Oiseaux-Tempête‘s self-titled 2013 debut album on Sub Rosa brilliantly mixed cinematic post-rock with field recordings from Greece, recorded in 2012 during that countries time of social upheaval and protest. This May the band returns to the label with their LP ÃœTOPIYA?. Seemingly drawn to cultural dischord as the animating force in their dramatic music, the new album includes field recordings from the politically charged city of Istanbul, as well as Sicily.
The core members of the band are still the multi-instrumentalists Frédéric D. Oberland and Stéphane Pigneul (members of both Farewell Poetry and Le Réveil des Tropiques), as well as Ben McConnell (Beach House and Marissa Nadler), but on the new record the trio is also joined by bass clarinet virtuoso Gareth Davis and vocalist G.W. Sok (The Ex, Cannibales & Vahines). Sok featured prominently on the album’s first single, “On Living“, where his riveting recitation of a poem by the Turkish poet Nazim Hikmet added a punk rock grit and historical framework to the record.
This new cut, “Omen: Divided We Fall“, is mostly instrumental, though it does include chilling field recordings at the song’s close. Combined with the band’s masterful sense for lyrical storytelling, as well as film score ambiance, this track brilliantly sets the stage for the epic drama that follows. Truly elevated work here!
