Manzer return with their second full length album of their illustrious career this year, honing their special craft and establishing their brand of ‘Pictavian black metal’ around the world even more firmly. The album clearly is a tour de force, an outstanding effort which sees the band playing with the concept of black metal and giving it a new classic twist but keeping it within the fringes of the style. It’s first wave black metal elaborated upon with heavy metal elements. It’s rendered extremely potent and effective, not to mention downright refreshing. The French band are setting new standards and changing perceptions of the style, and it’s easy to see how – their music is virtually the antithesis of something that’s supposed to be extremely raw and minimalist. Manzer, who are vaguely comparable to a black metal counterpart of Deceased, eschew the typical trappings of the genre and go for the classic method of writing anthemic, semi-melodic, structured and immaculately concocted compositions replete with blazing solos, harmonies, tons of tempo changes, backed with a vigorous drum performance and unique vocals provided by the main man Shaxul.
