There is a subtle but distinct separation between the strange and the absurd, and Norwegian experimental act MANES embrace the former and the latter in different ways. Their ever-shifting sound is avant-garde yet accessible, their unique mix of styles—metal, trip hop, industrial, synth-pop—never sounds obtuse or purposefully difficult, and their first record after their four-year hiatus reveals a newfound purpose and a willful embrace of the absurdity of life. Slow Motion Death Sequence—released Aug. 24 via Debemur Morti Productions—is majestic, morose, beautiful, and a wonderful way to remind listeners of one of the most unique voices in dark art rock.
What’s most apparent—and impressive—about MANES’ newest statement is its cohesive sonic vision. Each song wields noise and melody in equal doses, coming across like a human soul grasping for a flashlight in the darkness. Yet, there’s a restless energy that only seems to come out at night. Bassist Torstein Parelius elaborates, “I really appreciate the fact that you find it cohesive, because we never aim to ‘be weird’ and take something from this genre and mix with something from that genre or whatever. We are four people who each have a bag full of influences and sources of inspiration gathered through a lifetime, and we combine that with a plethora of instruments and machines that go ‘beep.’ That is the basic formula.”
“We really wanted to dig deeper and go darker on this album too,” he continues, “maybe as we felt [2014’s] Be All End All got a bit too bright in a way. We tried to take everything one step closer to the edge—if that isn’t too bombastic a way of putting it—and tried to pour some of our own darkest moments into the music. Not everything is strictly personal for the four of us—or our collaborators—per se, but it is real and close to home. Demons and devils seem to get a lot of attention, but for me, topics like, for example, abuse, alcoholism, and cancer take things to a darker place altogether. We wanted and needed that level of darkness on this album.”
This musical darkness weaves itself wonderfully into an acceptance of life’s absurdity—and, for Parelius, a certain pointlessness. To hear him tell it, there is no silver lining in the record’s vision. “Slow Motion Death Sequence is an album that lets you tap into a chain of thought, a different kind of feeling that you might not have dared to experience before,” he says. “It is not ‘the Truth,’ not necessarily for you, at least. To say it this way: I fully endorse those who dare to ask, ‘What awaits us in the afterlife?’ and ‘Is there a God?’ and similar big questions. However, I feel it is equally important to allow yourself to dive into the possibility of no meaning whatsoever, no afterlife, and no god.”
Thankfully, Parelius and company have channeled this line of questioning into an album that packages dark philosophy into a brilliant and harrowing musical vision. MANES are back and better than ever.
Purchase Slow Motion Death Sequence here
