Album Review: Mammatus, Expanding Majesty
Any addition to the catalog of Santa Cruz, California, merchants Mammatus is noteworthy. Expanding Majesty is all the more so, in being the trio’s fifth album, first for Silver Current Records, and in arriving some eight years after their fourth, 2015’s sharp-visioned Sparkling Waters (review here); they also had their The Ear Food compilation of off-album tracks in 2020. One way or the other, it’s been a while, and the trio who began their run in 2005, released their self-titled debut (discussed here) in 2006, and quickly reaffirmed their penchant for epic and longform heavy psychedelia in 2007’s The Coast Explodes, continue to grow in new directions.
True, Expanding Majesty shares much of its makeup in common with Sparkling Waters; at nearly 70 minutes long, it is presented across the each-to-their-own-vinyl-side “Expanding Majesty” (15:18), “By the Sky” (15:17), “Foreveriff” (22:38) and “Beams of Light” (16:19), and like its predecessor, the latest offering was recorded with Phil Manley (Trans Am/The Fucking Champs) at El Studio in San Francisco (Tim Green mastered at Louder Studios in Grass Valley), and the result is a rich tapestry of prog-informed heavy psych rock, as classic in its exploration as it is evocative in the hearing. Pretty much what Mammatus do, right?
Honestly, that’d probably be enough on its own for Expanding Majesty to accomplish — a new Mammatus record, existing! — but guitarist/vocalist Nicky Emmert, bassist Chris Freels and drummer Aaron Emmert push forward along their individual path, each contributing to the overarching washes of synthesizer/keyboard that become so much a part of the album’s personality. Whether it’s the serene pastoralism in the opening moments of “By the Sky” or the science-fact swirls that fill out along the extended intro to “Expanding Majesty” itself, they play a central role.
That early going of the title-track finds them contrasting but following the rhythm of the purposefully tense guitar circular runs of guitar, gradually becoming more prominent until they’re at the forefront of the mix, not so much competing with the pickslide sweep of distortion that comes in at 7:05 as a setup for the first (yes, first) entry of the vocals half a minute later, but definitely the sky to that grounding rumble. That makes the keys/synth a fit as well alongside Nicky‘s effects-laced-but-gentle vocal delivery, which becomes a part of the atmosphere of the record as a whole and is a uniting factor in the material.
“Expanding Majesty” further establishes the self-awareness that underlies so much of the album that shares its name. The song? Well, it’s majestic and it expands and grows broader throughout its 15-plus minutes. “By the Sky?” Perhaps best summarized by the gorgeous Cristian Eres hinting-at-classic-metal cover art, a dragon flying to a guitar castle above clouds on what may or may not be another planet; it starts with just under three minutes of wakeup before slow-crashing in and taking off into the verse, which does nothing if not look down from above. “Foreveriff?” Yeah, it’s 22 minutes long, but more than that, it’s the way the rolling heavy post-rocker seems to meander even as it weaves into and out of leads, verses, float and crush; the surrounding rhythm is so linear that it’s easy to get lost and not know where it begins or ends. Imagine marching on air, finding clarity in the last nod that starts at about 19 minutes in, growing more fluid en route to the comedown.
And do I even have to say it for “Beams of Light?” The dreamy, melody-focused opening section building gracefully to a heavy psych crescendo about five minutes in that puts twists on a riff that would otherwise be signature Colour Haze before going full-cosmic ethereal around the midpoint, soon to pick up the tempo with an earlier Devin Townsend-style chug (note these are my comparisons; I’d be surprised if the band listened to either of the groups mentioned in this sentence) that serves as a bed for the at-least-two layers of guitar soloing that transport Mammatus and their audience alike to the record’s finish, highlighting the shimmer that’s been there all the while in all the songs, each presenting it in its own sculpted form, sometimes vast, sometimes compact, tense like the hi-hat and speedy noodling of “Expanding Majesty” or an exercise in worldbuilding like the closer.
Through it all, Mammatus retain their sense of purpose, and while there’s little doubt these four pieces were born out of jamming and perhaps built around them, they are not jams. They are songs, with structures and plotted directions, considered dynamics and places to go. That difference is crucial to understanding Expanding Majesty as a forward step in Mammatus‘ ongoing progression. Even the logo the band uses on the front cover tells you something about the heavy metal precision that sneaks into some of the lead guitar parts — “Beams of Light” circa 12 minutes in, for example — but from inside out, Expanding Majesty is conscious of what it’s doing and why, and the focusing of that intention around progressive elements, the slowdown in “By the Sky” and “Foreveriff” after “Expanding Majesty” and the way “Beams of Light” seems to draw the different sides together while also finding new ground, makes it even more resonant as arguably the most vocal-minded and definitely the most synth-minded release in Mammatus‘ catalog.
They remain themselves, which is something for which anyone still reading this is likely to be thankful, but as they did following the six years between The Coast Explodes and 2013’s Heady Mental (review here), Mammatus would seem to have used at least part of the longer break between outings to present and develop fresh ideas. The immersion factor in Expanding Majesty is not to be understated. The Emmerts and Freels carefully and lightly guide the listener through the sometimes-sparse, sometimes frenetic course the record takes, having long since earned the trust of their audience. That intro to “By the Sky.” That last push over the top the vocals bring in “Foreveriff” at about 18 minutes in. These are emblematic of the fullness of Expanding Majesty and the band’s ability to steer their particular dragon wherever they want it to fly. Here, they encompass multitudes.
Mammatus, Expanding Majesty (2023)
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Tags: California, Expanding Majesty, Mammatus, Mammatus Expanding Majesty, Santa Cruz, Silver Current Records
