Mano De Mono – Chameleon Tongue
Release Date: 15th April 2022
Label: Electric Valley Records
Bandcamp
Genre: Stoner Rock, Desert Rock, Heavy Rock.
FFO: Kyuss, Corrosion of Conformity, Down, Fu Manchu, Mondo Generator.
Review By: Paul Franklin
If prevailing environmental conditions have any impact on the sound of an album, then it’s no surprise to hear that this Sardinian quartet’s debut was recorded during the hottest week of July 2021. Chameleon Tongue, described by the band as “punk of the dunes”, comprises eight tracks that have been slathered in stoner, grunge, and 90s alternative rock and left out to sizzle in the desert sun.
Borrowing more than their name from Corrosion of Conformity, their sound is one that is bursting at the seams with the fuzziness of that late 90s desert rock scene. Lying Bones in particular hitting that familiar COC southern-fried groove.
NOLA was obviously another big influence, and you can hear the more aggressive elements of that album fuelling the full-bodied riffs and growling vocals in several of the songs.
Shifts in tone from track to track mean that whilst Strength Flow has a more chilled stoner vibe, Ruins, which the band describe as “a full-throttle attempt to escape looking back at everyone’s ‘Ruins’ through the rearview mirror” burns with a spitting punk fire.
It’s an impressive debut, but (and it’s a small but), perhaps one that lacks that absolute banger of a track. All the pieces are there ready to go, but, frustratingly, they’re not quite in the right configuration. Imagine a Rubik’s Cube where it’s complete apart from a couple of rogue misaligned squares.
Have no doubt, though, they will solve it, and next time they’ll knock you on your arse! 
(3.5 / 5)
