Band:	Briqueville
Album:	IIII
Style:	Post-metal
Release date:	November 2023

01. Akte XVI
02. Akte XVII
03. Akte XVIII
04. Akte XIX
05. Akte XX

First Amenra did Mass IIII, now Briqueville have come out with IIII... someone should really pop over to Belgium and teach them all how Roman numerals work.

If you’d told me this time last year that Briqueville had a new album out, I would probably have lightly shrugged; 2020’s Quelle was certainly enjoyable, but it didn’t make as much of an impact on me as I had been hoping based on how it was sold to me. However, a riveting display at this year’s ArcTanGent festival ignited some enthuasiasm towards them, and my own growing allegiance to the infallible taste of Pelagic Records compelled me to give the band more attention in the preamble to them releasing their fourth full-length, IIII. As it turned out, as far as instrumental post-metal goes, the project’s output prior to IIII was actually pretty compelling: atmospheric, ominous, at times seriously heavy, II and Quelle offered much to enjoy, and left me eager to encounter more of the same this time around.

Since Quelle, however, there have been some changes; most strikingly, Briqueville are no longer entirely instrumental. I certainly wouldn’t go as far as to say they’re a band with vocals, but one would have to be fairly obtuse to deny the presence of vocals on “Akte XVII”, as semi-sung/semi-spoken baritone croons and striking higher-pitched exaltations contrast one another in the song’s closing stages. There’s also vocal cameos on other songs, but it is this song that makes the most extensive and attention-grabbing use out of them. I would say that use of vocals is elevated by their rarity; I enjoy their presence, but I’m not sure I would want Briqueville to start incorporating them as a prominent feature.

Beyond the vocals, IIII somewhat diverges from its predecessors; while there are definitely heavy songs and passages here, the tone is perhaps more subdued, instead prone to bleak introspection. “Akte XVI” is for large portions stripped down, a single distorted guitar meandering around for several minutes against a dark ambient backdrop before eventually recruiting an tribal beat to drive it towards its understated conclusion. It’s a bold move to dedicate 7 minutes of a 38-minute album to such low-key music, and Briqueville demonstrate no urgency to shift gears in the immediate aftermath; while the creepy clean guitar and steady drumbeat that open “Akte XVII” are nothing out of the ordinary for post-metal, the synths add a peculiar flavour, reminding me a tad of later Isis or earlier Cult Of Luna during the tension-building midsection of this song. The gradual texturing of heavier guitars, additional synths and ambience, and eventually the aforementioned vocals does give “Akte XVII” a sense of purpose, and the resulting atmosphere is ultimately compelling.

Still, even after this, Briqueville refrain from unleashing the heaviness they demonstrated themselves capable of on past songs. “Akte XVIII” is a slow burn, one that opens with intriguing cello sounds and tinkling melody to remind me of acts such as When Icarus Falls or Sunset In The 12th House, and then subsequently incorporating a whole array of different sounds and elements as it gradually works its way towards a loud yet melodic climax. It’s a nice encapsulation of the latest iteration of Briqueville, and while it’s not as unidirectional, closing 12-minuter “Akte XX” recapitulates a lot of what is brought to the table on “Akte XVIII”.

Without quite being a full reinvention, Briqueville is a clear departure from their past work; nevertheless, the act remains one of the more compelling in the instrumental post-metal sphere, offering more than enough here in terms of songwriting ingenuity to distinguish themselves from the repetitive soft/loud crowd. My abiding memory of that ArcTanGent performance is the groovy heaviness of “IV” (see, they do know how to write the number properly) from their self-titled debut; it would be unfortunate for Briqueville to leave that kind of approach behind altogether, as this album is perhaps a bit of a lightweight listening experience, but the new sounds that they’ve incorporated into the musical equation of IIII are absolutely positive additions.