Morito Ergo Sum are a smooth, rich sounding Swedish doom band and, well, this was a nice little package complete with press kit and a very classy picture, I have to say. All put together by the band which shows thought and attention to detail. Four showcase tracks, including a cover of the King Crimson song 'Moonchild'. As I say, neat idea.
First song I hear is 'When The Grass Grows Over Me' which starts on slow minimal bass and gentle violin and when the guitar beaks in with it's sombre sound there's a dark, heavy gothic wrap around that reminds me of early Doomshine but with more steel to the melancholy. Dare I say it, there is an earthiness and a simplicity that is often found in the best of British, here. It moves slowly and quite beautifully. The vocals are good; a softness to them that carries the the emotion perfectly and immediately impresses personality over their sound. The production, too, is fine at capturing the sound, though perhaps a little more expansive approach might have opened the song up just a little, but for a self release it more than does the job.
Despite the violin once more briefly making an appearance 'This Selfish Act' drops a little of the gothic in favour of an introspection with hints of the melody Mirror Of Deception are capable of. Good company but sandwiched between the previous track and the final one it doesn't quite shine as strongly as a song, falling a little into the good but perhaps just slightly overstating it's time. Yet again though solid confident playing and excellent vocals.
The final track, the cover of . Moonchild', is a sumptuous version, full of the yearning of the original but with the kind of guitar lead and riff you always wanted it to bear. Haunting, mesmerising and quite, quite gorgeous. A wonderful ending.
I wish I could tell you how the opening track compares but I can't because it wouldn't play. Two computers, umpteen media players and one blu ready player later all I get is a few moments of intro then silence, and due to DRM I couldn't even attempt to convert it, much less put it onto my MP3 player. Just a little word of warning to others thinking of sending digital files: check them please because believe me 'frustrated' doesn't come close to what I felt. It speaks volumes as to how promising this EP is that it swept that all away, as with a lesser band it might have stayed in the pile as a result.
The music I heard though proves that in a short existence, Mortio Ergo Sum are already at the stage where I want to hear that debut album. Good stuff indeed.
http://www.myspace.com/moritoergosumband
Gizmo
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