by ywannish
Manescape formed in 2006 and are coming from Głogów, Poland. After a couple of well-received previous releases, ‘Antibodies’ came out in February this year, a mix of shoegaze, stoner and post rock which gives content to their neo-psychedelic rock style, as they labeled themselves.
I have listened to the album a few times and couldn’t decide which ‘mood button’ suits them best, as each time I was left with an overall sentiment of weird smoothness while that was the not quite the feeling I was getting while listening to the songs. Some tracks are indeed sculptured with dreamlike layers suggesting serenity, such as ‘Penetrating Sound of Inertia’ or ‘Going Back in Reverse’. Nevertheless, they are rather exceptions as, despite being only a trio formula, the band’s music is rather loud, without being raucous. Manescape prefers subtle strategies to strengthen their sound. There is an organic link between the lyrics and the melody, which makes each song a concept in itself and makes impossible to ignore the song titles that offer valuable hints in understanding that concept. However, there is no song named Antibodies on the album maybe because each song is a remedy.
The lyrics are built on an existentialist template, within the legacy of Camus’ absurd condition of human existence, a tribute to the idea of embracing the strangeness while continuing searching for a meaning. Poetic and meaningful and even more valuable considering that they are written by a non-native English speaker.
There are plenty of beautiful tracks (or antibodies) on the album, all of them would deserve to be mentioned. ‘Black Bodies’ and ‘In Moments of Oblivion’ are more into the dirty groove stoner riffs, with unmistakable guitar signatures and steady rhythmic section. But Manescape are not afraid of approaching long compositions, which is always a good sign for a band confidence. ‘Beautiful Agony’ is a song over 7 minutes, but so well constructed that you never get bored or lost on the way. More supporting evidence can be found on ‘The Yearning’, a song that changes its musical direction completely from the starting point, reaching a powerful noise wall in the end. Obviously, Manescape would make a brilliant performance live and The Yearning would be a pièce de résistance in their live set. Definitely something I would love to see.
BAND INFO
Members
- Daniel Paluszek – Guitars/Vocals
- Piotr Lubiak – Bass
- Mario Bielski – Drums
Antibodies was released on February 4, 2017 via Rebel Rockers.
Manescape – The Yearning
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