French progressive death metal quartet Fractal Universe have made quite a name for themselves over the past few years. Not only are they signed to the esteemed Metal Blade Records, but both of their first two LPs—2017’s Engram of Decline and 2019’s Rhizomes of Insanity—earned them considerable and deserved praise from critics and genre fans alike. Unsurprisingly, they’ve upped their game yet again with The Impassable Horizon, a thoroughly brutal (yet also intermittently quirky and beautiful) journey that easily ranks as the band’s greatest work to date.
Vocalist/guitarist/saxophonist Vince Wilquin rightly notes that the record is “even more diverse [and] dynamic” than its predecessors, with “more clean vocals” and a “darker and more melancholic” vibe. Furthermore, the group state (in the press release) that they began writing it before Rhizomes of Insanity came out, and they took “about a year” to fully compose it. Interestingly, The Impassable Horizon sees Wilquin providing all of the saxophone solos himself—rather than having guitarist Hugo Florimond’s father do it, as he did on the last album—too.
Conceptually, the sequence investigates how humanity handles death, with a friend of the band—Dr. Arthur Massot—providing psychological insights. Fractal Universe expound, “It partly draws inspiration from Heidegger's concept of 'being-towards-death.' In the philosopher's mind, the question is not 'What is there after death?' but rather 'What does it mean for us to be aware of our own finiteness, and how do we deal with it consciously and subconsciously?' [The term] ‘The Impassable Horizon' is just that.” Thus, there’s plenty to contemplate here musically and lyrically.
Naturally, Fractal Universe kick things off with “Autopoiesis,” a thunderous display of relentless percussion, soaring guitar lines, and guttural decrees. The musicianship is impeccably precise and exploratory, with a wide array of instrumental changeups and vocal shifts (between clean singing and growling) evoking the dizzying variety of Between the Buried and Me and the operatic majesty of Native Construct. Subsequent tracks—like “A Clockwork Expectation,” “Interfering Spherical Scenes,” “Falls of the Earth,” and “A Cosmological Arch”—follow similar trajectories yet sufficiently offer their own specialties (such as Periphery-esque djent assaults and Rivers of Nihil-esque saxophone segues).
Elsewhere, the music gets considerably more serene and/or stately, such as on the significantly tranquil and luscious “Black Sails of Melancholia” (which also highlights Wilquin’s angelic harmonies). The same can be said about the latter half of “Epitaph,” whereas closer “Flashes of Potentialities (Unplugged)” predictably emphasizes acoustic guitars, delicate singing, and organic percussion. It’s a powerful way to end in many respects, feeling like the full realization of the band’s gentler side after having teased it throughout the preceding material.
Really, The Impassable Horizon offers continuously impressive and captivating juxtapositions between Fractal Universe’s monstrous and mellow personas. Every aspect—the instrumentation, the stylistic variety, the songwriting, the singing, the production, etc.—shows growth and care, making it seem like something the quartet were clearly building toward all along. It’s not revolutionary, but it is immensely refined, adventurous, and enjoyable; thus, Fractal Universe may not have been around for very long, but they’ve already situated themselves amongst the best at what they do.
