Carnival in Coal
Viva La Vida

We talked about it together some time ago... are you wondering who? Come on, it's those two amusing slackers from Carnival In Coal, the French duo that had fun making a fool of us by offering albums with complex musical foundations and abnormal lyrics, but have they always been like this? The answer is no, at least this isn't entirely true, since while the music was complex even in the early days, what somewhat took a different direction were the lyrics, based on sex-themed topics (sometimes bordering on homosexuality and fetishism), yet also ridiculing the typical themes of other metal genres. The album that encompasses all these characteristics is unquestionably the first one, the "Viva La Vida" that unleashed this experimental French band onto the audience for the first time.

After several listens to the album, the first thing to note is that this is certainly the most "normal" product that C in C has ever produced, despite featuring numerous anomalies and unusual musical choices, as evident in the fourth track "Got Rape", entirely based on a '70s/'80s dance melody, over which the singer's guttural growl and then a wild drumming are layered. If musically this piece is not overly extreme, what is shocking are the lyrics about a man raped inside a sex shop by two young women. But don't be scandalized; this is just a brief stop in this sea of absurd and fascinating vulgarity, as songs like "She-Male Whoreorgasm" or "XXX Dog Petting" will follow a similar direction, not to mention "Urine Facewash", stuff that could make even the strongest stomach churn. In this sea of extreme lewdness and musical violence, our French duo also has fun, as mentioned earlier, by mocking other musical genres, as in "A Swedish Winter Tale", a completely narrated song (yes... yes, someone is thinking of a mockery of Rhapsody, I believe it refers to them) that talks about swords, forests, and all these power/epic metal tales. Naturally, as is often found in their albums, some true trash is present as well, initially bringing to mind the concluding "Turn Everything Upside Down Twice", truly useless, or the already mentioned "XXX Dog Petting".

Musically, we are faced with a more compact product compared to later ones, which heavily relies on the quest for an almost pop melody in a metal key, countered by Arno's voice, deeper than ever, so much that at times it seems excessive compared to the music. But what truly irritates, regrettably, this time are the lyrics, disgusting and needlessly eager to strike (as if...) the listener.

That said, I don't think there's much else to add, except that this time the album, in general, does not fully achieve a passing grade, a pity because the premises for doing well were definitely there.