A little while ago REMNANT was in Europe for a few shows, among which a show in The Netherlands. Aside from that AVO was granted two interviews (1,2) with this underground gothic/darkwave band. Meanwhile, it was also time to take a listen to their albim MisanthroPia. The band, existing out of three members, released this album on December 20, 2013 in Japan. This is their first full album.
Tracklist:
01. Covenant
02. Darkness coming
03. Eternity of children
04. Peut Revenir
05. Death wish
06. Progeny of blood
07. Secret amour
08. Ghost
09. Cocytus
10. insensate
It starts with an intro which reminds me of various alien-related series and movies. There is a feeling of nature in it, but also sounds of the unknown. The song Covenant contains a voice in the background, but I can’t make much out of it. A feeling of mystery suffices as the intro to the album.
Darkness Coming suddenly contains a lot more power, but it still clearly continues in the mystery. Something that happens more often with darkwave. There’s a clear choice in this song to maintain the instrumental upper hand in this song, but when the vocals are added after about a minute it feels like the song is complete. Soft, balanced with some darker and heavier drum lines. In combination with the title, I’d conclude that the lovely singing voice is being sucked in by the approaching darkness. The second voice only makes this stronger.
The third song of the album, Eternity of Children, has a higher pace and sounds less dark in my opinion. It’s difficult to understand song for me, in which I wonder what the story is exactly. Despite this song being shorter than the previous one, it feels longer. This might be because the song doesn’t really switch between stanzas and chorus, or just changes in the rhythm and style.
Peut Revenir brings the darker atmosphere yet again. The heavier, male voice starts off in English before the beautiful high voice joins in again, sounding delightfully soft as ever. This song feels like it expresses hope later in the song. I’m going to bring in the definition of the title here, since it means “to be able to return”. Hopes and dreams to return? Could that be the message of this song?
We have arrived at Death Wish, which is a pretty dark title. A sharp (keyboard) sound dominates the intro of this song together with the drums. The word that best describes this song to me is “melancholic”, but perhaps the title has influenced me beforehand about which feeling could belong with it. The mystery is clearly present in this song as well. There is laughter throughout the song. Happy at first, and hysterical afterwards or maybe like bullies laugh. To me, this amplifies the feeling that I already had.
Progeny of Blood starts off the second half of the CD with power. A lovely drum set, a nice mysterious singing part afterwards and the song keeps changing from here on. Both voices are sharing the stage and feel equally important in the story. The rain and thunder which you can hear in this song feel pressing and serious. This song is a real bingo for me!
The next song is titled Secret Amour, secret love. I’m not surprised in the slightest that this song sounds softer. The desire that seems to seep through the song is completely justified. There is the use of cymbals, or something of that nature. A beautiful, fragle sound that fits perfectly with the voice. This song has been composed very well, and it could bring a really nice atmosphere to an intimate concert venue.
We have arrived at the eighth song of the CD already, titled Ghost. And we will remain in the mysterious theme. It seems like I hear rain again. REMNANT really seems to like to work with nature-sounding sounds. This is a very busy song, giving off a lot of impressions. It doesn’t give me a clear feeling, but I do feel a feeling of urgency. Like you’re being hunted, chased. It’s a different kind of sound, but it does stimulate.
Cocytus is the before-last song on the CD, a title of which I can’t make any imaginations. A short search teaches me that it’s a river in the underworld. The song itself is rather calm. A guitar has the upper hand, together with the vocals which sound moaning more than anything. Not disturbing-moaning, but more like a voice telling you about things that went wrong. A pleasant song.
And finally, we have arrived at the last song of the album, Insenate. This gives me the feeling that I am on a deserted island. A beautiful piano play is accompanied y more electronic sounds. And yet it feels natural and pretty. A beautiful outro for the CD. Maybe this closing song is the best song of the entire CD.
Like I mentioned before, this was the very first full album of REMNANT. It gives a clear image of the band and their abilities. Definitely a recommendation to give a listen!
Rating: 70/100
