Coeur Vaillant - Coeurs Vaillants (12", Combate Brutal, 2024)

Although it's been 18 months or so since my last review, there are still some people out there that “stubbornly” keep sending me their releases. One of them is Rattus who keeps firing releases at me with records he either plays on, he released or often a combination of both! Of course I highly appreciate mail like this and I want to thank you for your continuous support! But with that being said, I am not just writing a thank you note here…

I’m also here to write a review on Combate Brutal’s latest release by Coeur Vaillant, simply titled “Coeurs Vaillants”. Now I was pretty psyched when I received a notification that this record was on my way – because neither Coeur Vaillant or Combate Brutal have disappointed me so far – and my psyched-meter was on point, because “Coeurs Vaillants” is pure fire from front to back and from start to finish!

As expected from a Combate Brutal release this record looks and sounds fantastic! Housed in a nice glossy sleeve (with some killer artwork), this single-sided 12” comes with a huge fold out “inner-sleeve” and is of course limited to boot! Therefor it shouldn’t come as a surprise that this record is long gone already, but Discogs is obviously your friend in times like these!

And believe me, it is absolutely time to pay that friend a visit! Becaue as said, the packaging isn't just fantastic, the music sounds superb as well! Of course this shouldn't come as a surprise if you already heard the "Mercenaire" demo and the self-titeld maxi-single before, but it's good to mention nonetheless! Alike Coeur Vaillant's previous releases, these three tracks were recorded in 2021 as well (I can't confirm if all recordings were done in one session though) and sound like the impact of an atom-bomb from start to finish! I love the vile, 80's vibe these lads deliver in the tracks "Couers Vaillants", "Le Trajet Extraordinaire D'un loser" and "J'ira Te Revoir Au Paradis", making it an absolute must-have!