In Control

I'm generally ambivalent to the concept of pop music, mostly because I see it as more of an anti-concept. It's one of the few labels attributed to music where it tells more about the marketing end of the equation than it does anything about its quality or contents. Some argue that it's descriptive in the sense that it suggests a symmetry in structure and a strong level of accessibility, which means roughly 10% of the outer fringes of extreme metal and punk have been eliminated from the equation. In order for "pop" to truly make sense, it needs a hyphen/slash and another genre name to give it any real meaning, and thus we come to the concept of pop/rock, or radio rock that focuses more on the radio side of the equation, but having some light electric guitars along for the ride.

Nemesea's generally little known self-released sophomore effort "In Control" presents arguably one of the more bizarre eventualities to grace the lighter side of metal music, a band that went solo in order to become more popular. That is literally the only way to explain the move away from a respectably strong symphonic Gothic metal style after the mold of early After Forever and Within Temptation and find themselves in a shallow synth pop niche that would even make the likes of Amaranthe sound heavy by comparison. Vocalist Manda Ophuis still retains a bit of her Sharon Den Adel persona, though everything surrounding her has been reduced to a hyper-repetitive mess of keyboard samples, droning bass lines and hollow, limp-wrist power chords that make any random Evanescence riff sound busier. Why there are still two guitarists in the fold when this was recorded is the 2nd greatest mystery this album holds, whereas the first is how these are the same two guitarists the were present on "Mana".

To dispense with the obvious, this album is not metal by any stretch of the imagination, and it really struggles to retain any semblance of aggression even by rock standards. Occasionally a chorus-line such as the ones heard on "Never" and "Remember" (what's with all the single word song titles?) will come with a few well placed grooves, though they tend to be buried under a lot of keyboard work that tends to mirror the guitars. But even if one were to approach this as a semi-heavy homage to the sort of techno music heard on "The Matrix" film and its 2 respective sequels, it's presented in a ridiculously contrived and uninteresting manner. Essentially this is an even more offensive version of Krypteria's "My Fatal Kiss" a full 2 years before that album was born, complete with all the awkward lyrical content that makes a tragic attempt at sounding tragic, and this leaves the utterly appalling blunder of a pop anthem "Believe" out of it.

If this album is a demonstration of what music sounds like when it's "In Control", there needs to be a lot more anarchy brought into the equation, as fast as humanly possible. Anyone with an iota of love for this band's relatively little known debut (a drop in the ocean of a saturated symphonic Gothic scene with power metal influences to boot on the now defunct Ebony Tears label) or with anything associated with metal music should avoid this thing like innocent women and children should an American drone attack. Chewing on tin foil while relieving yourself on an electric fence could literally pass for more constructive use of time than blowing 33 minutes on this pile of insipid rubbish.

Apparently, Nemesea started out on their debut album sounding like an Epica clone, but I can’t confirm that because I’ve never heard it. What I can confirm is that on their sophomore album, In Control, they share more in common with an Electronica band like Collide or a Pop artist such as Kelly Clarkson then any of those Gothic Rock bands out there. The music is dominated by synths and upbeat, almost danceable rhythms driven along by the capable vocals of Manda and an abundance of very catchy choruses. There are still guitars on this album, but their sound and the riffs they play have very little in common with Metal. Their sound is more reminiscent of an Industrial band in the way that they have a razor-sharp, slightly processed sound to them, and the riffs themselves are the rhythmic power chords associated with that genre as well (except much less aggressive here).

The album starts with “No More” which is the heaviest song on the album and easily shows that they are no longer following behind bands like Epica. It starts with pulsating synth, Techno-ish keyboards, and Manda’s beautiful vocals. When the song really starts up, the guitars come in to compliment all the synth and keys, but they only occasionally dominate the song with any sort of heaviness. The chorus is catchy and easily memorable, and the beat is quick and energetic. The second track, “In Control” is more representative of the album as a whole. It is very upbeat with rhythmic, yet unobtrusive riffs, a lot of pulsating synth, and a very catchy chorus. Another song that follows that same basic formula is the track “Lost Inside” which as of right now is available for free download from their website.

Another song worth noting is the single ballad on the album, “The Way I Feel” which features guest vocals from Cubworld. If you’re unfamiliar with Cubworld, don’t expect any Death Metal vocals or anything, because this guy’s style is similar to Jack Johnson or Dave Mathews. The song starts with just piano and the two vocalists, and it is simply beautiful. Their vocals compliment each other so well, and they both elicit so much emotion from the song that they’re able to bring it to the next level all by their selves. By the end, the rest of the band does come in but it’s only in a limited role to provide a crescendo to the song when both vocalists let the complete power in their voices free.

For those that may be familiar with this band’s debut album or with Gothic Rock in general, there are still enough lingering influences from their past to keep your attention including some solid guitar melodies from time to time, most notably at the end of the song “Believe”. The song with the largest nod to their past is “Like the Air”, which if not for the pulsating synth line that moves in and out of the guitar riff, could be considered Gothic Rock. The chorus on this song has some of the strongest, most soaring vocals from Manda, and the melody behind it is more Folk influenced then Pop influenced.

Nemesea is hard band to pin down because I think they could appeal to those who love female fronted metal as easily as they could appeal to someone into the Pop sounds of Kelly Clarkson. On the other hand, that dual appeal could cause fans of either genre to despise the other elements contained within each song. For me, this is a solid album full of Poppy Electronica songs with enough of a Metal influence to give it an edge and set it apart from the stereotypes that bands of either genre usually fall into.