At this point in me doing these reviews, if you know me then you know Ende and I couldn’t be any happier about my associations with the band up to this point. A true driving force in the taste for black metal since I stumbled upon them years ago, the band’s devotion to their dark sound that offers so much more than just a handful of riffs is always something that I always find myself fascinated with whenever new material comes around whether it be with a new full-length effort or brief split with another promising name. Yet, despite my adoration for the band continuing for years on end, I’ve never found myself fortunate enough to experience a live performance from the French act since, as an American, there’s a small barrier between me and them called the Atlantic Ocean that often puts a dent in such plans. Luckily, however, it’s now that I no longer have to wonder what such a sight holds in store with the release of Ende’s first live album.

When we take into consideration the live performances of bands like Ende, it certainly doesn’t make one think of a performance where the vocalist works the crowd or the band members are simply having a real party on stage, but, rather, another further extension of their craft that is straightforward in its intent yet all but fulfilling when it comes to how the material can be brought to life whether it’s older or newer material. Featuring material from almost all of their full-length albums up to this point, only excluding their latest, “Mörnöyr, Bienvenue en Terre du Diable”, as well as a track from their 2015 demo, this is about as compelling of a performance as I could’ve hoped for from the likes of Ende. The very intensity of Ende’s sound comes through magnificently in the performance at large as you can really get a sense of just how voracious the band is with their material with even the older tracks having new life breathed into them after years of performing them and honing their sound altogether to make them even more delectable than they were in the first place with tracks like “Black Sorcery of the Great Macabre” being a particularly exquisite example. While the crowd cannot be heard throughout the recording, it’s not hard to plant yourself among them as you absorb all that Ende brings to the table throughout the performance as it’s a virtually unending onslaught of all that they’ve been building up to for years now with the passion bleeding through every moment of “Liturgies Funéraires” to bring us an unfiltered, unfettered invocation of what this particular brand of black metal can illicit on stage with Ende seizing every opportunity to maximize any and every chance they can in order to make their first live album one that is a real heavy hitter right out of the gate.

A performance that manages to take us from the beginnings of the band to some of their latest material that shows us just how far they’ve come along with giving us just a hint of what’s still to come, there isn’t much that would be able to convince me that Ende’s presence on stage is all but compelling with this being all the proof I could ever ask for. “Liturgies Funéraires” is far from the most elaborate or adrenaline-packed live album that I’ve heard, but there’s no way to deny the power that’s to be found in every offering that Ende presents to us right until the final fading notes with naught but quality darkness to be experienced once you allow Ende to establish themselves on the stage.

“Liturgies Funéraires – Cérémonie pour une Congrégation Mourante” releases on February 20th!

LIKE Ende on Facebook here.

LISTEN to a track from “Liturgies Funéraires – Cérémonie pour une Congrégation Mourante” on Bandcamp here.