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Mimas

Strong Ties

Written by: LF on 13/01/2015 13:13:43

I first encountered the Danish band Mimas last year when they played a solid set at Postfest - a festival dedicated to post-rock and post-metal music. However, while Mimas obviously have elements of layered post-rock in their music I would primarily describe them as atmospheric and playful indie rockers with a few hints of emo in the mix as well. It's been four years since their last album release but "Strong Ties", which is their third full-length overall, is definitely worth the wait.

While some tracks stand out more than others on the album, they are all interesting and their range is fairly wide. There are frantic, noisy songs like "Your Stone, Your Hill" or "Astrin" but also slower, very atmospheric ones that certainly justify the post-rock label like "Facebreaker" or the mostly instrumental album closer "Palestine". One of the wonderful things about this diversity is that each song stands out from the others and thus every song has a role to play in the overall musical order of the record. Most of them are busy rhythmically and dominated by eclectic, twinkly guitar patterns and vocalist Snævar Njáll Albertsson's dynamic vocals that border on spoken-word from time to time and are equally energetic whether he belts out the lyrics or sings more softly. Album highlight "Don't Be Evil" illustrates this while also being one of the stand-out tracks in the chaotic way it employs all above-mentioned elements, especially the guitars sounding like they are flying all over the place, before it builds up to an immensely layered and distorted ending. Occasionally a frail trumpet played by Albertsson makes an appearance and adds texture to several of the songs, for instance as it follows the vocal melody in "No, Daniel Is An Island" or softly serenades the listener through the second half of "Facebreaker".

The politically conscious "Kissinger's Jaw" is another highlight as it combines melodic choruses and yelled verses that are almost out of tune with energetic spoken-word pieces about Henry Kissinger, giving an interesting and raw dynamic to the song. In general the lyrical content of the record is more serious than you might think based on the mostly upbeat, casually optimistic mood the instruments set. They're very upfront too for instance in "24-Hour Asshole" or in the sarcastic remarks about the music industry in "Tiger Shark". "Strong Ties" is thus a fun album that sounds wonderfully out of control yet thoughtful at the same time, and it has a depth both musically and lyrically that allows you to continually discover new details every time you spin it.

Download: Kissinger's Jaw, Dont' Be Evil, Facebreaker
For The Fans Of: Crash of Rhinos, Tall Ships, Dad Rocks!, The Front Bottoms
Listen: facebook.com/Mimas

Release date 15.12.2014
Father Figure Records