Live in Despair, Die in Solitary

China is a new comer to the world of metal, starting back to the Tang Dynasty (hehe), metal has become a growing fad in many, many distinct parts of China; Shandong, Beijing, Shanghai, etc. More distinctly, black metal itself has gained ample attention, producing many bands like Deep Mountains, Zuriaake and Be Persecuted, but these bands sound nothing like Esthète Sinistre. Esthète Sinistre is more sinister (+1), more choir-esque and more beautiful than you'd expect for a debut EP. Here we have two very talented musicians using every instrument in their arsenal to give us a nearly 27 minute opus of the more atmospheric strain of post-black metal.

The music, itself, is very solid on this 27 minute EP. The band utilizes many stereotypes of the black metal scene, but they add their own mixtures to it as well. They use tremolo picking, the wall of sound technique, some tech death riffing, I kid you not, and eveeen sludge at times, their vocals are as horrifyingly dreadful as a draugr, their instruments (including a very prominent piano) produce a sound many post-black metal bands only hope to achieve. From time to time, acoustic guitars and keyboards make their way to the forefront, emanating a feel a la Summoning and other atmospheric black metal bands. The keyboards create an ambiance unsurpassed. The drums are your standard affair, blast beats and fillers, but aren't bad in any way; they are effective. The aforementioned vocals are akin to the more depressive suicidal black metal scene, they reek of desperation and despair, I'm not sure if they are in English or Cantonese, but I'm gonna guess it's the latter.

Honestly, the band members themselves sound like they've been around the metal scene for years. An interesting find and worthy demo to get your hands on! Wish they'd allow a download off their bandcamp, though.