One of the cool things about post-metal is the virtually infinite leeway artists have to be as light or heavy as they like. Among my favorite artists in the genre are those who are masterful at balancing both sides. Përl has handcrafted a particularly dichotomous brand of post-metal in Paris, France, since 2008, drawing inspiration from the chiaroscuro art style characterized by the strong contrast between light and dark. This can be particularly difficult to execute because the opposing elements must be balanced impeccably in addition to being individually striking. How well has Përl mastered chiaroscuro on their fourth full-length record, Architecture du Vertige?
True to form, Përl paints with a wide variety of aural hues. Architecture du Vertige has a lot in common with the artistic post-metal of fellow countrymen Matrass, with burly bass grooves grappling with a charismatic female vocalist. Aline Boussaroque’s harsh vocals verge on hardcore or, occasionally, screamo in a way reminiscent of Laudare (sans cello). Conversely, her gentle croons are like a glossy lacquer coating, at times venturing into indie-pop or hip-hop territory. The heavy and light segments replace one another constantly, sometimes with a smooth ebb (“Au Royaume des songes”) and other times with a rough jerk (“La chute”). It’s a testament to Përl’s skill that they can work with so many influences not found in your typical post-metal record and sound confident while doing so.
All three core band members have spectacular synergy together. In addition to Boussaroque, Architecture du Vertige features Bastien Venzac on bass guitar and Thibault Delafosse on percussion.1 Refreshingly, both Venzac and Delafosse feel like equal partners with Boussaroque. The tom-heavy drum rhythms serve as transitions between sections and interplay with the bass lines to create compelling grooves. Delafosse responds accordingly to Boussaroque’s coarse screams and honeyed singing with blast beats or lightly syncopated rhythms. Her light rapping in “Naufragée des nuages” and “Fjara” lends entrancing verve and, surprisingly, is one of my favorite aspects of Architecture du Vertige. “Fjara” is, in fact, a Sólstafir cover, boldly slotted in the middle rather than tacked on at the end. Përl fleshed their version out considerably, with velvety passion imbued in each syllable and a smooth saxophone2 carefully woven into the latter half. I don’t know whether this trio has been together since the beginning, but it sure sounds like it.
But for some reason, Përl seems to lose their fire halfway through. The impressive momentum starts to peter out with the wintery electronic pulses of “Arcipelago,” which might have been a nice change of pace if not for what follows. “Land’s End”—the only song with any English lyrics—is something of a jumble. The peppy indie-pop choruses sound out of place, and the muddled vocal layers at the end stand in stark contrast with the hypnotic multi-tracked vocals in “Naufragée des nuages” earlier. Worse, closer “Que l’éclat fasse demeure” experiences a dearth of energy for minutes on end before surging to life in a whirlwind conclusion that can’t fully make up for it. I will say that this is when the most interesting guitarwork happens, as the guitar tends to take a backseat to the bass before this point.
It turns out that Architecture du Vertige is as dichotomous in memorability as it is stylistically. The front half is great, though with the caveat that one of the best songs is a (well-executed) cover. Unfortunately, the songwriting loses much of its luster in the back half, which ultimately holds Architecture du Vertige back as a whole. The members of Përl complement each other well, and they’ll be a force to be reckoned with if they can manage to write an entire record with the same energy as the first half. There is likely no better genre than post-metal to embody the chiaroscuro concept, and Përl has still put forth one of the more convincing efforts that I’ve heard. Stumbles notwithstanding, Përl is too talented to remain in obscurity.
Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Self-Release
Websites: perl.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/perl.fr
Releases Worldwide: October 24th, 2025
The post Përl – Architecture du Vertige Review appeared first on Angry Metal Guy.
