Of Mice & Men get off to a grand start on the first of three-EP series…
Considering their propensity for simply carrying on, come what may (singer quits? Carry on. Singer quits again, at the top of your fame? Carry on), that we have new Of Mice & Men music as the world collapses is almost to be expected. “We started to create music because that’s all we had,” says bassist/singer Aaron Pauley of his band’s whole bit. “It’s grabbing the plank out in the middle of the ocean. We’ll make music, because what else are we going to do right now?”
In this sense, Timeless is as much about having something to do during Corona void-time, a focus to keep the mind busy and the demons at bay, as it is about product. Indeed, rather than a full album, the band are releasing a trio of EPs, starting here, written and recorded remotely, using Zoom and such. Happily, though, the results sound like they were beaten into shape on the road, and actually sound far more energetic than on 2019’s Earthandsky. And, intentionally or not, it means that you’ll be getting a fresh delivery of this stuff with vague regularity, rather than a full album that may get lost in the blur of passing days with nothing to do.
The three tracks here are heavier than that album as well, though not without that In Flames-ish melodic streak they’ve got very good at, and Aaron in particular sounds ferocious. Then on final track, Anchor, they go full-massive with a huge, Architects-y chorus.
It’s by no means the best you’ll ever hear from OMM, but then that’s not the point here, is it? And anyway, it’s still good stuff. One might think of these tracks as a punchbag, a way of staying in shape while you may otherwise lose your gains during downtime. And who knows, once they bed in a bit, when OMM finally play them live, they might have turned into a knockout.
Verdict: 3/5
For Fans Of: In Flames, Killswitch Engage, Architects
Timeless is out now via SharpTone.
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