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Manimal: Armageddon
Manimal - Armageddon Album Art

Manimal: Armageddon

Heavy/Power Metal
3.0/5.0

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AFM Records
Words: Craig Hartranft
Added: 29.09.2021 | Released: 08.10.2021

There's several notes you can make about Sweden's Manimal, all wrapped around a single word: consistency. About every three years they release a new studio album. (It took them nearly nine years to release they're first one.) They've also had the same lineup since 2015's Trapped In The Shadows. And they still play intense heavy power metal. Armageddon, their fourth long-player is no exception.

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Manimal

The Manimal sound can be described in many ways, but certain adjectives rise to the top. Aggressive. Assertive. Beastly, perhaps to the point of animalistic brutality. Most of this comes from the raw, frenetic, and crushing riffs by Henrik Stenroos. These are given more power and hostility by the blistering and thunderous rhythm section. To make more things more rabid and intense, Samuel Nyman adds his assertive, harsh and screamo vocals that translate as Sean Peck eating Rob Halford for lunch. I'm not much of a fan of his vocal style. Essentially, with Manimal, fast and heavy power meets a wall of sharp and relentless riffage. The pattern is repetitive across Armageddon, and the overwhelming riffage nearly stifles any Stenroos guitar solo, though they are there. But, I suspect, the culprit for the mutely heard solos is poor production, rather than a heavy metal riff barrage. This formula becomes self-evident with songs such as Burn In Hell, Forged In Metal, Insanity, and The Inevitable End.

However, there are a few songs that kind of, sort of, break or twist the Manimal formula. Slaves Of Babylon has some notable groove from between the rhythm section and the riffs working together. This underlying rock groove arrives again to set the pace for Chains Of Fury, something more moderate, heavy and steady, in pacing. As with most other songs it also has a deliberate, but muted solo. Alternatively, Evil Soul also gives you rock groove and notable guitar harmony, yet wrapped in Manimal's power metal fury. All things considered, Armageddon finds Manimal offering their consistent and constant fast and heavy, power metal, often tempered by some notable rhythm and groove. If you dig the band, you will enjoy this album.




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The Take Away

Armageddon finds Manimal offering their consistent and constant fast and heavy, power metal, often tempered by some notable rhythm and groove. If you dig the band, you will enjoy this album.

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