Nero Di Marte’s Immoto is the band’s most experimental album!  (review)

Band: Nero Di Marte
Country: Italy
Genre: Progressive/dissonant death metal
Album: Immoto
Release Date: January 22nd
Record Label: Season of Mist
Line-up:
Sean Worrell - Vocals, Guitar
Giulio Galati - Drums and percussion
Andrea Burgio - Bass
Francesco D'Adamo – Guitar
Recorded, mixed & mastered by: Riccardo Pasini at Studio73 (Italy)
Cover art: Alex Eckman-Lawn
Pre-Order: https://shop.season-of-mist.com/list/nero-di-marte-immoto

When the Italian heavy metal scene is in question, Nero Di Marte is the first band that comes to my mind. I discovered these guys through one of Luc Lemay’s interviews. And of course, I instantly became a fan. Nero Di Marte have released their third full length album called Immoto via Season of Mist. The band has two more albums in their catalogue – Nero Di Marte (2013) and Derivae (2014).  Their music ranges from progressive to more noisy, dissonant death metal. And that fact alone gives this band a very genuine and easily distinctive sound. Immoto is a lengthy album. The total runtime is 1 hr, 7 minutes. So, fasten your seatbelts and get ready for some carnage!

The first song, Sisyphos is as gigantic as the title suggests! This track starts slow & proggy. But after the 3^rd minute the band gets loose in a feeding frenzy! Merciless riffage kicks in! And oh boy! That bass couldn’t get any heavier! I really love it’s tone! As time goes by, Sisyphos becomes a death metal song that takes no prisoners! Their drummer, Giulio Galati is DESTROYING the drum kit with hellish blast beats like there’s no tomorrow! This is actually the first time that he recorded an album with Nero Di Marte. Sisyphos is a lengthy tune (11:30) and it’s pretty dynamic as well. Sean Worrell and Francesco D’Adamo are bringing some classy riffs to the table!

L’Arca starts with this Tool sounding riff. This time, Sean Worrell is singing in Italian. And believe me, Google translate is your best friend, since 5 songs out of 7 are in Italian. The first minute of this track is calm & soothing and then the tension mounts as time goes by. Clean vocals parts really make this song stand out from the rest and you’ll definitely hear why!  But still, the song also incorporates these nasty, mid-tempo death metal riffs. The self-titled song, Immoto, starts with a dark, soothing clean vocal part. Cynic is the first thing that comes to mind! And the guitar chords give the whole thing a chilling, melancholic effect. And boy, the chord progression that follows is one of the highlights of this album! I actually thought that this song will come to an end as a chillax kind of thing. BUT NO! PANDORA’s BOX IS OPENED! AND THESE GUITARS & DRUMS ARE BITING HEADS OFF! „Semicerchi“ is another, melancholic piece of art.  The background, atmospheric noise contributes greatly to the whole dark vibe that this track possesses. And this track has no death metal riffs whatsoever.

„La Casa del Diavolo“ suggests the exact opposite. Distortion kicks in, as well as these noisy guitar parts. This track incorporates some deadly mid-tempo riffs. The bass is buzzing nonstop! Gotta love that! And when you mix in rapid double bass fire with chunky, noisy chords, you get the essential Nero Di Marte track that keeps on delivering! The moment where everything fades except the guitar is breathtaking! And the riffs that follow are on-spot as well! But every time their drummer goes in feeding frenzy, you’ll get the feeling as if the whole universe implodes! This, my friends is the point of no return in the song! The calm before the storm vanishes and the whole band goes nuts!

Irradia. Gotta love that title! Sounds so damn heavy just by saying it! This is a proggy track that starts slow. And you can definitely feel the tension in the air as the time goes by. Everything gets louder and louder. The last track „La Fuga“ is where things get pretty damn heavy, noisy, and cacophonic! Man! These chords are like Joy Division on crack, speed & steroids! This track is simply the best one on this album! 

According to Google Translate, this album has pretty strong, poetic lyrics. I suggest you translate the Italian songs. That’s a „hidden gem“ right there for you to take it! Nero Di Marte’s Immoto is a pretty strong album. This time, the band put more emphasis on proggy, rather than death metal elements.  Plainly put it, the proggy vibe outnumbers death metal vibes 2:1. However, when pure aggression is in question, these guys have no mercy for their instruments! Immoto has a lot of twists and turns and that’s what makes this album so damn good!  And I’m really glad that unlike at most metal releases, the bass has a living, breathing space on this album. Immoto comes with a superb production! Every instrument can be heard clearly at any moment. Don’t expect Derrivae Part II, ‘cause that’s not what you’re going to get! Immoto is by far the darkest sounding Nero Di Marte album to date, and pretty experimental as well if you have in mind that the band wasn’t afraid of trying to do something different this time. 


Rating: 8,0/10

Track-list
1. Sisyphos (11:30)
2. L'Arca (8:42)
3. Immoto (12:59)
4. Semicerchi (7:14)
5. La Casa del Diavolo (12:00)
6. Irradia (10:05)
7. La Fuga (4:37)
Total playing time: 1:07:10