Squelette – Tentative D’Homicide
Bigorna Records
Earlier this year French outfit Squelette already released a split EP with fellow Parisians Bromure on Pressure Records – needless to say, but a killer combo indeed! Also on their own Squelette stands its ground though, as previously proven on 2017’s demo cassette and 2019’s self-titled debut EP, as well as on their all new EP for Bigorna Records – “Tentative D’Homicide!
Originally, as the labels on the 7” already suggest, “Tentative D’Homicide” was set for release in 2019 – but small ‘regular’ delays followed up by the ‘rona’ pushed its release back all the way to September 2020. I can only imagine how frustrating this must have been for both label (who had 300+ records laying around with no cover, no inlay, no nothing) and band (who recorded these tracks back in March, 2019 already), but saying that the final result was definitely worth the wait is an absolute understatement in this case!
The release of Squelette’s – what should have been their second 7” but actually is their – third slab of wax is nothing but absolutely beau-ti-ful and a stunning eye-catcher to say the least! Of course the music counts the most, but the artwork, the attention for detail and the craftmanship that was put in the lay-out of the sleeve is sublime! Of course all of Bigorna Records’ previously released records – or any other release that label owner Sandro is involved in –show similar creativity and finesse, but with “Tentative D’Homicide” the Portuguese mastermind really knocked it out of the park! Just look at the extra photo on the left to see what I mean.
Besides all this goodness that makes my collector’s heart beat faster, Squelette also delivers two brand new scorchers to pump up the adrenaline and tension with title-track “Tentative D’Homicide” and B-side “Passagers”! This is also my only problem with this release, the fact that it are just two songs! Other than that, this release loiters closely to perfection on every aspect. I love the vile, dark sound of “Tentative D’Homicide”, while the melancholic, post-punk influenced “Passagers” sublimely rounds things up!
Both Squelette and Bigorna Records, as well as every single one of us of course, had to wait a long time for this release – but both band and label delivered their best work to date with this one, making this an absolute must-have for fans of French Oi! and Portuguese design! Do note, only 369 copies of “Tentative D’Homicide” were pressed and this total is evenly divided over 123 copies of each available color of sleeve (black, red and blue). Other than that, only a select group of mail-orders will have limited quantities of this record for sale – so if you spot on, don’t hesitate and immediately pull the trigger!
