Le Dernier Crépuscule

The first proper record from Montreal death-metal band Chthe’ilist is heavy, ambitious and a little weird—descriptors that make this writer giddy. Technical prowess is met with riffs you can latch onto, and the dark forest ambiance is offset by beefy, sometimes funky, bass lines (don’t be scared) that are properly shoved high in the mix. These beastly layers give songs like “Scriptures of the Typhlodians” and “The Voices Beneath the Well” tension and dread, like the feeling of being pulled under water before swallowing that last gasp of air. The production is just murky enough, and Philippe Tougas’ vocals maintain a steady, throaty gurgle, but the individual instruments are very much alive. Chthe’ilist has created its own underworld on Le Dernier Crépuscule. It’s an inhabitable one, too, if you’re not afraid of the dark and can live with getting some fluids on you.