Karvane - 2025 - Thousand Yard Stare

(25:54; M&O Music)

Track list:
1. Dans La Gueule 2:04
2. N°1 3:41
3. Ecchymose 3:17
4. No Man's Land 3:49
5. Git Gud Scrub 2:39
6. Toxiq 3:50
7. Le Paradis 3:01
8. Shrapnel 3:33

Line-up:
Cristobal Aliaga - bass
Didiel Aliaga - drums
Diego Aliaga - vocals
with:
Vikie - vocals
Kourros  - vocals


French band Karavane has been around in a few different forms ever since they started out back in 2020, with the threesome also releasing their debut mini-album back in their formative year. The band has been affiliated with French label M&O Music ever since they started out, and now in 2025 the current incarnation of this band have released their second mini-album "Thousand Yard Stare" through that label.

I'm not at all as well versed in nu-metal and rap metal as I probably should have been, hence I'll probably bring a few oddball references to the table here. But I know what I like at least, and I appreciate a lot of what this band has up their collective sleeves.

While I can't say much about the lyrical content, which tends to be important for bands in this line of music, I really enjoy the vocals on this album. I understand that the current singer used to be the drummer of this band, which is perhaps why the vocals are delivered with such an intriguing and natural flow. In addition we have a playful and expressive attitude and aptitude that adds tons of charm to these songs, and for my sake at least I do get the impression of a band that is really having a blast when recording this material.

The verse parts tend to be the gentler ones here, with bass, rhythms and more or less effects backing up the vocals in these passages. A little bit of funk will be present in the bass guitar here, and on a couple of tracks we also get some brass-inspired sounds that adds a bit of a delicate soul feeling to those parts. With a nice and playful piano motif also being present as an identity marker on one occasion. Combined with the careful, light but expressive rhythms and the often playful nature of the vocals, I found myself getting associations towards good, old Pop Will Eat Itself as something of an ongoing point of reference for these parts of the songs.

But unlike the aforementioned UK cult band, Karavane applies some hard rock and metal grit to their songs too. Sometimes with an ebb and flow structure, on other occasions with songs that are shared half and half or thereabouts between the gentler sounding escapades and the harder hitting ones. And while more or less legendary bands like Run DMC, Faith No More and Fishbone all struck me in the association department when the guitars kick in here, on many occasions we do get more defined metal with more grit and aggro tendencies brought to the table than any of the bands referenced ever did too.

So while my references may leave a bit to be desired here, I do find myself charmed by the landscapes explored on this production. The playful, expressive and to my ears excellently flowing vocals have a lot to say for this to be the case, and the generally playful and joyful mood and atmosphere of the songs are just about as important for me. Even if the topics covered in the lyrics may well be of a different nature. An album that, in my opinion at least, most certainly deserves a listen by those who tend to enjoy artists described inside the context of nu metal, rap metal and alternative metal.

Olav M. Björnsen, April 2025

Links:
https://www.karvane.com/
https://www.m-o-music.com/