With the end of the LLN movement, French black metal saw a shift towards more refined playing and a celebration of French culture from the middle-ages that was entrenched in triumph and rejection of the current age rather than the intense sorrow of their precursors. Noctis were a footnote within this style of black metal band and existed only for a brief period of two years and in that time managed to release two demos that would eventually be released as one compilation years later.
The second demo Out of the Shadow of Legend starts out with what seems to be a piano introduction but in fact a very well composed piece that does more than establish atmosphere as it cycles through a lot of the melodic ideas that would feature later on the following songs. What’s of note is how this song “On the Ruins of Ancient Beliefs” sticks to the rudiments of metal composition to create music that is more than dumbed down classical and in line with metal.
The songs are structured around the relationship between the guitars and the synths/piano. In isolation, the riffs are taken from the Swedish black metal style as they obediently remained grasped to the scales from which they derive. This is countered by their ability to take the works of French medieval composers like Guillaume De Machaut and to incorporate the most basic ideas into their riffs. The pianist on the other hand completely avoids many of the trappings that “symphonic” bands use. First of all, the synths are used methodically and aren’t a constant wash of long chords taken from a Disney soundtrack. Most importantly, there are actual melodies that enhance the medieval character of the riffs and on the ending of “And Gods Servants Created Hell on Earth” provide actual counterpoint for a climatic ending. There is a great variety of riffs on this demo and some excellent use of acoustic guitar but what this record suffers from is a lack of cohesion and exploration in its ideas. Ultimately there are too many things happening in its short runtime to really be captivated by this demo.
The first demo Glorious Times is very similar in style but the weaker production, the sloppier playing as well as the band still trapped within the weight of their influences make this a much less convincing release. Though that is not to say that there are no redeemable qualities, the band still have some excellent ideas as seen on some of the guitar acrobatics on “As Dawn Comes” as well as its bizarre ending chorus. Overall it sticks way too close to composition style of Satyricon’s Dark Medieval Times and it’s only a year later on that the band would start exploiting their own style with a lot more flair.
Noctis provide an enjoyable occasional listen but lack the vision and maturity to offer a powerful listening experience and like many bands within metal’s canon fall into the all too common “what if” category as there will never be a full length based of this material. For the time being Out of the Shadow of Legend is a good breath of fresh air when one craves the style of early KPN and Osculum Infame.
