Cohésion’s origins trace back to the pandemic, when guitarist Flo, then based in Montreal, began shaping the band’s earliest material. Returning to Paris at the end of 2020, Flo faced the challenge of assembling a lasting lineup—a process that stretched into late 2022 before it finally settled.
With much of the material already written, Cohésion’s first release came together quickly. From there, the band began carving out a sound that reflected the collective influences and preferences of its members. “We shared a lot of different stuff with each other and discovered a lot of bands together that helped define the direction we wanted to go from there,” Flo tells No Echo
Cohésion’s evolving direction is rooted in the ongoing metalcore revival, with Flo citing bands such as Cauldron, A Mourning Star, and Since My Beloved as key influences. Tracing those threads led the band deeper into the metallic hardcore lineage, revisiting acts including Nehemiah, 7 Angels 7 Plagues, and Prayer for Cleansing.
But Cohésion’s Promo 2026 showcases that the band's sound isn’t limited to metalcore alone. “Some of us also love stuff like melodic black metal and melodic death metal, bands like At the Gates, so we try to bring small bits and pieces of that into our writing too,” vocalist Josselin says. Flo cites bands like Counterparts and early Code Orange as examples of the more contemporary influences shaping their current sound.
Promo 2026 emerged from a concentrated five-day writing session last year. While the initial goal was a full third EP, only two songs reached completion and had already become staples of their live set. Rather than hold them back, Cohésion chose to release the tracks as a standalone promo.
“We figured that since we’ve been playing these songs for a while and don’t have enough material for a full release yet, we might as well get them out quickly as a promo before diving into writing more stuff,” Flo explains.
The promo's recording process was fully DIY: guitars and bass were tracked at home, drums programmed, and vocals laid down in the band’s rehearsal space. Timothée Froger handled mixing, and his previous work with Cohésion and other projects (Ender, Intraveineuse, ex-Sorcerer) made him a natural fit.
Lyrically, Josselin focuses on themes of exploitation and the frustration of living under a system where workers create value that is siphoned elsewhere. “I also wanted to add more imagery and epic stuff since I really like heavy metal lyrics, while adding a bit of brightness to it as well,” he says. “Working on these new tracks was a blast because we were all bringing our own influences into them, and we can all feel like we’re developing our own sound, step by step.”
Cohésion’s identity is inseparable from the current French hardcore landscape. Flo describes Paris as a sprawling, active, and diverse scene, though its various circles can sometimes feel disconnected. The band highlights newer Paris acts like Gehen, Flare, and Dry Hope, but quickly emphasizes that French hardcore reaches far beyond the capital.
Their recommendations span the country: Days of Revelation and Gruesome Pledge from the Breizh scene, Bordeaux’s Kibosh, Caned, and Barimore, Insurgent and Junkyard from the north, Montpellier’s Even If The Sky Is Falling Down and Citrus, and Lyon’s Iron Deficiency and Maran. The band also notes that Marseille’s scene is beginning to regain momentum.
With Promo 2026 now out, Cohésion plan to turn their attention toward writing their next release, potentially for 2027. Live activity has been relatively quiet lately, but the band also hopes to get back to booking more shows in the coming year.
Before closing, Cohésion wanted to share a message that speaks to the political convictions at the heart of the band.
“We just want to say that next year is an election year in France, and like a lot of countries in Europe right now, we’re really on the brink of shifting toward far-right fascism,” the band says. “Our point is that we want to encourage people to organize, join a labor union, or get involved with any kind of activist organization. We’re all going to need community networks and international solidarity in the years to come.”
“Hardcore 4 the workers, hardcore 4 the oppressed, anti-fascist always, and Free Palestine!”
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