CoC : Forbidden Site - Sturm und Drang : Review

Forbidden Site - _Sturm und Drang_
(Solistitium, 1997)
by: Andrew Lewandowski (7 out of 10)

This band is just in it for the chicks. In fact, Forbidden Site is France's equivalent of Cradle of Filth, but these Frenchmen delve far deeper into erotic realms than those stodgy Brits ever could. Love and anguish combat in Forbidden Site's utterly melodramatic version of black metal; introspective moments of tranquillity, sensuously prolonged riffs, and operatic wails (a hybrid of Tom G. Warrior on "Mesmerized" and Pavarotti on an aphrodisiac) are subverted by descents into the depravity of breakneck, yet never diverging from the romantic melodies of the doomier moments, black metal. Lead singer Romarik d'Arvycendres even totes out his acoustic guitar on "Evanescensce" and piano on "Renaissance Noire" to support his gothic crooning without the cumbersome aid of guitars or drums. Actually, "Renaissance Noire" is the best forum for Forbidden Site's aesthetic, and when a black metal disc's best moment arrives in the form of an instrumental, you can rest assured that this is no great metal album. While the combination of beautiful females whispering in French and prolonged foreplay which attains a violent climax may equal good sex, it only produces repulsively pretentious music: a horribly conceived, yet, nevertheless, surprisingly well executed album -- but not well enough.

(article published 17/11/1997)