VIA DOLORIS

Presents “Un Franc Soleil” from Guerre et Paix

A luminous moment within the album’s

passage through despair and doubt

Featuring Gildas le Pape (ex-Satyricon)

& Frost (1349, Satyricon)

Forward

Via Doloris – Un Franc Soleil (Official Audio)

Via Doloris presents “Un Franc Soleil”, the second single drawn from the forthcoming debut album ‘Guerre et Paix’. Standing among the record’s most luminous moments, the track captures a fleeting sensation of release after prolonged inner unrest. Conceived as an atmospheric depiction of an illusion glimpsed from afar, it evokes the distant promise of a life freed from struggle, a vision radiant yet never fully attained.

Listen to Un Franc Soleil: https://youtu.be/rPi2IcCUzD4

“Un Franc Soleil” reveals the project at its most expansive and textural. The composition unfolds in measured restraint, where layered guitars trace gentle melodic figures across a patient rhythmic foundation. The nuanced drumming of Frost anchors the gradual ascent of each progression, allowing melody to emerge from distortion and clarity from dissonance. Written in French, the lyrics carry vulnerability and resolve in equal measure, portraying serenity not as certainty, but as something only ever approached. Within the broader architecture of ‘Guerre et Paix’, the track functions as a threshold: a contemplative pause before the album returns to denser and more conflicted terrain.

Guerre et Paix is out March 20th via Season of Mist.

Pre-order & pre-save: https://orcd.co/viadolorisguerreetpaix

Tracklist:

1. Communion (06:29)

2. Un Franc Soleil (06:58)

3. Omniprésents (07:26)

4. For The Glory (07:38)

5. Ultime Tourment (10:12)

6. Visdommens Vei I (07:11)

7. Visdommens Vei II (02:05)
Full runtime: 48:01

Country: Norway

Genre: Black Metal

FFO: Satyricon, Bathory, Kampfar, Darkthrone

Photo by © Linnea Syversen

VIA DOLORIS is the vision of founder Gildas Le Pape. Through sound, he crafts a world where emotion, discipline, and atmosphere converge — a place to give shape to what cannot be spoken. Rooted in solitude and shaped by the interplay of darkness and beauty, the project confronts the gravity of existence: the quiet burdens we carry, the hidden wounds time buries deep, the road to death. This “Way of Suffering” unfolds as a passage through pain in search of meaning, and the distant, flickering promise of rebirth.

Via Doloris’ musical identity draws from the towering legacy of Nordic metal while forging a distinct path. At its core lies a commitment to detailed guitar work, high-level musicianship, and the art of songcraft. Rather than follow genre trends, Via Doloris returns melody to its rightful place: not as decoration, but as the driving force of the music. These strong, expressive lines guide the compositions with raw clarity, carving out a language that speaks directly to the listener’s inner world.

Though the instrumentation nods to black metal’s formal foundations, the project resists confinement. It blends harmonic depth with subtle dissonance, creating tension and richness without sacrificing cohesion. Folk and pagan influences run like ancestral threads through the arrangements, lending them a sacral, mythic quality. The result is a sound built on contrasts: luminous and shadowed, forceful yet introspective, epic yet intimate. Layered into this sonic landscape are lyrics written in French, English, and Norwegian. Each language brings its own weight, rhythm, and tone, unlocking emotional registers that feel both ancient and immediate.

Based in Oslo, Gildas Le Pape first gained attention in 2007 when he joined the legendary Satyricon as a guitarist. Over the next six years, he toured the world and contributed to the band’s recorded legacy, before stepping away to explore a broad range of musical directions. In time, this path led him back to extreme music, this time with a renewed creative vision and sharpened intent. In 2023, he invited his long-time collaborator, Frost — arguably one of the most accomplished drummers in the genre — to join him in bringing the debut release to life.

Line-up:

Gildas le Pape — Lead Vocals, Choirs, Guitars, Bass

Frost — Session Drums

Production Credits:

Drums and vocals recorded at Red Room Studios, Norway.
Drums and vocals engineered by Mattis Elvestuen, guitars engineered by Gildas Le Pape & Mattis Elvestuen.

Produced by Gildas le Pape.

Mixed by Nicolai Codling & Gildas le Pape.

Mastered by Magnus Gulbrandsen at Jeløy Sound Mastering.

Guest Artist:
Raido (Ferriterium, Heimsgard, Karne) — Guest Vocals on Track 3.

Cover Art:

Artwork by Gildas le Pape.

Photography:

Cover artwork & press photography by Linnea Syversen.

Follow Via Doloris:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/viadolorisofficial/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/via.doloris/

Bandcamp: https://viadoloris.bandcamp.com/

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2R3PxQ7zeA3BpPhpI1JlxF