On a chilly, overcast evening in the waning days of winter, the Neptune Theatre in Seattle became a sanctuary for those seeking solace in sound as Alcest, the French pioneers of blackgaze, graced the stage for the first time in seven years. The occasion marked their triumphant return in support of Les chants de l’aurore (2024), their latest opus of ethereal transcendence.
Fans from across the Pacific Northwest and beyond converged on the historic venue, united by anticipation for a night that promised to blur the boundaries between the visceral and the celestial. Joining Alcest on this international odyssey were Iceland’s haunting darkwave trio Kælan Mikla and Japan’s venerable post-rock ensemble MONO—a lineup that underscored music’s unparalleled capacity to dissolve linguistic and cultural divides, weaving a tapestry of shared emotion and collective catharsis.
Kælan Mikla: Gothic Reverie and Primal Catharsis
The evening commenced with Reykjavík’s Kælan Mikla, whose spectral presence immediately ensnared the audience. Opening with “Svört Augu” from their 2021 album Undir Köldum Norðurljósum, the trio—vocalist Laufey Soffía, bassist Margrét Rósa Dóru-Harrysdóttir, and keyboardist Sólveig Matthildur Kristjánsdóttir—crafted a soundscape steeped in gothic romanticism and post-punk austerity. Their aesthetic, a chiaroscuro of lace, leather, and flickering candlelight, mirrored the brooding intensity of their music, which channels the icy expanses of their Nordic homeland.
Drawing comparisons to Bjork and/or Xmal Deutschland’s Anja Huwe, Laufey’s vocals oscillated between whispered incantations and anguished cries, particularly during the harrowing crescendo of “Sólstöður,” where her delivery veered into primal scream therapy. Margrét’s basslines, evocative of The Cure’s Simon Gallup, anchored the set with a pulsating, melancholic groove, while Sólveig’s synths conjured an otherworldly atmosphere reminiscent of early Cocteau Twins. The band’s six-song set culminated in “Hvitir Sander,” a collaboration with Alcest that bridged their shadowy allure with the headliner’s luminous textures. By the set’s close, Kælan Mikla had proven that emotion needs no translation—a theme that would resonate throughout the night.
MONO: The Sublime Architecture of Sound
Following an interlude of anticipatory murmurs, MONO took the stage, their presence commanding a reverent silence. Since their formation in Tokyo in 1999, the instrumental quartet—guitarists Takaakira “Taka” Goto and Hideki “Yoda” Suematsu, bassist Tamaki Kunishi, and drummer Dahm Majuri Cipolla—has redefined post-rock’s potential for narrative grandeur. Their performance, mainly drawn from 2024’s Oath, unfolded like a cinematic pilgrimage, beginning with the delicate strains of “Run On.” What commenced as a whisper of tremolo-picked guitars and glockenspiel chimes swelled into a tempest of distortion, each crescendo a seismic release of tension.
Tracks like “Hear the Wind Sing” epitomized MONO’s mastery of dynamics, juxtaposing passages of near-silent introspection with avalanches of tremolo and thunderous percussion. The inclusion of “Ashes in the Snow” from Hymn to the Immortal Wind (2009) offered a nod to their storied past, its orchestral sweep evoking the existential vastness of a snow-blanketed tundra. Yet it was the closing “Time Goes By” that cemented their set as a tour de force—a 15-minute odyssey of cascading harmonics and apocalyptic climaxes that left the audience breathless, their applause echoing like a thunderclap.
Alcest: A Celestial Tapestry of Light and Shadow
As the stage lights dimmed once more, the Neptune Theatre was transformed into a dreamlike grove. Alcest’s set design—a tableau of Persian rugs, towering floral arrangements, and avian sculptures bathed in indigo and gold—hinted at the duality central to their artistry: the coexistence of brutality and beauty, anguish and euphoria. Frontman Stéphane “Neige” Paut, the band’s visionary architect, took his place alongside drummer Jean “Winterhalter” Deflandre, bassist Indria Saray, and guitarist Pierre “Zero” Corson, their instruments poised to chart a course through realms both terrestrial and astral.
The set erupted with “Komorebi,” Les chants de l’aurore’s opening salvo. Winterhalter’s blast beats collided with Neige’s shimmering arpeggios, the song’s title (translating to “sunlight filtering through leaves”) manifesting in rays of amber light that pierced the venue’s haze. This juxtaposition of aggression and serenity defined the evening, as evidenced by “L’Envol,” which began as a shoegaze reverie before plunging into black metal ferocity. Neige’s vocals, alternating between angelic cleans and guttural shrieks, embodied Alcest’s ethos of duality, a theme further explored in “Améthyste.” Here, a mid-tempo groove underpinned by Saray’s hypnotic bassline gave way to a kaleidoscopic finale of harmonized guitars and Deflandre’s virtuosic fills.
The band’s traversal of their discography showcased their evolution from raw, blackened roots to polished dream-pop sophistication. “Protection” (from 2016’s Kodama) unleashed a torrent of double-kick fury, while “Sapphire” (2019’s Spiritual Instinct) floated on a cloud of chorus pedals and ethereal harmonies. Yet it was the seminal “Écailles de lune” that emerged as the night’s zenith. The track’s oceanic samples dissolved into a maelstrom of tremolo picking and Neige’s tortured screams, only to resolve into a coda of aching vulnerability—clean vocals harmonizing as if echoing across a starlit abyss.
The encore, a two-song benediction, began with “Autre Temps,” its jangly, Marr-style riff a beacon of hope amidst the tumult. As the final notes of “L’Adieu” faded, Neige stood alone, his voice intertwining with the crowd’s in a whispered farewell—a moment of unity that encapsulated the evening’s essence.
In an era fractured by discord, Alcest’s performance transcended mere entertainment, offering instead a sacred space for communion. Their music—a fusion of black metal’s cathartic fury, shoegaze’s enveloping warmth, and post-rock’s narrative scope—served as a reminder of art’s power to heal, unite, and elevate. As attendees filed into the misty night, the weight of the world felt momentarily lifted, replaced by the lingering glow of shared transcendence. In this, Alcest achieved the extraordinary: they did not merely perform, but bestowed a gift of fleeting, fragile grace. What more could one possibly desire?
Alcest
Kælan Mikla
MONO
