Peste Noire is a medieval Black Metal band from France, formed by La sale Famine de Valfunde in 2001. Famine has been the main member and creative force behind this band since its inception, and, to date, all songs (lyrics, music and solos) were written by Famine except for "La Césarienne"'s music (on "Folkfuck Folie") which was written by Neige. Peste Noire has always rejected the exposure of their music on internet. There has never been any official PN website, nor any official PN myspace page. Two "fan pages" currently exist (/pestenoire & /pestenoiremetal) but they are in no way official as they go against Famine's vision of BM.

The band really started as a one-man band (with only Famine) with Neige helping with the drums (and Argoth with the bass up to "Macabre transcendance" demo). The first album "La Sanie des siècles - Panégyrique de la dégénérescence" (2006) is basically the demo tracks composed by Famine re-recorded in studio. Winterhalter (drums) and Indria (bass) joined in 2006 to play on the album and to expand Famine's music. While Neige's input on "La Sanie des siècles" was very limited, he composed one track for the 2007 second album "Folkfuck Folie", still with Winterhalter (drums) and Indria (bass) completing the "Kommando Peste Noire".

Peste Noire is proud of French cultural heritage, especially medieval France, and some lyrics are taken from great French artists (C. Baudelaire, T. Corbière, C. de Pisan, G. de Machaut…). They are indeed nationalists as were for instance the early Norwegian BM bands. On the 19th of January 2008, they made a concert in Oslo, Norway (at Betong). In August 2008, they also made a 13-date tour in Quebec, the French-speaking part of Canada, also called "Nova Francia" ("New France"). Still, Peste Noire are not a NSBM band despite their first demo "Aryan Supremacy", which isn't Nazi propaganda but a sadistic fascination for the holocaust and the "final solution". Famine's exclusively French-written lyrics (modern or old French), deal with medieval or more modern topics about evil, the devil, sickness and madness.

"La Sanie des siècles - Panégyrique de la dégénérescence", their sold out 2006 first album has been re-released by De Profundis and Transcendental Creations as cd in August 2008. The self-released pro tape box "Mors orbis terrarum" was re-released as vinyl by DMP in September 2008 (it includes all the demos featured on the tape box, except the very raw "Aryan supremacy" demo and the second demo version of "Phalènes et pestilence" which was on the B side of the "Lorraine Rehearsal" vinyl released by Northern Heritage in 2007). The vinyl versions of both albums are being handled by various labels, including De Profundis (Rosenkrantz.st @ club-internet.fr).

Line up:
La Sale Famine de Valfunde : vocals, lead guitar, compositions, all solos, lyrics
Indria: bass guitar
Winterhalter: drums
Neige: rhythm guitar (formerly drums)

Discography:
# Aryan Supremacy (demo 2001)
# Mémoire Païenne (split 2002)
# Macabre Transcendance… (demo 2002)
# Phalènes et Pestilence - Salvatrice Averse (demo 2003)
# Phalènes et Pestilence - Salvatrice Averse (demo 2005)
# La Sanie des siècles - Panégyrique de la dégénérescence (album 2006)
# Lorraine Rehearsal (10'' LP 2007)
# Folkfuck Folie (album 2007)
# Mors Orbis Terrarum (Demo compilation 2007)