ALBUM REVIEW: Tales: Of Humanity and Greed – Temnein
In an age where melodic death metal is incredibly exciting, where bands like RIVERS OF NIHIL exist and where bands like SOILWORK are still going just as strong as their heyday in the early 2000s, it’s still refreshing to hear bands develop their own path through what’s tried and true. France’s TEMNEIN definitely have a more atmospheric sound than purely melodic, but with their third album Tales: Of Humanity and Greed, the five piece have crafted a very good album with strong performances and an interesting and unique lyrical premise.
That premise is this: stories of man’s foibles and follies not just throughout history, but across pop culture mediums as well. The band states that everything from Dr. Who and The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask served as inspiration for the songs on this album, and that alone is a great selling point for any listener. Right off the bat the band set’s the atmosphere with The Storyteller, an epic and sweeping introduction for the harsh history to come, and vocalist Jocelyn Fidry immediately establishes himself with a powerful presence. His growls are throaty and deep, which fits the massive wall of sound the band hits you with perfectly. The album from front to back is well produced. The only thing that stands out is that the snare drum could use a bit more pop and when the band starts to layer, it can get just a bit muddy, but it’s few and far between.
The Blind and the Gre is immediately a standout track. A massively hooky and instrumentally melodic chorus, it really highlights the guitars, wielded by Florian Frandidier and Morgan Rappe. They’re perfectly in sync and the use of synth sounds is also a big plus on this track. It’s suitably grand and overwhelming in the best way. The Knotted Bag spotlights a whole new side, with the rhythm section coming to the forefront on this track. Bassist Julien de Giorgio and drummer Valentin Treuillier are rock solid front to back on this record, and are often the unsung heroes behind already great guitar work. It definitely goes even further in a proggy, and even occasionally doomy direction which adds some nice texture. The vocals really slam on this one as well, a trend which sticks around for the majority of time.
I Am Davy Jones is another standout. A lilting intro is certainly the calm before the tempest this song captures. The storm begins with a riff straight out of the middle of TRIVIUM‘s career, but progresses into a really neat synth chord progression and some straightforward but evocative guitar work. It absolutely succeeds in painting a picture of driving rain and crashing waves upon a rolling sea. It’s a great view of this band in a nutshell, as they obviously know how to play their way into capturing an image and a feeling. It’s a scream into a thunderstorm and is captivating through and through. Rise of the Sontarans changes it again with a nice doomy guitar done and some tribal drums. It captures a battle feel for sure, but lacks the punch or sticking power of the previous tracks.
But TEMNEIN swing back immediately with A Few Drops of Blood. This track has licks for days and goes hard. Beyond the stellar guitar work is Fidry’s growl, which hits a new level on this track. Unfortunately this is one of the tracks that gets a bit muddy at the end, but it manages to smooth out with some crunch riffs to leave you wanting more. By this point the band really has you hooked. City of Gold is a bit of a mixed bag once again, with some great blitzing drums and a melodic atmosphere that feels like you’re spiralling into madness looking for the (presumably) titular El Dorado. The track itself doesn’t necessarily stand out, but it just adds more fuel to the fire to the band succeeding at the very title of the record: painting stories through mood.
Dirge for Termina is going to be a pit favourite. Once the tempo picks up, this is a mover and bodies will be slamming. The black metal tinged chord progressions in this one sound great and add a welcome darkness to a record which has mostly stayed pretty much in the light. This track is another pitch perfect example of TEMNEIN at their peak. Everyone and everything sounds great on this track, and it’s another must listen. It pushes the band’s progressive tendencies without going so far as to lose those who might want something more straightforward. However, Yuki Onna is a bit of a let down. Fidry throws his all into this track with some great vocals, and there’s some head slamming blast beats that complement the guitar solo, but overall it’s fairly straightforward and not too memorable, except for its ending which is incredibly melodic and is a nice tie up.
Going into the ten minute Scums of Hamelin is promising, with a pleasing clean guitar intro and nice dual harmonic lead. From there it’s a roller coaster of ups and downs, with the first half of the track being nothing too special and feeling a bit repetitive. Halfway through, the tone becomes mysterious and darker, bringing more of those doom/black metal vibes the band has sprinkled throughout record full circle. As the track reaches its end, it embraces a traditional melodic death sound more so than at any other point on the record. TEMNEIN sound great doing it, but it certainly would be nice to have heard more at other points through the runtime.
Tales: Of Humanity and Greed is a very good record all the way through, a great record at multiple points. It’s a band very much having a vision and, for the most part, succeeding at that vision and bringing the listener on an atmospheric journey along the way. It’s not perfect, but the band sounds like they’re having tons of fun playing and are damn good at it. It’s a rich, and often vibrant record that stirs the imagination, and that alone is very encouraging for this band, who most definitely have a bright future ahead.
Rating: 7/10
Tales: Of Humanity And Greed is out now via Bloodblast.
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