FOSCOR are a band hailing from Barcelona, Spain. They were originally a Black Metal band but went into a more Doomy, Atmospheric direction later on. The current release doesn't have much to do with Heavy Metal at all, the best way that I can describe the style of music on this album is Depressive Atmospheric Rock. As the title suggests "Les Irreals Versions" is a "part 2" of their previous release "Les Irreales Visions"; there are five songs from the previous album (plus an older one) "reimagined with new instrumentation and musical ideas", as the band puts it. There is a certain overlap between Metal and Ambient or Minimalist music (think about Atmospheric Black Metal or Dark Ambient projects like WARDRUNA), so I think this kind of bleak Atmospheric Rock will easily find its fans among Metalheads. How does the music stand on its own?

FOSCOR mix Post-Rock riffs, ethereal guitar textures, minimalist piano melodies and bleak atmospherics. The music is bleak and monochromatic in tone.  The songs are like canvasses painted in 50 shades of gray, but at the same time they all stand on their own as individual songs. Even the "title song" (the song with the title of the previous album that is) where we hear a bit of a change in mood in the beginning - it sounds more laid-back and not as depressive as all the other songs - soon slides back into bleakness and melancholy. The guitars are low in the mix, giving more space to the minimalist piano melodies and especially to the vocals that are hauntingly beautiful. The vocals are often the real driving force in the songs, as the instrumentation is rather minimalist, but that is not to say that the playing is bland or boring. On the contrary - we get a lot of interesting leads and melodies. There are some nice synth arrangements, that really add to the music; the atmospheric parts can have an almost cinematic quality to them.

This is an album full of ambiance, haunting melodies and great musical ideas. I can't  judge this album in the context of their discography, but I'm quiet impressed with it as it is. FOSCOR are a quite productive band and there is maturity to their music that seems to come from consistently putting effort into their art. If you're in the mood for dark, melancholic music I can wholeheartedly recommend this album.