Emerging from the burgeoning metal scene of Besançon, France, HØLLS is on a mission that is as much psychological as it is musical. Their self-produced debut album, ‘Ill’, is not merely a collection of post-metal tracks evolving between post-hardcore and post-rock with doomy atmospheres (think AmenRa x Cult Of Luna with a glimpse of Oathbreaker and Obscure Sphinx) ; it is a visceral narrative of mental health, trauma, and the suffocating weight of an individualistic society.
Titled ‘Ill’, the album serves as a harrowing narrative of mental decay and the crushing weight of a dehumanized, individualistic society. The thematic backdrop is immediate and unapologetic: through the eyes of a character grappling with past traumas and a world that has turned its back on nature, the band serves up a menu of feverish anxiety and salvific violence.
From the very first seconds, the record plunges into an atmosphere of suffocating intimacy, where gasping breaths give way to the heart-rending howls of vocalist Sarah Chatelain. Her performance is the antithesis of metal’s typical « mystical decorum »; it is raw, unadorned, and often gut-wrenching, echoing the erratic, wild energy of Julie Christmas.
While HØLLS operates within the expansive architecture of post-metal and post-hardcore, they manage to sidestep the genre’s tendency for overly calculated compositions. There is a rare spontaneity to the tracks, anchored by Mickaël Pergaud’s riffs and a rhythm section that provides a tight, metronomic pulse for tracks like « Sick » to build their wall of sound.
However, the band’s refusal to lean into the expected « knockout punch » has become a point of intrigue. Rather than systematically erupting into sonic apocalypse at every climax, they often pivot into haunting, cinematic lulls—spectral waltzes like « Endless Night » that feel more like a lingering threat than a moment of relief.
While some might argue the band occasionally keeps too close an eye on genre titans like Cult of Luna or Neurosis masterminds, there is no denying the sincere, unconstrained energy of this first work. ‘Ill’ is a journey of radical contrasts, a liberating charge that refuses to cheat the listener, proving that in the hands of HØLLS, even the most oppressive loops can offer a moment of cathartic rebellion.
