For nearly fifteen years, French duo Alcest (percussionist Winterhalter and songwriter/vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Neige) have had one of the most distinctive sounds in modern metal. They helped pioneer the blackgaze subgenre, which fuses brutal black metal trappings and beautiful shoegaze transcendence. The following they’ve established over the course of their career comes most notably from the how well they combine hellish and heavenly sonic elements with unmatched fluidity, impact, and confidence. This month, their sixth LP Spiritual Instinct will arrive via Nuclear Blast. To celebrate this new chapter in the band’s saga, we reached out to Neige for a retrospective take on the Alcest tunes he feels move him the deepest, to both beautiful and crushing places. Ranging...