Le secret
EP by
Alcest
Released1 May 2005 (2005-05-01)
Recorded2005
GenreBlackgaze[1]
Length27:19
LabelDrakkar
Alcest chronology
Tristesse hivernale
(2001)		 Le secret
(2005)		 Souvenirs d'un autre monde
(2007)
2011 re-recording cover

Le secret (French for "The Secret") is an extended play by French blackgaze band Alcest, released in 1 May 2005 through Drakkar Productions. It is Alcest's first release with creator Neige as sole member, as former members Aegnor and Argoth both left after the 2001 demo Tristesse hivernale, and the only release with Neige as sole performer.

Background and release

According to Michael Nelson, Neige was a pioneer of the fusion genre blackgaze, classifying Le secret as "the birth of blackgaze". He noted that it sounded "like a Cocteau Twins/Burzum collaborative split" and that "[r]oughly half the time, vocals were delivered in an angelic coo; the other half, they were a raw, distant shriek".[1]

Neige wrote the title track when he was 17 years old and considers it the first song he wrote for Alcest, without considering the songs written for Tristesse hivernale.[2] The lyrics of the track "Élévation" come from the eponymous poem by Charles Baudelaire's from his 1857 volume of poetry Les Fleurs du mal. The album was re-recorded and re-released in 2011, with the involvement of drummer Winterhalter.

Track listing

Le secret original track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Le secret" ("The Secret")Neige14:33
2."Élévation" ("Elevation")
12:46
Total length:27:19
Le secret reissue track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Le Secret" (2011 re-recording)Neige13:32
2."Élévation" (2011 re-recording)
  • Charles Baudelaire
  • Neige
13:26
3."Le secret" (original)Neige14:33
4."Élévation" (original)
  • Baudelaire
  • Neige
12:46
Total length:54:17

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Pitchfork6.0/10[4]

Although the original release received little to no attention from critics, the 2011 re-recorded version of the EP received positive reviews. Thom Jurek of AllMusic, stated that "it remains a very special record, as it lays out in total the first aural manifesto that all the work of Alcest to date was based upon, and shows just how far apart the unit is, in content and form, from other shoegaze metal acts. This is the door to a powerful, poetic, unsettling world of bliss that still challenges the sense of hearing even as it delights".[3]

Personnel

Original
  • Neige – vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, drums
2011 version
  • Neige – vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards
  • Winterhalter – drums

References

  1. 1 2 Nelson, Michael (3 January 2014). "Deconstructing: Alcest's Shelter and Metal in a Post-Deafheaven World". Stereogum. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  2. ↑ Blum, Jordan (10 October 2019). "Alcest's 10 Most Emotionally Ravaging Songs, According To Neige". Kerrang!. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  3. 1 2 Jurek, Thom. "Le Secret – Alcest". AllMusic. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
  4. ↑ Currin, Grayson (23 May 2011). "Alcest: Le Secret EP". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
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