Alcest (/al.sɛst/) is a French blackgaze act formed in Bagnols-sur-Cèze, Occitanie in 2000 by multi-instrumentalist Neige (Stéphane Paut). It was originally conceived as a solo project, though it would eventually take on the form of a full band as Aegnor (now known as La Sale Famine de Valfunde) and Argoth, with whom Neige played in Peste Noire, joined the fray and released a four-track demo entitled Tristesse hivernale in 2001. This demo was a more straightforward black metal affair, much different from what would happen next.