MANES: New Album Will Be 'Dark As Hell'

MANES, the Norwegian band featuring members of THIRD AND THE MORTAL, ATROX and CHTON, is putting the finishing touches on its new album, tentatively titled "Invention - Or How The World Came To An End And Why We Did It", at Spiren Studio in Rognes (near Trondheim) with producer Rune Stavnesli. The CD will be the group's first for U.K.'s Candlelight Records and is planned for an early 2007 release.

Commented the band: "When you get presented with a piece of cake, you eat it. When you get presented with two pieces, you eat 'em both. At least some do. We do. We're supresizing. I guess the conceptual nature of this coming album seems to reveal itself to us before our very eyes, but I guess it's one of those things you need to get out of the system. We've been very process-oriented with this album, something we might have mentioned before, but as this process is about to end we seem to find out what we're actually doing. I can say as much as this album will be varied ... Dark as Hell, but equally varied. ...as Hell. It's all-out 'more is more.' This will be our 'this-kinda-album' album, and not the start of something new for us, or whatever veteran artists say to the press to justify their current release.

"As we also might have mentioned once, we're working on another album. When it'll be done is another matter completely, but it'll be another story all together. Not that it's important now, but we've structured our writing process in this manner to keep things interesting. Maxing out in all directions, and trying to tie a knot at the end of 'em all. What I'm trying to say is that we're seeing how the world comes to an end, and we're humming along as the dustclouds rise above the ruins."

As previously reported, a live video by MANES performing the song "The Neoflagellata Revision" has been made available for download at this location (Windows Media, 38 MB). The clip is also available for viewing at www.myspace.com/manes. The video was edited from bootleg footage shot at a 2004 gig in MANES' hometown Trondheim.

"The Neoflagellata Revision" is one of two new songs that appeared on MANES' 2006 release, the seven-track EP entitled "[view]", out on Aural Music. Among the other songs on the EP is a cover song of "Cinder Alley" (originally by 16 HORSEPOWER),which can also be heard on the band's MySpace profile.

MANES was founded back in late 1992 and released three demos, plus a debut album ("Under ein Blodraud Maane", Hammerheart Records) as a two-piece, but has since then evolved to become a multi-headed monster. With members from bands like THIRD AND THE MORTAL, ATROX and CHTON, the band released the album "Vilosophe" on the Italian label Code666 in 2003 to great reviews. As a stepping stone before the next album is released, the EP "[view]" came out as a limited edition in February 2006 on Aural Music, the mother label of MANES' previous record company, Code666. The band left Aural Music not long after the release of this EP and signed to Candlelight Records.

MANES' music defies any easy genre definitions, but can best be described as a dark mix of metal, rock and electronica.