MANIFEST TYRANNY

Sweden is known for its massive progressive metal scene, and one of the bigger names in this scene is Andromeda. In spite of this, Manifest Tyranny (their fifth full-length album) is my first acquaintance with their music, so I can't (yet) compare this with their earlier efforts. What we have here is a fairly unique brand of melodic progressive metal that, while still borrowing heavily from bands like Dream Theater, Pain of Salvation, and Evergrey, sounds pretty original. Manifest Tyranny is an impressive modern prog metal release, and while I can't say it's a shining success from every angle, there are enough positive traits to outweigh any detriments.

Musically, I'd say that Manifest Tyranny is best described as melodic progressive metal, but with a more raw and heavy edge. While still quite complex, there are lots of crushing guitar riffs throughout the album, and the raw production further exemplifies the heavy edge that Andromeda favors on this release. While far from revolutionary, Manifest Tyranny does not sound like any other band; Andromeda has their own sound, and deserves to be applauded for this. The lyrics dealing with political stigma, corruption in government, and war are also pretty interesting, and I love the way the band is able to incorporate this relevant message into their songs using voiceovers and sound samples. My biggest gripe with Manifest Tyranny is that there aren't a whole lot of great tracks, and even though the whole album is good, it seldom reaches a level of excellence. I'd say "Asylum" and "Go Back to Sleep" are both great tracks, but the rest of Manifest Tyranny seldom exceeds the 'average' mark. A few more impressive compositions would've really done the album wonders - after all, the musicians playing the songs are extremely precise throughout the full 64 minute duration.

Even though I wish Manifest Tyranny were a bit shorter and had a few more great songs, this is still a fairly easy recommendation for modern prog metal enthusiasts. If you're in search of original and lyrically relevant progressive metal with top-notch musicianship and classy melodies, you're bound to be impressed by what Andromeda offers on this observation. 3.5 stars are deserved, and I can safely say that I'll be checking out more albums from these Swedish lads in the future.

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Posted Tuesday, November 29, 2011 | Review this album | Report (Review #578717)

'Manifest Tyranny', the fifth album by Swedish progressive metal band Andromeda, once again sees the group pushing themselves to try new things and evolve their sound. Taking a mixture of the all-out riffage displayed in 'The Immunity Zone' and the proggy atmosphere of 'Chimera', this is a band ... (read more)

Report this review (#1802186) | Posted by martindavey87 | Tuesday, October 10, 2017 | Review Permanlink

Finally,the new album of the Sweds has been released at the end of 2011 year!I was really curious and inpatient to see how the things are going after the mediocre THE IMMUNITY ZONE album,which was not at all bad 100 %,it was just uninspired!Well,in 2011 ,things are much better,way better than ... (read more)

Report this review (#599813) | Posted by Ovidiu | Friday, December 30, 2011 | Review Permanlink

Gonna be real honest here, the first thing I asked upon listening to Andromeda's latest release "Manifest Tyranny" was, "Is this supposed to be good?". Being what I would call a lifelong heavy metal fan (So long as we can start my "life" in high school when I started listen to music at all), I've ha ... (read more)

Report this review (#565755) | Posted by Daggor | Thursday, November 10, 2011 | Review Permanlink

This release is, as far as I remember, my first acquaintance with Swedish prog metallers Andromeda, so I do not have their earlier releases as a point of reference or a point of comparison. In any case, I think that "Manifest Tyranny" is a pretty good album which is rich in variation and full o ... (read more)

Report this review (#560848) | Posted by Time Signature | Tuesday, November 1, 2011 | Review Permanlink

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