SORTILÈGE, in league with High Roller Records are set to rerelease their legendary self titled 1983 EP along with their 1981 demo in addition to 3 bonus tracks in English! To be released 17/11/2023.

Listening to this release it’s easy to identify one thing – this band have stood the test of time. It’s interesting reviewing music over 4 decades old as you can compare it to the countless acts that have followed.

The first 5 tracks of this rerelease features the eponymous self titled EP put out in 1983. In hindsight the band were way ahead of their time, thinking about their contemporaries at the time. The riffs fly around with reckless abandon, the vocals are equally unhinged and the structures are not as straightforward as you’d initially think. Don’t be deceived, this is still straight up metal but it’s ambition reaches further than the majority of what was happening in the NWOBHM at the time. Putting out the EP with the vocals in pure French is a bold move too, which I’m certain limited their appeal at the time but gives the listener more opportunity to focus on the layered guitars and storming riffs underneath rather than picking out individual words. The 5 songs wail and thrash at quite a pace without ever letting up on the momentum. The guitars are nice and thick, and just has that classic sound of a humbucker guitar being cranked through a Marshall, no mistake there. The vocals sit comfortably on top, never being lost in the mix or peaking. The bass is audible throughout, often diverting from the guitar. The drums are decent enough, keeping the tracks moving along but sometimes sounds a little thin, but those tom fills are always great to hear.

The next part of the release are 2 tracks from the 1981 demo, put out shortly before the aforementioned EP. The intensity is dialled back initially but still retains that heavy metal power in its delivery. The quality of the recording is what you’d expect from a demo of that era, it all sounds very much live and there’s no studio trickery hear, it’s all very genuine. This all adds to its charm. These 2 tracks really push the ambition of the band, and the structures are really quite outstanding, particularly for a band still finding their feet in the industry at the time.

Closing this release are 3 tracks from the EP recorded exactly the same but with English vocals! It sounds great, it’s clearly been done at the same time as the original recording and there is no loss of charisma. The accent is still pretty thick however and not all of it is understandable, but like the original it’s all about the delivery and passion behind the vocal melodies. All in all, its a nice touch particularly for long term fans.

Conclusion

A timely rerelease of an influential band that is often under appreciated. Without bands like this, the metal landscape would look entirely different, and will simultaneously allow the band to find new fans as well as give something back to those long term die-hards.

THENWOTHM Score: 9/10

Label links:

https://www.hrrecords.de
https://www.facebook.com/hrrecords
https://www.instagram.com/highrollerrecordsofficial