Nero di Marte – Immoto (Review)

This is the third album from Nero di Marte, a progressive metal band from Italy.

Six years after the rewarding Derivae, Nero di Marte have finally returned with 67 minutes of new material in the shape of Immoto.

Nero di Marte combine progressive, modern, doom, psychedelic, death, sludge, and post-metal into a beguiling mix of styles that also uses influences from classical music in places. Pushing their sound further than previously, on the band’s latest album their new songs embrace the further corners of their style, whether this is via harsh aggressive soundscapes, or ambient, calm subtlety. This is contemporary modern metal of a different sort than the type that normally gets referred to as such.

Words such as dreamy and dissonant, inventive and immersive, atypical and atmospheric, intricate and nuanced, ambient and jagged, thunderous and elemental; these and many others all apply to Nero di Marte’s sound on Immoto. All of this is dramatically and skilfully brought together by the band, who craft long-form songs that are seemingly many things and none at the same time.

The unconventional vocals seem almost separated from the music in places as they float, soar, and roar over the top of it. However, they are also concurrently intimately tethered to it, doing its bidding in providing a layer of humanity to the music’s abstract, experimental nature.

Layered, textured, and filled with multifaceted delivery and performances, Immoto is designed to be an experiential journey absorbed over time. The listener is enticed to explore the depths of the band’s creation, and many are the delights and gems to be found and savoured. This is metal as art, but no less visceral and affecting because of it. Nero di Marte’s return is a welcome, triumphant one. Make sure you give this one the time it deserves.