When Grunge And Alt-Metal Collides with Mathcore and Comes Out Sharper Than Ever
There is something deeply refreshing about bands that understand the power of restraint. No unnecessary layers. No artificial inflation. No overproduction disguising weak songwriting. Just tension, volume, instinct and impact — all serving a dissonant and uncompromising vision of alternative heavy music.
The French duo — brothers Ian and Simon Debeerst — Vain Valkyries operate with the simplest possible setup: guitar, vocals and drums. No bass. No backing tracks. No studio trickery. Yet on ‘Wonders’, their second full-length album released three years after ‘The Great Suffering’, they deliver a sound so massive, chaotic and suffocatingly heavy that it constantly feels impossible only two people are responsible for it.
Somewhere between heavy-rock, alternative-metal and grungecore with some math-metal and stoner-rock dazzling ‘Wonders’ pushes everything further. Harder riffs. Sharper dynamics. More unpredictable songwriting. More direct emotional impact. The result is a record balancing contradictions with remarkable control: brutal yet melodic, technical yet instinctive, chaotic yet immediately memorable.
From the opening moments of “Bokeh”, Vain Valkyries sound completely locked in. Ian’s riffs dive into cavernous tunings and unstable polyrhythms that seem permanently on the verge of collapse, while Simon’s drumming hits with raw physicality and relentless precision. Together, they create the constant tension that gives ‘Wonders’ its identity.
Beneath the mathcore fractures and sludge-soaked heaviness lies a genuine instinct for hooks. Ian’s unmistakable vocal delivery — recalling the emotional pull of Brandon Boyd (Incubus) or the theatrical restraint of Mike Patton (Faith No More, Fantômas, Mr. Bungle, Peeping Tom…) — creates an unlikely but perfect contrast against the violence unfolding underneath. It should not work this well. That is precisely why it does.
Channeling traces of Mutoid Man, ’68, early Royal Blood, Alice In Chains, The Mars Volta, Tigercub and even Meshuggah without ever sounding like a patchwork of influences, « Wonders » feels cohesive, deliberate and fully aware of its own identity. And tracks like “Aching Lungs” and “Cult” showcase the band at its most explosive, while “Gaslight” and “He Is Proud” anchor the album in themes deeply tied to contemporary anxieties: psychological abuse, toxic masculinity, alienation and social decay.
This is Vain Valkyries confronting the toxicity of modern life head-on — with irony, frustration and flashes of revolt replacing pure nihilism. But what makes the record particularly effective is how naturally it merges grunge melancholy with mathcore unpredictability. Songs twist unexpectedly, rhythms mutate without warning and breakdowns erupt out of nowhere, yet the album never loses its momentum or emotional clarity. In short, ‘Wonders’ feels like the sound of a band fully stepping into its own space.
At a time where heavy music increasingly favors formula and predictability, Vain Valkyries embrace instability, discomfort and controlled chaos without sacrificing memorability. They understand that technicality means nothing without impact, and that heaviness only matters when it leaves a mark.
‘Wonders’ is louder, sharper and considerably more confident than its predecessor. Most importantly, it is proof that grunge still has unexplored territory left — especially when filtered through this level of chaos and conviction.
