Review : UFOMAMMUT – “Eve”

Ufomammut – Eve
released May 5, 2010 on Supernatural Cat

Rating : 5/5

It’s hard to put into words how I feel about this album. It’s as if Ufomammut took every element of doom that I love and just combined it all, elimninating any excess that could possibly exist. Firstly, it’s just one big long song. I worship Dopesmoker, so any time that something comes along with this kind of scope, I’m immediately enthralled and have to hear it. The problem is that I always go in expecting Dopesmoker, but just end up with mindless repetition, making the album as long as possible. I’m now ready to admit that my expectations have been exceeded.

The Al Cisneros (Sleep, Om, Shrinebuilder) references in this piece are certainly undeniable. Part I’s monotonous, chanting vocals create a hypnotic, psychedelic atmosphere. Part V later brings in a down-tuned, bassy groove quite akin to what Cisneros has done with the aforementioned Om. However, this isn’t to say it’s a copy. I was astounded by the level of sophistication present on this behemoth. Part II inroduces a three-note, eerie guitar melody which drifts over maniacal drones, almost like something Pink Floyd would have done early on. This theme later recurs in Part V, bringing the album to a very unsettling finish.

To continue their musical breadth, part III is a demonstration of some of the most badass sludgery I’ve heard in a long time. Part IV continues with the same tempo, but dynamically toned down dramatically, at least for the first half. The second half breaks into a minimalist, atonal guitar solo which then helps to reel in a very BORIS-esque intro to part V which lasts for about 2 1/2 minutes, then breaking into the aforementioned infectious groove. This then leads into another sludgy portion bringing back the chord progression of part I and finally wrapping things up so that it all makes sense.

As hard as I try to pick out many flaws in this album, I can only find one. I would have liked it if they could have made the theme of the album, the story of Eve, a bit clearer. When you listen without any prior context, it’s pretty much impossible to gather the ideas due to the lyrics being incredibly hazy and all spoken snippets laying low in the mix. This is hardly a flaw, though, as it actually helps the music. It adds ambiguity and mystery to an already mysterious sounding piece. In this way, I wouldn’t change it at all. I’d say the band made a good call with what they did as changing the texture of the vocals would have drastically altered the end product and possibly jeopardized this grandiose work of art.

To summarize the five paragraphs preceding this one, I highly recommend this album. It’s the easiest 5/5 I could possibly imagine giving. I hope Ufomammut can gain the following they deserve, since Eve is worthy of being talked about for decades to come.

A Best of 2010 pick!

FCC OK
Try 1, 3, 4

01. Eve Part I
02. Eve Part II
03. Eve Part III
04. Eve Part IV
05. Eve Part V