The first thing that struck me about the EP was the striking image on the cover. I don't know whether this is Mammut's way of setting the scene, but it does a damn good job nonetheless. As you may have already guessed, this is the debut EP by Swedish Doom/Sludge band Mammut. They are a five piece based in Stockholm.
Tracklist:-
1. Homunkulus
2. Grottan
3. Syndaflod
4. Vulkan
Homunkulus is the title track of this EP and starts with a
sampled, Swedish language spoken word passage. Once this has faded out, Mammut
start to kick out the jams. These riffs are pure old-school rock n roll and the
lyrics are in Swedish, to give the record an authentic twist.
Mammut focus on the more melodic side of Stoner Rock, but do
incorporate some heavier, Mastodon-esque riffs into their sound. The band has
an incredible ability to create dreamy, yet rocking songs and keep an eye
firmly aimed at traditional heavy metal values. The production also does a
great job of adding warmth to the EP, which is missing from some other
traditional heavy metal records. It allows both vocals and instruments to
breathe. The end to Homunkulus is a surprise, as much like Black Sabbath used
to do, Mammut change the pace, speed things up and get heavier towards the end
of the song. It's a great thrash close to an assured song.
Grottan is a slower paced song, but with the melodic vocals
of singer Johan Eliasson, it's very listenable. Again, part way through, they
switch their attention to a more upbeat tempo and bring in some nice mean riffs
and even some growled vocals.
Mammut's music never sound cheesy or contrived, which I
think has a lot to do with them keeping things traditional and singing in their
native tongue. Listen to Syndaflod to get a sense of the kind of awesome melody
that they put into their songs.
The solo and twin guitar melodies during Syndaflod are also
real quality and when they slow things down, the Doom/Sludge influences really
start to shine through and give the music a real heft. Vulkan rounds out this
EP, with one last thrilling blast of Swedish Heavy Metal. It has it's own
character, as do the other songs here, with it's brilliant vocal melodies and
Stoner inspired riffs.
You can stream and download the whole of Homunkulus for free via Mammut's Soundcloud page at http://soundcloud.com/mammutmusik.
You can also keep up to date with what's happening in their world via their Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/bandetmammut.
Sounds Great!!
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