Après La Nuit – Aller-Retour (Digital/CD Album – Echozone)
Three years after their debut album, Richard Abdeni (formerly of Les Anges De La Nuit) and Marilyne B. return as Après La Nuit with their second album, “Aller-Retour.”
The album features 13 tracks that stay very much in line with their debut and feel like a direct continuation of Les Anges De La Nuit, this time enriched with female vocals alongside Richard Abdeni’s voice. The duo’s sonic identity is easy to define: a danceable, melancholic form of Electro-Wave. Its strength — and at the same time its main weakness — lies in the reliance on a constant, repetitive formula. This approach can be infectious, yet also becomes monotonous due to the lack of real diversity. The lyrics are predominantly in French, though a few tracks include English vocals. Occasionally, a song stands out thanks to a slightly more pronounced lead.
I continue to believe that Après La Nuit is a band with far greater potential than what they have revealed so far. This follow-up certainly doesn’t sound bad, but it doesn’t quite reach the level of a top-tier album either. (Rating:7).
Listen to “Rêve”:
https://echozone.bandcamp.com/track/r-ve
I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.
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