UNSIGNED AND UNHOLY: OM MANI ARE DJENT DONE FANCY

Within the last year, djent has picked up followers by the truckload, replacing the tedium of deathcore with some long awaited inspiration and… also some more tedium. Low tunings and monotone vocals an interesting band do not make. So why should you bother with another 8-string-aping sound-alike? Because France’s Om Mani doesn’t really sound like Meshuggah, and they sure don’t sound like Periphery, either.

Take one part Tool’s Lateralus, a sprinkle of Texture’s monstrous low end, and a liberal dose of Mudvayne’s unfulfilled potential, and you’ve got something in the ballpark of Om Mani’s Apology: a free, completely professional unsigned release by a certifiably crazy band of frogs.

Whether through the demands of drummer Mike Roponus’ other heavy commitment (he also plays with his fellow Frenchmen in Hacride), or just a run of shit luck, these guys released a beast of record a year and a half ago that was largely ignored by all save for only the most vigilant of forum crawlers. It’s high time you hear this thing! Did I mention it’s free?

Like finger-licking bass poppin’? They got that. Apocalyptic octave vamps? Yup. Crazy drumming recorded by a living, breathing human being? Absolutely. And here’s the best part: Om Mani actually has a unique vocalist. Max (who apparently has no last name) roars with the best of them but also has a whacky, ethereal singing voice that never ascends into the Freddie Mercury stratosphere. He leaves that territory to his crazed shreiks (he quite literally screams the notes out in songs like “The Child and the Beast” and “Ajna,” above).

There’s a lot more that I could say about this band and their work, but I don’t really feel like it and you probably don’t feel like reading it. Just download it already.

And if you like Apology as much as I do, be sure help them out with a donation.

-BS