Mantar - The Modern Art Of Setting Ablaze

Heavy Metal is a living thing. Well, some disagree with living, they’d rather say undead, but anyway. As a historical movement, Heavy Metal is always at movement. It’s always changing. One generation learn with the other. In terms of Metal, it says that bands learn with bands that came before them. They are the called influences. All bands have theirs. It’s no secret. Some bands try to hide the way they can their influences. Others don’t. But there’s a category of bands that leave it obvious. Mantar are one of those. From the beginning of “The Modern Art Of Setting Ablaze” Motörhead appears as an obvious influence to Mantar’s music.

Let’s dissect those influences that go beyond sonance. They are not only on songwriting but also on bass’s lines and on Hanno Klaenhardt’s vocals. Alright, his voice isn’t that similar to Lemmy’s, but the way of singing it is. Hanno Klaenhardt uses the same melancholy and despair Lemmy used to do. Have you ever notices how Lemmy’s vocals were full of despair? How about the bass lines? Now the influence gets more clear. Mantar’s bass lines follows the same Lemmy’s grip and effects.

But the burning question is: are Mantar a copycat of Motörhead? No, my dear child of the night. They aren’t. “The Modern Art Of Setting Ablaze” is a great album because of all those influences. Remember, influences don’t mean copycat, they’re just influences. Helloween were heavy influenced by Iron Maiden, but are they the same? No, they aren’t. Same here. There are songs as “Dynasty Of Nails” where this influence gets more visible, but only that.

Mantar perform the so-called modern Black Metal where instrumentals are much more bonded to traditional Heavy Metal and vocals are guttural. I like that. But what I liked most are exactly the vocals full of despair. Not only anger, but despair. Aren’t we all full of despair?

There is one more interesting thing I should write about “The Modern Art Of Setting Ablaze” and that is besides all the anger and despair, Mantar’s music is full of excitement. Yeah, excitement. And that excitement comes from the cadence Mantar chose. Listen, for instance, “Obey the Obscene” to get what I’m telling. Pure excitement in the sickest way.

Mantar “The Modern Art Of Setting Ablaze” was released on August 24th via Nuclear Blast Records.

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