Through two decades of focused triangulation the foundational truth of the universe is accessed, caught and released, in sacro-spiritual refraction. In gaining access to the point where light and dark hover in one another’s ecstatic thresholds Paris, France-based trio ALUK TODOLO necessarily accept motorik possession in performing aerobic feats, impossible to interrupt gyral wandering which naturally falls into place here on their fifth full-length album. Prepared as simmering, on-the-edge performance meant to burst into tracers and haloes in mind ‘Lux‘ is athletic in its step and intoxicating in effect as its trance unfolds, a live performance well-tested before being put to tape. In a personal singular space this work takes on a separate meditative function, a granular exploration of body-high level energies capable of raising the heart rate and crossing the eyes into the participants fractionated portion of their own delirious osmotic access.

Aluk Todolo formed circa 2004 featuring fellowes who’d been involved in the greater Grenoble black metal reality in the late 90’s and to some degree in the 2000’s between the esoteric Vediog Svaor and irreverent Diamatregon among other trips into noise, experimental rock, and garage rock over the years. This particular formation took inspiration from the philosophical intent of black metal, the jammed and improvised side of psychedelia as well as the more abstract side of zeuhl all of which coalesce into what they’ve come to describe as occult rock. This was far more abstract when they’d started with a self-titled 7″ (‘Aluk Todolo‘, 2006) which had elements of drone and hypnotic psychedelic rock merging in their ominous intent. This was put to test in an ancient cave via an intensely raw, noisome rehearsal quality debut album (‘Descension‘, 2007) soon after. This is the band at thier most destructive, painfully presented in ear bleeding experiment and disassociated movements often earning them a noise rock tag likely out of few other fitting observations to apply. While these aren’t exciting records without some manner of context their explanation made good sense at the time. This won’t be the context we need for ‘Lux‘ but it is where we begin to see the dark seeding of their atmospheric reach begin to form via the trios chemistry found through improvisation.

Their second album (‘Finsternis‘, 2009) focused the band into droning slow-pulsed ritualistic dirges fed by guitar noise, harshened by feedback and given a sparse treatment which’d been bleak as earlier atmospheric sludge but focused on the simple trance of those movements hitting in a row. While I’d enjoyed the first 7″ from the band the popularity of their second album baffled me at the time, I’d no patience for it and the description of their work (“instrumental occult rock”) had me thinking something a la Blind Idiot God or whatever and instead it was closer to certain Skullflower or Corrupted records, at least as dark and noisome. For my own taste the defining record, or, the breakthrough take that’d awakened a living and breathing animal within their triangulation was ‘Occult Rock‘ (2012) and not because they’d opened with a bristling black metal drone but the greater double LP sized obsession it’d been at the time. In searching for psychedelic music dynamics in extreme metal the tendency is to point to guitar effects rather than the erratic rhythms, freakouts and emergent thoughts found in psychedelia and in this case it felt like Aluk Todolo understood where motorik muse, jazz fusion and droning focus could fit perfectly within pitch black atmosphere. If you don’t quite get the hype at face value or haven’t heard the band before I’d suggest their third record is the one that’d put them on the map, the easiest to pick up and take the ride with. In direct comparison ‘Lux‘ is more intimate, connective and focused on its flowing state.

Methodical in their generation of hypnosis and delivered without any spoken or sung elements the repetitive nature of Aluk Todolo‘s rhythms appears built for a jammed-at live session for conveying spiritually driven incantations and muse where the ear must exist with the musician in the moment and make no assumptions, to follow along the road presented. This refreshed sound (via ‘Occult Rock‘) was probably closer to what I’d expected the band to sound like when I’d read their descriptions early on, not quite strangled out a la Caspar Brotzmann Massaker and certainly not as black metal-built and sequenced as Oranssi Pazuzu but likely to appeal to fans of each at the time with some additional appeal to folks who could be sold on instrumental noise rock inspired sounds taken to an atmospheric and syncopated extreme. The appeal of that third record poured directly into the grooves of ‘Voix‘ (2016), their fourth LP, not necessarily a direct follow-up but an album created under similar conditions with different results. Exploring shimmering post-rock, noise rock, and psych-toned intensities while exaggerating their use of groaning and humming guitar noise meant the band not only reached a more diverse audience but entertained with their surrealistic live performances.

Eight years later and most lasting expectations for ‘Lux‘ pertain to the style explored on the previous two Aluk Todolo albums, the tightly performed feeling of a composition but stretched into a free-yet-focused jam session. The only expectation on my part for this album was some manner of hypnotic, grooving hard basslines as those were some of my favorite moments that’d persisted across the length of their previous two albums, particularly the all-killer boons felt to this degree on on ‘Voix‘. I’d temper expectations far away from more of the exact same though. As ‘Lux‘ is presented with a deeper warmth of production and with far more of a focus on guitar effects to help build their rhythm and lead driven landscape here. Beyond generally improved production values (via Kerwax Analog Recording Studios) every step of the creation of this album was done using analog tech from the recording, the final mix/master, and even the pressing. This accounts for the warmth and presence of this record standing out quite strongly next to their previous records, the tics and custom touch of the band is yet in tact but I’d suggest they’ve never been quite this directorial, opting to let the blood flow rather than curb or ensorcell it out of focus.

Any observations on specific songs here will meet a reasonable challenge here as I was most impressed with the second song (“••●●••••●●•●●”) out the gates, naturally where the rhythmic heart of the full performance begins to splay and direct the ear, the point where their work flickers with its hottest energies. To my ear it’d recalled a bit of a Glenn Branca-esque effect in terms of an emergent rhythm and how it might meet room-resonant guitar feedback. Though this’d all been a point of squaring-up and linking with their repetitious movements I was most thoroughly floored by the dark stretches of “●●•●●••” thanks to its bounding determination and the ominous flinging-forth of its main guitar lines. Fans of the more meditative or space-rocking points of ‘Kosmonument‘ where black metal guitar noise and shuffling rhythms meet up with the throb of a bassline’s cross-legged step. There is great parity in how these songs develop in this analog studio capture and how they play out in a live setting but I will say that there is some additional character and temperament which comes within this particular production which allows some additional accuracy the detail-hungry ear will appreciate. As is the case with any trip, you results might be more intense in a singular, uninterrupted sitting particularly during the first half of ‘Lux‘ as Aluk Todolo directs the ear down its passage with great focus.

The movement from “••●●•••” to “●●•●●••••●●••” repeats the general effect of induction as Side B digs a bit deeper into actively separate resonances, each instrument working together but sprawling to a different corner of the ear. “●●•●●••••●●••” particularly caught my ear for a few of its bigger interjections, specifically the demanding turn of the bassline (around ~2:39 minutes in) which briefly recalls early 90’s NoMeansNo, that level of waveringly angered jazz fusion tampered rhythm, but of course still tied within the bounds of space rock drift and kraut n’ kosmische metallic dread; The tension of the whole performance hasn’t let up by “••●” but it does eventually allow some space within the motorized, steady beating trompe served thus far. At this point, around the first three listens or so, I had to admire how consistent the anchor of the drums were. This is of course part of Aluk Todolo‘s signature developed from album to album yet Antoine Hadjioannou (Gunslingers) particularly impresses for the level of tension and control he brings to a space where unpolished improvisation or jammed-out solo breaks are almost expected but never arrive. In this way the root of the band’s character is set by the focused connectivity of the trio, again continually riding the crest of dread rather than falling into doom entirely, making these dark waves possible via very subtle play with tempo, odd or otherwise.

There is of course unlimited magick available here to those who’d access it and quickly accept the trance given, nodding wide-eyed into the coming scathe of the strobing abyss depicted. This thoroughly entertaining instrumental work is not only above average in its nigh sinister conviction but its ability to compel imagery from the shadows. At its best ‘Lux‘ is pure momentum incited by the curiosity of the listener, an activation of the mind through what is essentially freakout rock, body music well paired with stand-and-stare lysergic venture. As a listening experience it is almost difficult to deny Aluk Todolo‘s greater body of work due focus as it plays, especially as familiarity arrives and this locked-in step becomes its own type of dark melodic entrancement. I would suggest the listener not only explore this album to the point of knowledge but seek out live performances, in person or on video, to reinforce the effect that comes with familiarity. A very high recommendation.

https://aluktodolo.bandcamp.com/album/lux

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