Here’s a band that has been doggedly releasing demos in the underground since the mid-90s and finally have managed to put out a full-length with label support. Being that I’m rather fond of Summoning, I was intrigued to hear this when it was presented to me as something in a similar vein and certainly that is what I got. Hell, the guy has previously covered a Summoning song, although not on this album, and there really is very little going on here that doesn’t equate to it being a 2nd rate Summoning tribute.
Lyrically inspiration comes from various myths and legends of Heidelberg and makes for some fairly strung out compositions around the 15 minute mark. Far be it for me to argue with history, but these fables are pretty wishy-washy to say the least (man falls in love with a clairvoyant – clairvoyant woman gets mauled to death by a wolf – he is heartbroken and all lived unhappily ever after) and unsurprisingly, while the music isn’t unpleasant, it doesn’t really seem to go anywhere. This is seriously heavy on the synths which do create plenty of ambience and there is no lack of melody to be found on this album. ‘The Treasure In The Old Mountain’ is in fact quite beautiful, the violins cast a veil of sorrow while the keyboards give a layer of ambience over a backdrop of harsh guitars and paced drums. As it all subsides to make way for a narrated passage with some panpipes in the background it gives off a real feeling of tragedy, and on ‘Jetta’ the crying in the middle of the track certainly feels very tragic and imagine this is where the young man finds out his love has died.
There are no gaps between songs, all segue seamlessly into one another like one long flowing composition. There are plenty of sweeping, romantic keyboards, while the rhythm section often heaves away leading a mighty march albeit a slow one. The vocals are ferocious and yet melodic on the ears. The epicness of Summoning is certainly there, and at times it builds a picture while at other times I can’t help but feel there is a missing piece that got lost down the elusive back of the sofa. Title track, ‘Genius Loci’ brings things to a close and has some really storming drums and fierce destructive guitars while it all breaks away in the middle to bring out a minimalist piano melody. All in all, I found myself wanting to like this a lot more than I actually did, but ultimately there is something missing that I can’t quite place. Nevertheless, if you are a fan of Summoning you ought to check this out.
http://www.myspace.com/psychomantumband
