ALBUM REVIEW: Ouroboros – Manam
Italy’s MANAM may have only been active for three years, but they’ve already managed to produce some impressive music. The bands 2018 debut, Rebirth of Consciousness, showed listeners that MANAM were thinking far beyond the constraints of straight forward, traditional death metal, instantly making them a band to watch out for. Less than 18 months later, the band’s second full length, Ouroboros, expands on the groundwork laid down on their debut, and the end result is one of the most interesting and idiosyncratic death metal records you’re likely to hear this year.
Ouroboros starts strongly with Nigredo, which successfully blends acoustic guitar with slick lead sections, harsh vocals and epic elements. The interchange between gutturals and soaring clean vocals works incredibly well, and the song has a progressive edge to it that makes it so much more intriguing. It’s an impressive, eclectic piece of music that draws the listener in. The Enclosing Veil continues this proggy sound, with groove-laden guitars and varied vocals once giving this song a different feel from the average melo-death track, proving to be catchy and instantly memorable. With some hints of classic heavy metal thrown in for good measure, this is a song that stands out for all the right reasons. Storm has a driven sound with some symphonic flourishes peppered throughout, something that further expands the sound of the record, working extremely well. The sharper, acidic quality of the vocals provides an excellent contrast, and a smooth, bubbling bass line injects plenty of depth into the sound of this track. It’s a stunning piece of music at points, which borders on power metal without fully embracing it.
Albedo takes the music down a more groove-laden route, whilst further embracing the power metal side of MANAM. The guitars are slick and virtuoso, with powerful vocals that complement the music perfectly. This is a fantastic, bombastic take on melo-death that doesn’t necessarily fit the traditional mould, jumping between the songs darker and more angelic moments with aplomb. The Silver Bride allows the symphonic and heavy metal influences to shine and take centre stage, with immersive keyboards and grandiose vocal deliveries giving this song a great focal point, with expert guitar work and small, acoustic moments to add diversity to the tracks approach. Citrinitas manages to be one of the more aggressive, heavy tracks, and has a more straight forward melo-death sound, with the exception of a few moments where the vocals take on a cleaner tone. The fiercer quality of the music works extremely well, and helps to provide a musical change, without full shedding the more experimental aspects within MANAM‘s sound.
Ouroboros‘ title track is a short, but sweet, symphonic interlude that does a fantastic job of breaking the album up, providing a significant change from the first six songs. It’s a great, atmospheric piece that helps to draw the listener back in at this late juncture. Rubedo, despite its length, is an incredibly punchy, memorable track. It brings in some dancing, folky guitars and sharp, rasping vocals more akin to black metal than what’s preceded it. It’s got a great, singalong chorus that helps to cement it in the listeners mind, and it ultimately proves to be the best song on the whole record. Evenfall has some great, cleaner tones, that make it come across more like a ballad, with tender vocals and lighter guitars giving this song its driving force. It’s arguably the most experimental on Ouroboros too, tying together MANAM‘s symphonic aspects, progressive flourishes and a solid undercurrent of metal, without any one part of the sound dominating the track. It’s a great way to bring this album to a close, and proves to be one of the more imaginative offerings on an album filled with imaginative music.
To describe Ouroboros as just another melodic death metal release does not do this album justice. There’s so many elements at play on this album that, if anything, the melo-death side of the sound is no more than a base, upon which the vast majority of what makes this album great is built. There’s everything from symphonic music to prog to slight hints at folk music on offer here, and it’s very hard not to get caught up in the music. Although the way the album actually sounds is somewhat subdued, it’s incredibly hard to fault the music on any level. This album marks Manam‘s magnum opus, and it will be interesting to see how they surpass the lofty bar they have set themselves with Ouroborus.
Rating: 8/10
Ouroboros is out now via Rockshot Records.
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