The Secret Demos 1999/2003

Even though its songs were written after Mab's debut album "Nougat!", this one feels much more like an unsure first foot forward. But it's still a rather entertaining and strange little album about wild fairy dances and general craziness.

This album of previously unreleased songs already has elements of what we would come to know as Mab's sound, but before they completely mastered that style, and with not always so memorable results, which makes the best moments stand out even more. It's music that needs to be described rather than labelled into a specific subgenre, as Mab is more about creating a certain mood than sticking to one subgenre. It's the same mix of Babes in Toyland and thrash metal that forms the foundation of Mab's music, but some of the heavier and slower riffs, as well as the use of titles like "Unadorned" and "Poisoned by the Friendly Hands" give it a light gothic metal feel. The Type o Negative school of gothic metal, that mixes goth rock with doom and thrash metal and a more aggressive vocal delivery.

Similarly, Alice Dionis doesn't sing quite like she would on "Decay", but she's getting there. She doesn't scream as much, but she has some wild yells in "Flutter" , "Giocati/Perditi" or "Pangs of Death". Most of the time she uses a raspy and aggressive singing that only hints at her vocal abilities, but she also uses a more singsongy delivery on "Disgrado" and a calmer one on "Emphasised Love". The only time where her singing approaches an operatic tone in on "Lluvia", where she lets her voice wander around the notes, a ridiculous but accurate description.

All the songs I just mentioned are pretty good, thanks to their energy, their catchiness and their vocal and instrumental work. The others, mostly "Unadorned" and "Emphasised Love", can be a little less memorable. They also have an interesting and strange sound, but they don't work as much. Because, as I said earlier, Mab is above all about creating a specific mood and stick to a particular theme: the fairy queen Mab and her magic that gets in people's minds and makes them dance in a wild frenzy and forget the world around them. A common theme in many legends, that gets greatly explored in this album.

And I dare say that Mab the band has really managed to create music that really feels like Mab the character is hypnotizing you and making you dance. Their songs have a great energy, they sound somewhat threatening and weird but also hypnotically catchy, and they always have that sort of crazy fast spinning riff that really does sound like a wild frenzied dance. This is best exemplified in "Pangs of Death", which is all about being hypnotized by Mab and makes a great intro to this album. Maybe not every song on that album is as good, but if you want more Mab, if you're curious about how they have evolved over the years and would like to be first hypnotized and driven wild by "Pangs of Death", and after many fun moments, finally soothed by "Lluvia", try this one. Let's spin like one of Mab's amazing riffs.