The tale of two Cornucopia’s…
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times… Yes… This is the tale of two Cornucopia’s! Cornucopia. Not a fan of the band name. Why you ask? What’s wrong with Cornucopia? Well, nothing about the name itself. The problem is that it has already belonged to a progressive rock and fusion outfit from the seventies. But the past five or so years it has also been the name of French stoner and doom formation from Nantes. But they’re not the only ones. There are more. Many even. And the Swedish blackened and progressive thrash outfit with this name also released a new album in June. And they’ve been releasing music under this name for the past five years as well. It irks and well frankly, annoys…
The music however, does not! I do not listen to thrash all that much at home. But when a band embraces dirt and grime, folds in hardcore aggression, blackened flourishes, progressive songwriting, and even the occasional symphonic flourish, then it has my full attention… And usually earns several repeat listens. There is something very special about Cosmic Consciousness. Out on Ethereal Records, its fifty-five minutes take you on a whirlwind journey through the golden age of thrash, speed metal, and the spirit of the eighties. Yet this is no exercise in nostalgia. It is a high-speed drive-by, firing shots at every corner of heavy music while emerging with something fresh, inventive, and unmistakably its own.
Cornucopia from Nantes is an entirely different animal. Here the path leads into doom, colored by stoner grooves and steeped in traditional heavy metal. Songs for Unfortunate Times, released by L'Ordalie Noire Records, is crushing yet deeply atmospheric, forging doom's ancient weight with proto-metal fire and flashes of thrash-fuelled intensity. Towering riffs loom overhead while haunting melodies coil around them like smoke. There is immense heaviness here, but it is framed by an almost cinematic sense of scale. Rooted firmly in tradition, yet never imprisoned by it, the album feels strangely ageless… As though it has always existed, quietly waiting for the right moment to be heard.
Do these two Cornucopia's make me forget all the others? Well... I have no desire to offer my head to the guillotine over a matter of band names. Yet heard back to back, these records become something more than coincidence. They form two sides of the same heavy coin: one forged in speed and fire, the other carved from stone and shadow. Together they remind us that names may be shared, but identity is earned. And if there is any verdict to be passed, let it be this... The horn of plenty has rarely overflowed with such heavy abundance…
(Written by JK)
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