Nemesea was formed in 2002 in The Netherlands by the classically trained vocalist Manda Ophuis and guitarist Hendrik Jan de Jong. The band initially toured as support for After Forever. They have released ‘Mana’ (2004), ‘In Control’ (2007), the ‘Pure: Live @ P3’ (2009) and ‘The Quiet Resistance’ (2011).
The band is composed of Manda Ophuis (vocals), Hendrik Jan de Jong (guitar), Sonny Onderwater (bass), Lasse Dellbrügge (keyboards) and Frank Van Der Star (drums). They are part of the European gothic/symphonic metal scene which means that they are often compared to Within Temptation.
Whilst their second album saw them move over to electronica-based pop, they have thankfully moved back towards symphonic metal territory on this release. After the menacingly whispered intro, they enter the darkly gothic, emotional maelstrom of ‘Caught In The Middle’ with its jagged riffing. My personal favourite is ‘Afterlife’ with its harsh rock leanings, high vocals and full-on chorus of “Can we see, can we feel when we’re in the afterlife / Do you know, how I know to believe in you / Because I do / Can we hope, can we love, can it be our destiny / ‘Cos I’m listening / Yes I’m listening / To you”.
The melodic parts of ‘Whenever’ are counterbalanced by the aural assault of guitar and glass-shattering vocals. There is the melancholic ballad ‘If You Could’ with its aching “If you could, if you could see me / If you could hold me / For one last time I’d be okay / But you just left me / You took your chance and slipped away”.
The slow-burning ‘High Enough’ contains guest vocals by Charlotte Wessels of Delain. However, I’m not so sure about the turntable scratching within ‘Its Over’ as they move into pop-rock mode. But it does surprisingly also contain some fret-burning shred by HJ and guest vocals by Marcus Klavan of BulletProof Messenger.
There are several more pop-rock songs, but just as the album starts to flounder they bring electronica beats and alternative hard rock into the mix for ‘Rush’ and ‘Release Me’. Then ‘2012’ sees a full blown synth instrumental backed by newsreel sound-bites predicting apocalyptic events based on the ‘end date’ of the Maya calendar (21st December 2012).
Finally, there is the hard edged, industrial rock in ‘Allein’ which features German and English lyrics. This just screams ‘Rammstein’ all over it, which is not surprising since it features Heli Reissenweber of Stahlzeit (a Rammstein cover band).
Rating: 7.5/10
Reviewed by Peter John Willoughby
Tracks:
1. The Quiet Resistance
2. Caught In The Middle
3. Afterlife
4. Whenever
5. If You Could
6. High Enough
7. Say
8. It’s Over
9. I Live
10. Stay With Me
11. Rush
12. Release Me
13. 2012
14. Allein (Bonus Track)
Band members:
Manda Ophuis – vocals
Hendrik Jan de Jong – guitar
Sonny Onderwater – bass
Lasse Dellbrügge – keyboards
Frank Van Der Star – drums
Record Label: Napalm Records, 2011
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