KABBEL– The moniker of French artist Gregory Hoepffner has shared his visceral, haunting new single/video ‘Elephant‘ off his thrilling debut album When The War Is Over, which is due out 30th October via Perturbator’s record label Music of the Void.
“Elephant” showcases the album’s industrial intensity with guitar riffs and vocals that burst with rage. “‘Elephant’ is about the sadness of a deep relationship turning sour, and the distressing realisation that you can see pieces of yourself in someone who’s vicious to you,” KABBEL explains. “Musically, the song is partially an homage to the early 2000s nu-metal aesthetic, with the trademark quiet, restrained verses and angry, distorted choruses. I learned to play guitar within this musical era, so it’s a total guilty pleasure to dive into it again.”
Watch the ‘Elephant‘ music video below
Across his bold and magnetic debut LP, with mixing by Lars Stalfors (The Dare, Paramore, HEALTH, TR/ST), KABBEL deepens and expands his signature “queer sadcore” genre. “Elephant” follows the album’s epic lead single “Reward” featuring Perturbator, which premiered via New Noise Magazine. When The War Is Over is available for pre-order here.
Hoepffner assumes many musical identities, but KABBEL–who performs live with a band, and has shared the stage with heavyweights like HEALTH and Alcest–is surely the most unusual. Above all else, KABBEL is a character: a freeing creative outlet that allows Hoepffner to play with sonic elements that he wouldn’t dare touch in other circumstances. It’s a shield that keeps certain apprehensions–“Am I allowed to sing about this?”–at bay. KABBEL isn’t afraid to disturb and will do it with unwavering flair. “This character allows me to tackle certain subjects (like minority stress) or musical aesthetics (like alt rock and metal) that would be filtered out in other contexts for me,” explains Hoepffner, who also performs as a solo artist under the monikers Almeeva and G.H. Francis, and as a band member in SURE., Jean Jean, Ghoster, and Time To Burn. “Trying to recapture the immense excitement of writing my first songs when I was 15 or 16 is often the starting point, and then adding in the production experience I’ve gathered over the past 20 years.”
When The War Is Over–performed, composed, and produced by Hoepffner himself–is a sonic redirection for KABBEL, taming the experimental side of his 2021 EP End Of Norms and embracing the pop demons that keep haunting him. When The War Is Over ends with its powerful title track–a song that reflects the core of the record. “The title is something I would like to hear regarding the state of the world right now, even though KABBEL’s universe is mostly focused on inner conflicts,” Hoepffner says. “Being in a constant state of war takes all your energy, and reduces your life to this battle. There are many things we feel the need to battle these days: climate change, the comeback of fascism, tech-billionaires stealing our work and using precious resources to re-brand it…there’s a positively cathartic side to this album and my only goal is that it gives you the confidence to not give up, and hope for a better future.”
With When The War Is Over, KABBEL is ready to claim his place in the heavy music landscape.
When The War Is Over LP Tracklist:
1. The Blaming Game
2. Fiction Clouds
3. R Chrome
4. Reward feat. Perturbator
5. Afterlife feat. Imer6ia
6. No More XTC
7. Elephant
8. You Don’t Matter
9. Endless
10. When The War Is Over
‘WHEN THE WAR IS OVER’ OUT 30TH OCTOBER 2026 VIA MUSIC OF THE VOID
