French band Lies We Sold have crafted a diverse metalcore sound that packs a punch yet also delivers engaging, emotional and introspective moments, and which they describe as “powerful, melodic, and melancholic.”
The Parisian quintet started out with Quentin and Alexandre (guitars) and Florian (drums), who’ve known each other since high school and played together in various projects for several years. Vocalist Anthony Lossman came on board in 2018 and clicked right away, before being joined by bassist Maxime last year.
On the sound the band has honed, Anthony told us: “If this is your first time listening to us, I would say we are a Metalcore band, but we try to bring a good dose of melody and atmosphere to each song. We aim to tell a story with every track.”
Our latest taste of this is their new EP Adrift In The Mist, which was released at the end of October. The EP explores themes of loss and delves into the complexity of the human soul, addressing issues like despair, doubt and the quest for meaning.
It opens up with the first single released from the EP, Ethereal Dreams, which perfectly portrays the diversity of the Lies We Sold sound. it begins with a cool little synth before bursting into stabbing guitars and big screamed vocals. A little lick creeps in before the feeling shifts completely, dropping into melodic guitars and clean vocals “Shine like the brightest light, Be the star in my darkest night, I’ll never bow before I know, Cause this is my burden” through an atmospheric chorus. A second chorus drops into vicious guitars and vocals, before a noodling guitar solo sets up a powerful conclusion. Check it out in the video here:
That’s followed by Lost And Found, which also opens up with an engaging synth supported by rolling drums and a cool guitar lick. Intense vocals take over alongside big bouncy riffs, which flows into more melodic vocals intersected by heavy screams. The chorus gives way to more heavy drums and guitars, then the pace slows down with clean echoey vocals, which tees up another chorus. Check it out in the video here:
There’s a more mellow beginning to Journey To Rebuild, which quickly intensifies with huge screamed vocals then combines clean and screamed vocals in a take on a metalcore ballad. Halfway through, big guitars kick in alongside huge screamed vocals “Here I am lost in the void, In a confusing mist of who I am, To make sense, you must see the reality, Of a life, of a life you live.” The pace drops again with laid-back vocals and guitars before a laid-back guitar lick supports the clean and screamed vocals. It’s a little different, but we really like it, so check it out in the video here:
We’re then met by a pulsing synth sound in the intro to the EP’s most recent single Cracked Open, which blasts into a lively combo of driving guitar chords and screamed vocals. It develops into a deliciously melodic chorus, which continues into a fun verse of lively riffs and heavy vocals. The diversity continues as a stabbing synth and heavy drums tee up a melodic chorus to bring it to an enjoyable conclusion. Here’s the video:
The EP closes out with A Lonely Climb, which opens up with laid-back guitars and a twinkling synth that burst into a sonic soundscape of mellow synths, pulsing guitars, big rolling drums and intense vocals. The vocals take centre stage before flowing into a gorgeous singalong chorus.
Speaking ahead of the EP’s release, Anthony said: “We are eager for people to hear it in its entirety. They have already had the chance to listen to three of the five tracks that will be on the EP. The next two are a bit different as they are more emotive and are somewhat longer. The first three were more straightforward; here, we take a bit more time to establish the atmospheres.”
The Lies We Sold sound is influenced by big metalcore bands like Bring Me the Horizon, Architects, August Burns Red and Polaris. But each of the members listens to a wide variety of music, from classical to pop punk and mathcore.
And on what inspires them to write music, Anthony explained: “The music originates from each of the guitarists, and each one brings his own sensitivity to the process. Quentin is more focused on efficiency, while Alexandre delves deeper into the exploration of emotions. This allows for a more varied selection of songs. As for the lyrics, I change themes with each album/EP. For this one, having experienced several deaths in my family recently, I wanted to tackle the issues of mourning, acceptance, redemption, and so on.”
Adrift In The Mist is out now through BloodBlast Distribution. You can see Lies We Sold at L’International in Paris on 14 December, with more information here. The band have more gigs planned for next year and promise to have a few more pleasant surprises in store for us.
And Anthony added: “We would love for everyone to give us their feedback on our tracks because that’s why we make music: to share it with you. And we also want to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who has been involved in this EP, both musically and in the music videos, all the actors etc…”
You can follow Lies We Sold on Facebook and Instagram, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.
Listen to Lies We Sold on our Spotify playlists GigRadar Core and GigRadar Metal
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