REVIEW: Sungrave - Afterglow
- Julia Stark
- 22 hours ago
- 3 min read
A new day is dawning for alt-metal band SUNGRAVE, a quartet that have been hammering at the French music scene and making space for themselves since 2023, and are now ready to let the world know who they are with debut album Afterglow, releasing through independent record labels including No Need Name, Ace of Wands, and Uproar for Veneration to name a few.
Inspired by a mix of 90s grunge, metal, and prog-rock, SUNGRAVE takes all the classically loved features of these genres and fuses them into an atmospheric album that subverts expectations and showcases each musician and their artistic flair. Guitarist Pierre Podsiadlo explains they “sometimes explore rhythmic and structural complexity” on several of their songs, while on others they look to highlight the darker side of the band’s genres, bringing the grunge and post-hardcore factors together. Afterglow is loaded with potential and is a chance for this up-and-coming, already seasoned band to shine.
From a calm, swooping intro that wouldn’t be out of place in a Dune movie, Adelita’s simple guitar progression paves the way to Emelien Cornet’s rousing vocals, weighted between hoarse shouts and clean emotion reminiscent of early Chester Bennington, swiftly joined by Lionel Bigois’ rumbling bass line that twangs and scratches an itch in the brain. Sickening guitar riffs and cymbal heavy drums carry the inaugural track through to its crescendo ending. Mascara starts with drummer Roch Deroubaix delivering a solo that belies the true power he soon unleashes on the booming chorus, guitarist Pierre Podsiadlo interspersing the rhythm with fuzzed chords and stripped back but potent notes, the entire pace fluctuating but delivering a mix of alt-metal movements that form a cohesive sound, the track ending with layers of Cornet’s alternating raw screams and vulnerable notes and a final prolonged yell.
Switching to a more BIFFY CLYRO inspired pace and sound, To The Brightest is so bass-heavy as to rattle your teeth, Deroubaix’s double pedal beats thundering forward like there’s no time to lose, the bridge falling away to Bigois’ heavily distorted bass that’s juxtaposed by Podsiadlo’s high-pitched guitar notes, Cornet shifting from a distinctive yell to a clean, defeated-sounding “it’s never enough”. Until The Crash is another track that flips the percussive script on its head, changing the tone and beat from section to section, at times more DEFTONES inspired and intermittently a hint of SYSTEM OF A DOWN on the guitar licks and pace of the entire piece, before suddenly dropping into a near metal-rap. Everything falls away to a simple bass and guitar harmony on Quicksands, a fuzzed sound effect climbing in the background until it peters out to sound like static or even falling sand. Like its title, the tune grips you where you stand and sucks you in with riveting lyrics and a lush bass line, vocals layer atop each other into an ascending pitch, the track gradually fading out until only an understated drum keeps time in the gathering silence.
Self-confessed as the first track they “jammed on” at the start of Afterglow’s conception and inspired by 90s grunge movements infused by their modern sound, their first music video off the album The Mirror is chock full of grunge bass and guitar melodies and lyrical call backs, an appropriate buzziness to the track that gives it that enjoyable 90s scuzz-rock element. Bass and drums meld together for the beginning of Yökai, the sound taking on a more alt-rock THE SMASHING PUMPKINS vibe, with ripping guitar solos over thudding bass and pulverising drums as Cornet holds a high yell that melts into a clean note. The Boundaries of Change slows the pace to more poignant on the verse before bursting with powerful instruments and vocals, almost a reprieve from the more post-hardcore feel of the album but possibly the darkest and most desolate of the tracks.
Broken Lines kicks off with a riff DON BROCO would appreciate, building the energy and expectations before meeting both head on in the primal roar of the chorus, the rhythm and lyrics feeling like you’re in a boss fight on your last legs but you’re going down swinging, taking as many enemies as you can with you on the final visceral fry scream and drum roll. Our time comes to an end with the slow-building Prayers, with a charged middle section and raw screams, the guitars and drums each taking centre stage at a time while the bass sprints through the melody and brings a lethal element to the final track.
For a dark, melodically dramatic sound, Afterglow is a shining beacon for SUNGRAVE fans and those soon to discover them.
Score: 7/10
Afterglow will be released on 8th May 2026 via No Need Name.
Words: Julia Stark
Photos: Sungrave
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