Behind The Artworks: Impure Wilhelmina - Le Sanglot (2026)

When we began discussing the album artwork with Giganto.ch, we drew inspiration from works of late 19th-century Symbolism and Naturalism. We wanted to capture that aesthetic, its mystery, and its melancholy.

We also wanted the artwork to feature a human form, which contrasts with the artwork for our last two albums, “Radiation” (2017) and “Antidote” (2021), which were rather abstract. The human form harks back to the album “Black Honey” (2013), which was a turning point in our discography. On that album, clean vocals became really prominent. On the cover of that album, there was a human form, but the face was hidden.

In ‘Le sanglot’, faces are depicted for the first time. And this album marks a new turning point, as the vocals are entirely in French. These faces represent, in a way, the act of removing the mask and revealing one’s true nature, which the lyrics written in French (Michael’s mother tongue) allow. But of course, we took care to preserve the aura of mystery mentioned above by giving the faces a somewhat subliminal quality.

This artwork also stands out from the previous ones due to its vibrant colors. It reflects the great versatility of our music. Yet there is a sense of unity, perhaps thanks to the repetition of the same face. We hope that this sense of unity is also reflected in the music. What is certain is that a sense of melancholy is present, both in the choice of colors and in the music.

Finally, in addition to the faces, the artwork features a botanical element that echoes certain themes explored in the lyrics (rejection of the modern world, nature as a refuge, etc.). This element also reflects the album’s rather organic production style. 

Le Sanglot comes out May 22, 2026, on Season of Mist. Pre-order & pre-save: https://orcd.co/iwlesanglot

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