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Nemesea > Mana > Reviews
Nemesea - Mana

Unmistakably Dutch and hopelessly romantic. - 88%

hells_unicorn, September 25th, 2013

In the early 2000s, a considerable chunk of mainland Europe's attention was taken by a loftier, yet still heavily romanticized variation on the Gothic train that rolled out of the 90s death/doom station. This style, which eventually split off into what now is widely recognized as the Epica sound, took out most of the slower doom elements and scaled back much of the death metal elements to something along the lines of a highly formulaic power/thrash character, all the while putting a greater deal of emphasis on symphonic devices and building a dense atmosphere of sound comparable to Rhapsody Of Fire's Hollywood soundtrack approach to metal. In light of the ongoing studio feats of After Forever and the eventual debut spawned by its sister band Epica, Nemesea comes into the equation a bit late for any claim of originality, but they've definitely took the instruction of their slight elders well and came out with a winner of a debut.

A casual listen to "Mana" reveals an album crafted by a fold of committed fans, holding very few surprises to speak of, but definitely carrying a sizable load of enthusiasm and an eye for detail. Guitarist H.J. De Jong is an overt fan of Mark Jansen, so much so that his riff work often just misses plagiarizing several ideas off of "Decipher", but there is a bit more at work when getting down to the detailing of the guitar work. Likewise, vocalist and co-founder Manda Ophuis is so close to an outright Sharon Den Adel clone that it gets difficult to tell during the ballads whether this album or "Mother Earth" is actually playing. Nevertheless, the consequential sound of melding these two familiar Dutch staples together makes for a fun listen, perhaps because the lyrical subjects aren't so heavily drenched in modern politics and the two guitarist arrangement is exploited a bit more effectively here than the Gommans vs. Jansen pair up, which primarily consisted of two rhythm guitarists doing virtually the same thing from start to finish.

The greatest plus "Mana" carries is a lack of shyness in ratcheting up the gallops and the tempo, even in comparison to the power metal tendencies of Epica. Right from the onset, "Threefold Law" cruises through with the same sort of high kicking drum work, galloping chug guitar work and lofty choral voices that was generally saved until later on "Prison Of Desire" and not quite thrown out as blatantly on "Decipher". The same story generally goes for the longer and more complex "Angel In The Dark" after the piano ballad intro, as well as the thrashing "Lucifer" with a galloping riff set right out of the Jon Schaffer school and a lot of Mid-Eastern melodic trappings. That's really the sticking point where the comparisons between Epica and this band come into play, the uncanny love of using an Arabic-influenced musical character that plays to a mystical character of sound. Arguably the only noticeable place where Nemesea breaks with Epica is in the lead guitar department, where several solos such as the one heard on "Mortalitis Part III: Moriendum Tibi Est" (even structuring the song titles like Mark Jansen would) have a fair amount of Blackmore and Malmsteen influences, though presented in a less outwardly virtuosic fashion than the likes of Stratovarius or Iron Mask.

It's a foregone conclusion that anyone who likes early After Forever and all of Epica's output will find a precious gem here. Originality isn't necessarily the most sought after trick of the trade, and when considering that this band opened up for After Forever on several occasions, it stands to reason that it was never really high on their radar at this juncture. To its credit, "Mana" goes a bit beyond simply imitating an up and coming sound circa 2004 but also breathes a little bit of additional life into it, presenting a version of it that's a bit more energetic and busy. Call it presumptuous, but I would argue that this debut edges out After Forever's entire output and stands toe to toe with anything Jansen has done with Epica since. It's chock full of memorable songs and lacks a lot of the meandering and extraneous samples and voice-over speeches that tend to interrupt an otherwise smooth flow sound on said albums. It's a bit hard to come by given its release on the now defunct Ebony Tears label, but if it can be found, it definitely deserves more love.

Simply Perfect - 100%

FGD, April 8th, 2006

This album is simply perfect. Not only they combined Symphonic and Gothic metal, they combined it with Power/Progressive metal that makes the album unique. It's amazing how can the start of the album, Nemesis, captivates you and doesn't let you go until you finished listening to the album. Manda Ophuis has a beautiful voice, which can be as clear as Sharon del Adel's (Within Temptation) or as operatic as Floor Jansen (After Forever) and Tarja Turunnen (Ex-Nightwish). One of the most amazing things of this Symphonic metal band is the guitar playing. Mostly bands like The Gathering or Within Temptation use guitars and bass only as rhythm, while in Nemesea Guitar solos and melodious bass riffs are a must. Drums are also filled with progressive-like playing, which makes the heavy touch in the album. Finally, Keyboards are always present, as piano, as strings, as solos, but doesn't make the other instruments sound opaque. If you are a Symphonic, Gothic, Power, or progressive metal lover you are gonna be fascinated with this release.

Fastastic debut - 90%

Thonolan, December 23rd, 2004

Nemesea is a very young band from Groningen (Holland) that’s going to surprise many people with this debut album "Mana."
Although here they are quite an unknown band, in their country there were already big expectations about this album, because there they have supported-act After Forever in many occasions. And, indeed, their style is comparable to AF or also Epica, without being a copy of none of them.

Nemesea plays symphonic metal with female vocals in the vein of those previously mentioned bands, but in comparison with them, I would say that their music has a more rhythmic-oriented style, more based in powerful guitar riffs and notorious bass lines to give form to their songs. They have some progressive influences that become very clear in some moments. There aren’t grunts at all (except in one song in which they appear very shortly), but there are some choir arrangements (very well introduced). I also have to point the narrated passages that appears in several songs, those which, far from boring, give a much deeper and more dramatic dimension to their music.


Technically, all band members show a good level. The singer Manda Ophuis has a very versatile, warm voice and which sound is surprisingly similar to Anneke van Giersbergen (The Gathering), mainly in the slowest parts, although the way she uses her voice and her vocal melodies also reminds me a bit of Floor Jansen (After Forever).
But the thing that has surprised me most (positively) is the style of the guitarist Hendrik Jan de Jong. Sincerely, there are some passages on this album that make me think I am listening to an hypothetical new album of the Norwegian gods Conception, because his guitar playing, (especially in the solos, their structure, sound and good taste for the melodies), reminds me clearly to the great Tore Ostby (Conception’s guitarist). He has been the producer of this album as well. The role of the keyboards is also prominent, generally as accompaniment but also with some solo parts.

Another aspect to highlight, and not less important, because is probably one of the most special elements of this CD, is its atmosphere. It’s difficult to describe, and maybe only a matter of personal taste, but the whole album oozes a very special, enchanting and almost hypnotic aura that makes the listening very pleasant.

"Nemesis" starts the album with deep percussion sounds that go deriving in presence of keyboards. Is a magnificent instrumental that goes "in crescendo", in the end the guitars appears announcing the beginning of the first actual song of the album, called "Threefold Law", a fast, direct track, with fantastic choir arrangements and a slight arabic atmosphere created by the keyboards which reminds a bit of the old After Forever style.

"Empress" is another powerful track that perfectly shows the style of Nemesea: good guitar riffs, prominent bass lines, interesting keyboard arrangements and the fantastic vocal melodies of Manda Ophuis.

"Angel in the Dark" begins in a very calm way, with a deep piano and soft singing of Manda. The song goes becoming harder as advances, but keeping up the great atmosphere and melancholy as the rest of the album.

After these first four tracks comes kind of a conceptual part called "Mortalitas", which includes the four following songs. The first of them is "The Taker" that after a beginning with bells and a solemn spoken voice shows us the typical elements of this band again: cool riffs and excellent vocal melodies. On this song appear the only grunts (during some brief seconds) on the whole album. "Dies Irae" is a short and nice choral interlude sung in Latin. The third part of "Mortalitas" is called "Moriendum Tibi Est", and it’s in my opinion the most brilliant track of the whole CD. A progressive metal instrumental that begins with the same opening riff of "The Taker", and after it becomes a technique boast, full of very good guitar and keyboard solos, especially the one that begins in the minute 2:18, with an absolutely wonderful melody that again reminds a lot of Conception. Fantastic!. The fourth and last part is "From Beneath You It Devours", a slow, calm song in which it seems that we are listening to Anneke van Giersbergen herself, such is the resemblance of Manda Ophuis with her when she sings on this softer way.

"Lucifer" brings back the metal side of Nemesea. It’s one of the best songs, combining fast and powerful parts with some more electronic and calmer passages, and, once again, delicious vocal melodies.

"Disclosure" sounds a bit different from the other songs, a bit more gothic, I’d say. It features an exquisite guitar solo. "Beyond Evil" is a mid tempo song with a repetitive but very cool guitar riff that is combined with some atmospheric and very dramatic parts. "Cry" is a really beautiful ballad, with lots of sadness and melancholy, although I thing they could have developed it more. It’s too short. The album ends with an "Outro" of strange keyboard sounds.

In a genre like this that is starting to be a bit saturated with too many similar and not really good bands, it’s really pleasant to find a young and very talented band like Nemesea, adding a fresh sound to the scene. In my opinion, Nemesea is without a doubt the best young female fronted band I’ve discovered in the last times along with Epica.