Majalis is a project of both Tobias Netzell and Björn Pettersson of Swedish melodic/prog death metal band In Mourning. Apparently it was shelved for several years due to excessive commitments in their main day job, but I’m glad they’ve finally managed to find the time to pull some material together for this debut 3 track EP. Majalis allows Tobias and Björn to vent their downtrodden gloomy side which their day job doesn’t generally allow them to do, and it effortlessly gives off a misty grey ebb throughout, making even the sunniest of summer days cloud over.
There’s a nice mix of sounds here, the main being fairly minimalistic doom-laden riffs, with lamenting guitar licks weeping sad melodies throughout. Parts of Swallow the Sun can be heard in their gloom-laden sound, but more interestingly for me is their infusion of a more post-metal edge, with a good chunk of the riffage reminding me of Cult of Luna (the vocal work also has that same edge). However, these guys use a lot of great synth work which adds a truly doomy edge to the proceedings, adding that extra ‘oomph’ to their funereal atmospherics which listlessly flow over and through the mournful instrumentation. Opening with a gentle echoing piano piece, the first track ‘Rusting Sun’, definitely shows their post rock vibe, coming on like early Isis, while keeping their doomy edge fully intact come the chorus which really grips the heart strings and gives them a proper yank, leaving your empty torso free of not only heart strings, but heart, soul and just about everything other internal organ. The remaining two tracks also pull out the same mixture of post-metal and doom in equal measure to great effect, with the sludgy closer ‘Tooth & Bone’ bringing the EP to a shuddering eerie end in brilliant fashion.
As a taster for a new band, this 3 track EP certainly gave me the hunger to hear more. It’s just under 27 minutes in length, so it isn’t short by any means, but it’s certainly piqued my interest into seeing just how much grim melancholy they can pack into a full length album. Hopefully this garners enough interest for them to do one! Support!
(8/10 Lars Christiansen)
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