Album Review: Man Mountain – Infinity Mirror

Last year I spent two weeks on the road with Ranges, touring across America with them as they promoted their latest record, climaxing with the inaugural dunk!USA festival in Vermont. They teamed up with a few other acts along the way, playing multiple dates with: Tides of Man, Vexes, This Patch of Sky and Man Mountain.

I’ll forgive you if you weren’t familiar with Man Mountain before now. It is hard to maintain a presence with only four recorded songs out (The 2013 EP, To Call Each Thing By Its Right Name, and 2015 single “To Be Made As New’). I have a feeling that this début album, Infinity Mirror (Spartan Records) will change this, and earn Man Mountain deserved awareness within the scene.

As I mentioned, I’ve spent a bit of time with the band. Man Mountain shared a four dates with Ranges on tour, and we all hung out over dunk!festival weekend, so I came to befriend them all. I remember standing outside a venue one night after the show, and Bryan shared with me about how Lowercase Noises influenced him to start playing ambient guitar music, which led to him joining the band. It’s a big effort because he needs to travel a long way to attend band practice, but is totally worth it because his friends in the band are awesome. And he totally has a point – they’re all genuine, down-to-earth guys who all share a love for the film Face/Off. Plus Mike has one of the greatest beards I’ve ever laid eyes on – who wouldn’t want to be in a band with a man that facially talented?

And their music is great too. Their playing casts a hypnotic spell. There are certainly a few videos floating around of me dancing along to the music, caught up in the immense magnitude of it all. It’s a shame that Man Mountain didn’t actually play dunk!fest, but they are more deserving of a slot on that festival than many of the bands who did play.

I love the DIY ethos that many American bands work by, the way that they create things for themselves. When Man Mountain played they would use flood lamps with foot switches to give visual oomph to the climactic passages of their music. It’s such a simple idea, and about as budget as it comes when you think of dynamic lighting rigs, but it packed such a punch. I can’t listen to their music without visualising that searing yellow beam.

Something that stands out for me on this release is how well recorded it is. Mike Kalajian (Circa Survive, Prawn, Moving Mountains) mastered the album, and did an excellent job. By the sound of it, the recording process was somewhat experimental too, with the guys really taking their time to nail the sound. Things sound clear, crisp and articulate. I wish I had a copy of their vinyl record to hear the album in its full glory, but tell you what, it still sounds darn good just through middle-of-the-road headphones.

Jacob Goins just kills it on the drums. I already share a bond with him over our mutual love for Into It. Over It., but after hearing his playing on this record my opinion of him has skyrocketed. He showcases so much finesse and technical ability with taste. He’s not a hard-hitter, nor does he demand your attention, but he plays damn well, albeit subtly. The open/close hi-hat in lead single “Memory Trace” makes me think of Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs” – hard to pull off so precisely. And the excellent polyrhythmic intro of “Elysian” could just as easily lead into a Karnivool song.

Unlike your traditional model of lead guitar playing intricate melodies and rhythm guitar just filling in the rest with chord progressions, Mike and Bryan take turns playing dominantly. Like alternating sine waves, the two almost volley off each other. One will swell up as the other retreats, just for the opposite to happen soon after.

This music doesn’t attract many hyperboles. It’s middle of the spectrum – not especially fast, heavy, calm… But it is good. Nothing extreme – just done really well. Delicate and dynamic, with plenty to pay attention to.

Man Mountain’s music is reflective of the personalities within the band. At first unassuming and pleasant, and once you dig deeper you find quality gold inside. Understated, remarkable, and brilliantly crafted and recorded, Man Mountain’s début album Infinity Mirror is worth paying attention to. Listen with headphones on for the full immersive experience.

Infinity Mirror releases March 16th on Spartan Records. The 300 vinyl pressings have already sold out, but the record is still available on CD or digital download.

Man Mountain have also remastered their two previous releases, available for “Name Your Own Price” via Spartan Records or their Bandcamp page.

Man Mountain are

Mike Reaume – Guitar
Bryan Cowles – Guitar
David Reaume – Bass
Jacob Goins – Drums

Man Mountain links:

Spartan Records pre-order: http://spartanrecords.limitedrun.com/products/609477-man-mountain-infinity-mirror

Bandcamp: https://manmountain.bandcamp.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ManMountainMusic

Twitter: https:// twitter.com/ManMountainBand

Instagram: http://instagram.com/man_mountain

Soundcloud: http://soundcloud.com/manmountainband

Review by Joseph James.

Photos taken by Joseph in Ypsilanti and Columbus in September 2017

Ranges Ascensionist Tour Update 3: Syracuse, Columbus, St Louis

Apologies for the lack of images. I’ll update this post with photos when I get wifi access.

Tour Day 11: Monday 9 October

Spark Contemporary Art Space, Syracuse, New York

w/ Man Mountain, Against The Giants, Machine Moon, How To Disappear Completely

The drive from Vermont to Syracuse is incredible. I lived in Maine for a few months earlier in the year, and it feels good to be back in beautiful New England. Upstate New York is aglow with autumnal hues. We drove through winding country roads, past glassy ponds, and through misty groves of vibrant deciduous trees. Joey put on Young and Courageous, the Tides of Man record. It seems like the perfect soundtrack for this beautiful drive. Joey and I get watery-eyed. It’s crazy how closely attached we feel to the guys in that band, considering that we’ve only known each other for four days.

I was up into the early hours of the morning hanging out with some of the musicians from dunk! in the Junius hotel room, so wasn’t feeling too crash-hot due to limited sleep.

We arrived in Syracuse and unloaded the gear into the venue – an art gallery similar to the one we played in Minot, although this one was bare.

I asked CJ what he was thinking, going from playing the biggest show of his career to the smallest. He sad he was happy for it because the pressure from dunk had been lifted off his shoulders.

We walked to a nearby pizza joint a few blocks away. It was chaos. We had to order from one place and pay at another. The staff didn’t even seem to know what was going on. I sat down with my laptop to sort through photos I’d taken at dunk!

After pizza we walked back to the venue, and I realised that my wallet was absent from my back pocket where it usually lives. I searched my bag thoroughly, emptied out my pockets and asked the guys if they’d seen it.

After turning my bag inside out a few times, and retracing my steps and searching the pizza joint, I came to the conclusion that my wallet was stolen. I spent the next hour sat in the van ringing banks to cancel my cards and trying to do some damage control for when whoever had my wallet was trying to get access to things with it.

I can’t comment on the bands that night. I was too absorbed in my own little world and took some time out in the van. Not a good day for me.

Tour Day 12: Tuesday 10 October

Spacebar, Columbus, Ohio

w/ Man Mountain, Deprecator

Thankfully I still had my passport on me, and was able to withdraw the rest of the balance from my American bank account. It wasn’t much, but it should last me the rest of my time here if I’m not stupid.

Local band Deprecator played a fun set of thrash metal, with some Slayer thrown in for good measure. It was a refreshing change from the music I’ve listened to over the past few weeks.

The End Of The Ocean live in Ohio, so we met up with some of the band at the show. The bar had ginger beer – my personal favourite – so I bought a round.Then Tara from TEOTO bought a few shots, then I had a few more beers on the band tab. Before I knew it I was buzzing.

Ranges did their usual thang. You’d think that after seeing them play the same stuff for 11 nights I’d be sick of it, but I still love watching them play. I’ve seen them enough now that I’m confident I could step in for Mark on drums if he should go Spinal Tap on us and spontaneously combust or fall off a stage.

Man Mountain were great. I posted a status on twitter: “Man Mountain: 100% bearded, 100% awesome”. I still stand by that drunken statement. It was lots of fun dancing along to their music. They have a foot pedal that sets off flood lights during their heavier passages of music. It’s simple, but adds so much to the experience.

After the show we headed down the street for a few more drinks at the bar Tara works at, and some pizza from a connected pizzeria. I covered my slice in unicorn sauce. I couldn’t tell you what it is, but it tasted amazing.

A homeless guy asked Mike from Man Mountain if he was from ZZ Top, clearly because of his impressive beard. Mike played along completely straight-faced. I just lost it.

Fun times!

Tour Day 13: Wednesday 11 October

Foam, St Louis, Missouri

w/ Man Mountain, Staghorn, CaveofswordS

One thing I adore about this scene is the DIY mentality. Ranges print their own merch and record their own music. Mark built his own snare drum. Jared made coffee cups to go with the deluxe edition of their album.

We met another band in St Louis with a similar mindset: Staghorn. Staghorn also has a printing press, so do their own t-shirts and even screen printed some posters for the show as souvenirs for us. On top of that, they even make their own amps!

Their set revolved around a dystopian comic that the band had written, with the narrative coming through the PA on a back track. I’m a sucker for spoken word samples in post-rock, and I also subscribe completely to dystopian texts, so this was the best of both worlds.

As well as drawing me in to the music, the band looked amazing. Their own custom amps look unlike most I’ve seen. They also had two lights that included salt lamps and spotlights. Allan on guitar had a balaclava/turban wrap around his face and head, adding to the sci-fi imagery. And they had a harmonium – like a piano with bellows – which was new to me, and great to watch.

Man Mountain, as usual, killed it. Those dudes are super talented and I wish them all the success they deserve.

CaveofswordS ended the night with their unique electro/darkwave/synthpop. It was quite the set up, with plenty of synths and modulators and things with buttons that I couldn’t name. The music was fun and depressing at the same time.

After the show most of the people in bands hung around outside. It was our last night with Man Mountain, and sad to see them go. Jacob the drummer and I bonded over an intense love for Into It. Over It. Bryan the guitarist told me about how he got into post-rock by listening to Lowercase Noises, which prompted him to experiment with his own ambient sounds, and later join Man Mountain.

I’m not sure exactly what time we left the venue, but apparently about ten minutes later there was a shootout right outside where we had been, resulting in a police officer being shot!

Words and photos by Joseph James

Ranges Ascensionist Tour Update 2: Ypsilianti, Philadelphia, Clifton, Brooklyn

Tour Day 4 – Tuesday 3 October

W. Cross Station, Ypsilanti, Michigan

Man Mountain, Vision Explored, You Rest, You Joy Life, Hollow Paradise

We drove out of Illinois up to Michigan the night of the Chicago show. We watched another of Joey’s horror films on the way – one called “Strangers”, staring Liv Tyler. The hotel that night left a lot to be desired – the guys swore that it had bed bugs, and the complementary breakfast was stale. I slept in my usual domain – atop the loft in the van – so it didn’t bother me.

Next up was a trip to Guitar Centre. Mark managed to crack his 16″ crash cymbal at some point over the past few days so was keen to replace it, choosing a slightly bigger (and hopefully more durable) 18″ crash to replace it.

I remember chatting to Joey when I first met him a month ago. He mentioned that the band was going near Detroit, his eyes lighting up, He pulled up an article on his phone and showed me some statistics about crime in the area. “We’re going to get stabbed!” he proclaimed excitedly.

Ypsilanti seemed relatively non-descript. Not a big city, but not too small. Not as rough as Joey’s stats would suggest, and certainly not as rough as the area we’d been in, in Chicago the night before. Loading in and setting up was easy. I don’t have a lot to say, except that the songs playing over the PA were way too loud, and the food at the bar was exceptional.

I wasn’t feeling it that night. Man Mountain were great – good music, good beards, friendly dudes – but I wasn’t in the mood for loud music and just hung out in the back.

Tour Day 5: Wednesday 4 October

Voltage Lounge, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

w/ Tides of Man, This Patch of Sky, VEXES, The Sound of Rescue

Pennsylvania takes a long time to traverse. We spent virtually all day on a free way. Let me tell you, it’s not cheap either! It cost almost $100 to take the toll roads to Philadelphia all day.

Philadelphia is known as the city of brotherly love – the greek translation. Joey set about making the most of the setting by chatting to the guys in Tides of Man – the headliners – who happened to be one of Joey’s favourite bands. The ToM guys were super friendly and it was great to see a “big” band acting so down-to-earth. Maybe this brotherly love thing has clout?

Voltage Lounge – the venue – had a cool feel. Decent sized, with a mezzanine balcony and ample backstage area. Every square inch was covered in graffiti or band stickers – something that I like in venues because it adds character to the place. Oddly enough, the sound guy was friendly and supportive, breaking the stereotype.

First act, The Sound Of Rescue, played post-rock. It was ok. They didn’t push the envelope in any way, but it wasn’t terrible.

VEXES were great. Energetic and heavy, in the vein of Deftones and Thrice. I was getting annoyed at the red lights on stage – something that makes photography a lot harder – so started playing with my camera settings and began shooting in black and white. So thanks to VEXES for helping me evolve my photography skills.

This Patch of Sky came with big expectations. Having recently signed to Equal Vision Records, and released an album to rave reviews, they’d developed a reputation. unfortunately they didn’t meet the hype. Something sounded out-of-tune for the first two songs. Granted, they had a fill-in drummer, and it was their first night of tour. Kit the frontman is interesting to watch. He throws himself around the stage with abandon. Sadly, the rest of the band didn’t match his energy. It didn’t help that half of them play seated. I’ll be seeing them a few more times over the course of the tour so hopefully they fare better in other cities.

Tides Of Man slayed. It was instantly clear why they are headliner material. They played four unreleased songs, as well as content from their album Young and Courageous. The combination of memorable melodies and sheer talent means that there is no way you could dislike this band. That is an objective statement.

Following the gig we tried to navigate Philadelphia’s tight one-streets and went to buy cheese steaks from Pat’s, as you must do when in Philly. There was no parking for a van with trailer, so CJ drove around the block a few times while we picked up the food.

That night I was so exhausted that I fell asleep in the van on the drive to New Jersey, and remained sound asleep in that spot until around 7am. I remember removing my glasses, and in a groggy moment of decision-making, placed them down beside me to be “safe”. To my horror, come morning I discovered I’d slept on top of them and broken the arm.

Tour Day 6: Thursday 5 October

Dingbatz, Clifton, New Jersey

w/ Tides of Man, Gatherers, VEXES, Fence ≇

The hotel we were in was a mere 20 minute drive from Dingbatz, so we made the most of the relaxed morning. Mark and I spent some time in the “fitness centre” – that is, a gym – followed up by a soak in the pool and hot tub. Lunch was at Red Rooster – connected to the hotel – and then we headed to the venue.

Dingbatz was not great. The space to store gear was limited, and the sound guy came across as a total dick. He did play some good music over the PA between sets, including Jakob – which made me feel homesick – but there is no excusing how he treated people.

Tides of Man finished their soundcheck and invited me on an adventure. A quick google search of “things to do in Clifton” revealed a tunnel system a few miles away nicknamed “The Gates of Hell”.

Hell yeah!

I was super stoked to be in a setting other than a tour van or music venue. I handed out flashlights (I call them torches, and I have an incurable addiction) and we climbed down into the abyss.

The guys loved it. We walked through large drains, trying to avoid stepping in any water and inspecting the graffiti on the walls. I’ve done a bit of draining and caving in the past so it was nothing new to me, but still really fun to explore. We chatted on the way. Turns out Tides of Man toured with Australian band Karnivool a few years ago and we bonded over a mutual love of the band.

Back at Dingbatz, after a few beers with the VEXES dudes (Iron Maiden Trooper beers \m/), we watched local act Fence put on a grunge tinted set. They didn’t seem to take it super seriously, but I liked the music.

VEXES did their thing again. I like their style. Gatherers followed, but I didn’t like their intense screaming.

A handful of Mark’s friends had made the trip from New York to Jersey specially to see him. They hadn’t told him their plans, so he freaked out when he saw them. It was cool to see him so excited about catching up with old friends he hadn’t seen in a very long time. And super cool that they’d made the effort to drive all this way, even though we were scheduled to play Brooklyn the next night.

Setting up for Ranges set was interesting to say the least. The sound guy was being a grouch, telling us off because some of the early bands had run over time, putting us late. Mark fell backwards off the stage. He’d thought that it was a wall behind him, but it was just a fabric backdrop. So as I carried a cymbal stand onto the stage I saw him in an odd section between the stage and backstage, on his back with all his limbs in the air, like a stranded beetle stuck upside down. Thankfully he wasn’t seriously hurt.

Mark actually played harder that night – probably a combination of a few beers and trying to show off for his friends who had shown up. The rest of the band caught on and it was nice to see them band together and play well, despite the negative vibes coming from the sound guy.

Following the set we hurriedly took the gear off stage, aware that we were running late. Joey, CJ and I got stranded backstage. We weren’t allowed to open the back door while Tides of Man were playing, and it would have felt rude to run across the stage during their set. All being said, I can think of worse places to be trapped. Tides of Man are incredible. It was nice, having some alone time backstage and listening to great music.

After the show finished and we’d packed our gear into the vans we migrated across the road to another bar. Mark was on fine form, shouting and laughing with old friends. The rest of us hung out with the Tides of Man crew, who shared funny stories about past tours.

That night before bed I reflected on how much fun I was having. I’ve grown really close to the Ranges crew over the past week. We have so many laughs together. I feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to join them on the road.

They’ve given me a nickname: Baggins. And introduce me to their friends as “our New Zealander”. All day they tell me how happy they are to have brought me along. I feel exactly the same.

Tour Day 7: Friday 6 October

Gold Sounds, Brooklyn, New York

w/ So Hideous, This Patch Of Sky and Tides Of Man.

I had been looking forward to this date all tour. Mark has such a larger-than-life personality, and I wanted to see him in his native environment. Plus, he comes from a hardcore/punk background, and kept promising to introduce me to his old band mates and friends who had been involved in the early NYHC scene.

Mark didn’t start the day so chipper though. He’d drunkenly left a bag at the bar and was worried that he wouldn’t get it back. He’s been making an effort to get healthier, so his bag contained medicines and foods like seaweed, dried fruit and nuts, and apple cider vinegar. We rocked up to the bar at midday to see if the bag was still there. Thankfully it was, and I nearly wet myself when I saw the note attached to it. It read: “Someone left their Hippie Survival Bag here Thurs Night”. Brilliant!

The drive to New York had Mark back to his usual self. He excitedly pointed out anything that came to him – where he’d met his wife, a venue he used to attend, where he’d got some tattoos, his favourite pizza spot.

It was surprisingly easy to find a car park for the van a trailer. We took the L line on the subway over to Manhattan and lunched at Katz’s deli at Mark’s insistence: pastrami on rye with mustard. There was a long queue and it was expensive, but damn it was an experience trying to consume such a large sandwich.

It was surreal seeing who had showed up to the gig. Some friends from Bozeman just happened to be in New York on the day. So as well as Wilson and myself (art/merch guy and token New Zealander/roadie), they also had their sound guy and tattoo artist. And there were all the New York locals who showed up to see Mark as well.

They’ve been improving every night, and again, Ranges killed it. Mark went extra hard in front of his punk friends, and CJ and Jared got more physical moving around the stage. Even Joey – not one to rock out much while he plays – nodded his head more than usual. And their light show synced up to the music usually impresses, but tonight it really set them apart from the other bands.

The venue was great. The perfect size to fit everyone. Easy parking, too. Ranges opened for the night, and the place looked packed out. To be fair, it was close to full, but the size of the room enveloped everyone and made it seem more intimate.

Although one major downside was that the only restrooms in the joint were side of stage. So in between sets – when we needed to shift amps and instruments – everyone was queuing right where we wanted to put the equipment.

So Hideous played next. I couldn’t handle the roaring, but I’ll give them credit where it’s due and say that it was awesome seeing a guy shredding on violin.

This Patch Of Sky drew a decent crowd. They played better than in Philadelphia. Guitarist Kit Day snapped a string and ran backstage to borrow another guitar. Dan from Tides Of Man stood near me and watched on nervously. “He better not break a string – I need that guitar for later!” he confided.

Sadly Dan, and the Tides Of Man crew didn’t have a good time on stage. They had issues with their bass cab, meaning that they needed to borrow Jared’s last-minute. And then another amp blew. This pushed their set up time, meaning that they couldn’t fit in a line check, and the mixing levels weren’t to their satisfaction. I can understand that would have been incredibly frustrating, having your gear fail you, and being unable to hear the band as you play.

But, in all honesty, I don’t think it affected their set other than how they were feeling. I loved every minute of it. It sounded great – maybe not perfect, but still fantastic. I could tell that the guys were beating themselves up after the gig, but they needed have worried.

We stayed around until 2am. Mark was reuniting with friends, and the bar had converted to a nightclub, meaning it was hard to pack out gear because we had to push past everyone in the bar. CJ, the trooper that he is, did an all-nighter, driving the five hours to Burlington, Vermont, for dunk!fest. I don’t know how he does it.