pape makes it feel purposeful more often than not. A track like \u201cUn Franc Soleil\u201d is built around an engaging central riff that subtly evolves as the song progresses, even if it stops just shy of a full-blown crescendo. This approach carries across the record: rather than leaning on dramatic shifts, le Pape favors gradual layering and textural changes, letting songs breathe and unfold at their own pace. The songwriting tends to stick to a core tempo and feel, with variation coming from added guitar layers, drum patterns, or ambient elements rather than structural overhauls. While this can create a meditative consistency that makes certain parts and songs blend together, it ultimately works in the album\u2019s favor, giving Guerre et Paix a cohesive, immersive flow that reinforces the strength of its ideas over the course of a full listen.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

This is all buoyed by a seriously sharp production job. Guerre et Paix sounds immaculate. Produced by le Pape and mixed with Nicolai Codling, it opts for clarity over the genre\u2019s usual haze with crystalline guitars front and center, cutting cleanly through even the densest passages. They\u2019re icy but precise, with every layered phrase coming through intact instead of dissolving into mush. Frost (Satyricon, 1349) turns in a characteristically stellar session performance, and the mix gives him room to flex. The drums have a warm, natural quality to them that showcases a varied performance. It allows the more subdued sections to breathe while still filling the mix during more intense, blast-heavy moments. It all comes together to elevate the album\u2019s most dynamic touches, letting details like the choral swell in \u201cOmnipr\u00e9sents\u201d or the melancholic closing progression of \u201cCommunion\u201d land exactly as they should.<\/p>\n

As it turns out, Guerre et Paix lands comfortably above the genre\u2019s overcrowded middle tier. Via Doloris has delivered an immersive and nuanced atmospheric black metal record, carried by memorable, melodic guitar work that unfolds beautifully over contemplative songs. It sounds amazing and marks le Pape as a promising voice within the space. This is way better than the somewhat generic packaging would suggest.<\/p>\n

\ufeff<\/p>\n

Rating: 3.5\/5.0
DR: 10 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Season of Mist<\/a>
Websites: viadoloris.bandcamp.com<\/a> | instagram.com\/via.doloris<\/a>
Releases Worldwide: March 20th, 2026<\/p>\n

\n\tGive in to Your Anger:\n<\/p>\n