Motus Tenebrae
Wayside
5.1
"He rides the wave of spiral slave"
"Promises of promise lands"
"Fools and superstitious men"
"Kick the sand in the insect face"
Ugh. Am I just horrible at explicating or is this a pretty garbage attempt at sensical English lyrics? Normally I wouldn't care, but Italy's Motus Tenebrae play that methodical gothic brand of dark metal where the vocalist pretends like these are his dying words, so it almost makes me want to pay attention. Almost. And as a teaser, the music itself is actually quite driving and compelling at times. Unfortunately, the band's full-length debut, Wayside, is just a little too middle-of-the-road to warrant your time and interest.
Given the fact that these guys probably don't have the benefit of a big studio budget, I feel absolutely horrible slagging something as professionally devised as Wayside. The production is decent, the uneasy atmosphere is subtle but convincing and the riffs, while not necessarily technically accomplished, are sharp and cutting, but when you're seriously working with song titles like "Cyberevil" you're kind of asking for a kick in the pants and a substantial amount of skepticism. After all, it's not everyday you hear choruses like, "I'm the evil, I'm the devil, I'm the evil, who is the evil, I'm the evil who's devil at all," right?
Motus Tenebrae have a long and arduous journey ahead of them if they truly want to produce something of merit. Guitarists Luis Macfadden and Franz Dima know how to pile on the atmosphere, but the songs generally go nowhere. They reach this insurmountable plateau too soon into each song before diving into an almost incomprehensible chorus. It's too mechanical and predictable. Very little on Wayside sounds as organic or genuine as I'd like. In fact, sometimes it's downright lifeless.
Fortunately for this foursome, this is only their debut album. The catchy, more dynamic songs like "Mist of Dawn" and "Someday" should earn them a handful of followers leading into album two. I can't say I expect an overhaul, but if the band narrows its focus to songwriting it stands a good chance at finding a decent label.
