It’s always nice to come across something a little more unique and Noire’s The Tracks Of The Hunted EP sees the band blending acoustic/ambient approaches with a more traditional black metal style and the unlikely blend really works.
The Tracks Of The Hunted leans a bit more heavily on the softer approaches, using the black metal elements sparingly – aside from third track The Tracks Of The Hunted, the EP plays out in an acoustic/ambient style with only slight hints of black metal courtesy of some background screamed/bellowed vocals, but that’s not to say it won’t appeal to fans of the heavier genres because there’s a stunning darkness lurking just underneath the music, particularly in the sparse ambient sections.
There’s a few repeating melodies interwoven into the music that crop up multiple times on the piece, giving the listener the impression that The Tracks Of The Hunted is more like one continuous song rather than six unique ones, and the way it flows from one song to the next simply can’t be faulted. The acoustic guitar is something to behold; whilst fairly simplistic for the most part, it really adds a lot to the piece as a whole and the delivery is beautifully emotive.
Admittedly at times, the EP does feel a little repetitive, particularly during the more drawn-out ambient sections, but as a whole it is a spine-tingling release and Noire have really created something unique – and in a sea of bands that all sound very similar in the black metal genre, that can only be a good thing.
8/10
