Swamps Of Sadness is the sixth album by Nancy based French Synthwave act Feu Follet, this time around they have a host of guest singers adding variety to the band's sounds. Feu Follet are Alban Blaising with Isabelle B. Baumann, Vlimmer, Thomas Schernikau, Pierre Bastien and Pat Aubier.
The album opens with 21st Century Rats (FT Vlimmer) that has an almost early Depeche Mode feel to the synths with Vlimmer's vocals adding an edge of despair while discussing where we find our selves trying to jump ship for a less poisonous place.
Clare's Vision (Ft Pierre Bastien) is clearly not a happy vision, the mortality they feel within the distressing times they are living through, with the synths breaking down to a soft elegiac passage at odds with the internal rage they feel, every moment of every day, how do you find a way back to more joyful ways of living, well through lighter sounding synths finding a less bleak way of living.
Alice (FT Isabelle B. Baumann) isn't a cover of the Sisters Of Mercy classic, but is similarly doomy, but almost feels like a female fronted Bauhaus in places, apart from the bleeping sounds of the synths and the wide screen backing vocals, we find out just what happens to Alice this time around.
Dreams (FT Thomas Schernikau) is slower more deliberate, Thomas describes the Dreams that have been infesting his slumber, the bass is very squelchy against the hopeful sounding rising synth washes.
Ashes In The Frost (Ft Pat Aubier) has a very autumnal feel to the intro, before the main beats and synth line comes in, with Pat's robotic vocals sounds a lot like Jyrki 69, this has a quite emotional darkwave feel to it, we wonder how you survive the house of steel in this bleak early winter landscape.
Lemaire (Ft Vlimmer) allows Vlimmer to sing on a tune that is less claustrophobic than much of his own material, the drumming seems to mark punctuation points in the song, along with a disco keyboard line that is full of smiles.
No Sorrow (FT Thomas Schernikau) has some cool guitar riffs that come through the synths on this rather dark poppy song, that tries to rise above the sadness and live a life with No Sorrow, not an easy thing to do when life brings you to your knees far too often.
No Destiny (Ft Isabelle B. Baumann) has an almost dubby coldwave feel to a tune that feels ripe for several cool re-mixes, while we wonder at all the things that have stripped Isabelle of any chance of achieving her Destiny, the sci-fi synths slowly pushing her further out into space, this is the most inventive tune on the album.
The album closes with Return Of The Sun (Ft Pat Aubier) its hopeful of a glorious sunrise appearing after the blackest of nights, as if finally we can emerge from the nightmare of the 2020's into some bright brave new world full of hope once more.
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