French cinematic metal band Hypno5e have released ‘Trame Noire’, the title track from their upcoming seventh album, Trame Noire. The album is set for release on 6th November via Pelagic Records.
A video for ‘Trame Noire’ has also been released, directed by Hypno5e‘s Emmanuel Jessua. The video explores themes of memory, loss, dreams, and past events.
Jessua states that he directed the video himself, using models, collages, drawings, and superimposition techniques. He explains that the journey through the video’s spaces and the apparitions within them represent fragments of the character’s memories, showing them confronted with their past and their own image. Jessua adds that memory becomes a material that repeats, distorts, and resurfaces, creating a cycle where the past consistently returns to the present.
Since 2003, Hypno5e have combined heavy riffs with avant-garde experimentation, post-rock, samples, and Latin American influences. Their music is described as cinematic metal. The band have released six albums prior to Trame Noire.
The album title Trame Noire refers to urban architecture designed to preserve darkness for nocturnal species. The album’s narrative takes place over a single night, with its protagonist confronting past trauma as environmental triggers bring back forgotten memories.
Alongside the new album, Hypno5e are releasing a 13LP discography box set to mark over two decades of the band. The box set includes Trame Noire and their previous albums: Sheol (2023), A Distant Dark Source (2019), Alba (2018), Shores of the Abstract Line (2016), Acid Mist Tomorrow (2012), and their debut Des Deux L’une Est L’autre (2007), which will be available on vinyl for the first time.
The album Trame Noire features five tracks. ‘Lost Fires’ begins with keys before moving into sections with Jessua‘s vocals and guitars. ‘Falmer’ includes both melodic and heavy elements. ‘Molecular Angel’ incorporates prog influences with drums, vocals, and ambient instruments. ‘Bare Bones’ is a guitar-driven track with leads and heavy rhythms. The 10-minute title track ‘Trame Noire’ concludes the album.
Hypno5e approached Trame Noire with a focus on a more organic sound, limiting samples to reflect the lyrical focus on a single voice and character. The production style is described as warmer and looser, drawing inspiration from 70s psychedelic rock.
The album artwork, painted by Emmanuel Jessua‘s father and co-lyricist Thierry Jessua, is described as a raw sketch. Emmanuel Jessua states that he wanted to explore a different language for this album, aiming for each release to tell its story uniquely and to avoid predictability.
Trame Noire is the first album created from start to finish with Hypno5e‘s current line-up, which includes Emmanuel Jessua (guitar, vocals), Jonathan Maurois (guitars), Charles Villanueva (bass), and Pierre Rettien (drums).
Emmanuel Jessua comments that the new line-up brings different atmospheres and a more direct and free approach to composing, with all members having more input on decisions and album structures.
The track list for Trame Noire is:
- ‘Lost Fires’
- ‘Falmer’
- ‘Molecular Angel’
- ‘Bare Bones’
- ‘Trame Noire’
Hypno5e can be found online at their official website and Bandcamp page.