THE MAN-EATING TREE – Vine

The best adjectives that can describe The Man-Eating Tree are grey and cold. This is not the first time this kind of work has emanated from a band from the Gothic Metal genre, especially when hailing from Finland. After the band Sentenced and the following sort of reincarnations such as Poisonblack, it was time that other ex-Sentenced members start to emerge from their slumber. This time it was the band’s old drummer Vesa Ranta.

Collaborating with members of Fall Of The Leafe, Poisonblack, Reflexion, and Embraze, Ranta and the mounting The Man-Eating Tree made their first debut, Vine, which is one of the most interesting titles for a debut. Just as the plant grows from deep roots, so does The Man-Eating Tree. Under the air’s murkiness, this band channels cold ambiance. The Man-Eating Tree will jog your memory of bands such as A Perfect Circle, Him, the softer side of Novembre, and the later era of Amorphis. On the whole, the Vine album follows the same depressions, discolored harmonies, and melodies which entangled Sentenced back in their later days. Moreover, that similar feeling was translated by the band and followed a much more tender approach than the heavy chunks of Sentenced and Poisonblack. However, the expected positive impression from this release didn’t show.

Calling this release a non-artistic venture is totally wrong. These guys implemented a type of Gothic Metal with several modern elements taken from the Alternative and Rock world. Nevertheless, it is hard to shake the feeling that an amount of liveliness is missing here. Atmospheric music doesn’t have to be dull at any level. Even though the band’s music is closer to ambiance than to an ordinary straightforward kind of Metal, there are various moments within the songs that are actually boring. Several of the tracks show great promise such as “The Longitude Of Sleep”, the lead hit “Out Of The Wind”, the charming “Of Birth For Passing” and the finishing touches presented by “Amended”. As for an addition, the cover for the classic Moody Blues song, “Nights In White Satin”, was done well. Other tracks, including “Tide Shift”, “King Of July”, and “The White Plateau” show the same gloomy vibes of the silence and dreaminess followed by heaviness.  Nonetheless, it is hard to call those either highlights or instances of peak attractiveness.

The crew of The Man-Eating Tree is experienced and they did everything within their skill set to make a cozy and pleasant-sounding release. With that said, what the band tried to do on the album came out to be rather much of the same on most of the songs. With their creative dream state, that includes the awesome feel of coldness, it was expected they would make something that is much closer to being a classic record.

Tracklist

1. Lathing a New Man
2. The White Plateau
3. This Longitude of Sleep
4. King of July
5. Of Birth for Passing
6. Out of the Wind
7. Nights in White Satin
8. Tide Shift
9. Instead of Sand and Stone
10. Amended