Morgan Lander of Kittie alongside Justine Ethier of Blackguard and Jonathan Lefrançois-Leduc have banded together to form a new ‘orchestral darkwave’ group known as Winterlvst, with their first single, “Broken Lines,” already available on streaming services. The project was previously teased in 2020.
Darkwave is the backbone of “Broken Lines,” with little twinges of goth rock and black metal at the edges, mainly counterbalanced by the orchestral aspect of the track. Unnerving choruses chant haunt you throughout the track, lead vocals piercing and intense – it feels grim and unsettling, but enjoyable in an odd way.
The announcement came this past Friday alongside the news that the group’s debut record, Awakening, is out on April 3rd after a minor lead-up over the last month in which the band Instagram account posted cryptic visual and sonic teasers before eventually revealing the news.
The Instagram caption reads with the news:
“Ten years in the shadows, now come to light as ‘Awakening’ arrives April 3, 2026. ????
The first ritual, Broken Lines, is already calling. Streaming on Spotify now.”
Now, a quick snoop quickly reveals that the account has Lander, Ethier, and Leduc in the biography, alongside the words ‘orchestral darkwave’ and ‘capes optional.’ There’s a slew of posts – the most recent being an announcement for an album release event.
The joint promotional event that Winterlvst are doing with author Martine Bourque is due to take place in Théâtre Sainte-Catherine, a performance arts theatre in Montreal, Canada, consisting of both a reading of Bourque‘s upcoming book and a musical performance from Winterlvst. In a joint Instagram post, Winterlvst and Bourque share the details of the event, originally in French and then, in English:
“Martine Bourque and Winterlvst invite you to an evening of darkness.
Théâtre Sainte-Catherine
Friday, April 3 – 7:00 PM
Double literary and musical launch:
- Novel: “Fétiches funèbres” by Martine Bourque
- Album: “Awakening” by Winterlvst
Join us for this unique event featuring readings of excerpts, a book signing, and a musical performance.
- Books available for purchase on site.
Tickets: https://lepointdevente.com/billets/tsc260317001″
You can stream the new single at this link, check out tickets for the upcoming event if you’re in the Montreal area here, or even see what the fuss is about here. Visualiser for those who are just too curious to wait.
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