Me And That Man – New Man, New Songs, Same Shit, Vol.2
Release Date: 19th November 2021
Label: Napalm Records
Stream
Genre: Rock, Gothic Rock, Dark Country.
FFO: Nick Cave, Myrkur, Wovenhand.
Review By: Kenny Newall
Poland’s Adam “Nergal” Darski halts his mainline engine, Behemoth to wander up the siding again to take us to hell on his multi collaborational handcart that is Me And That Man. Of course, the difference between the big fuck off train and the handcart has nothing to do with quality, but the scope of the sound. M&TM is sparse, laid back, blues tinged, country flirting Americana. It’s a side project, as different from his full-frontal project as Motörhead is to The Head Cat. Meaning Encyclopaedia Metallum list it as a Nergal band in his profile, but don’t list any albums as this simply ain’t metal.
So is it better, isn’t the point. It’s just too damn different for comparison, as many already know. But of course, Adam is still Nergal and there’s a darkness that underlies many of the tracks, yet, surprisingly, it’s just a hint. Many of the tracks, even ones about Witches, are uplifting and, dare it be said, lilting.
And one of the standouts, Losing My Blues, is also upbeat, moving away from the Nick Cave tempo and feel that permeates the majority of the album to give us a romp. Abbath, Frank The Baptist and Chris Holmes join in the stomp and leave us “screaming out for more”.
And then there’s the video below track, Angel Of Light. For those familiar with Myrkur’s work, she’s the obvious choice for this style of acoustic folk. So is it better than the upbeat shit is again not the point as Adam Darski handles the songwriting duties with equal aplomb for all the styles he includes in this particular volume. It’s just that I personally prefer some of the tracks, as some just stick to me more than others. And I also prefer this to the previous 2 full-length sidings. Not because I think the quality has been upped as such, but just that this one feels better.
If you’ve not familiarised yourself with M&TM yet, then do so. As said, forget Behemoth as this is absolutely nothing like it musically (Wovenhand or Myrkur are close approximates), but if you know Behemoth then you know the standard set and this meets it.
(For those who like to know such things, here’s a list of the collaborators: Hank Von Hell, Anders Odden, Mary Goore, Blaze Bailey, Gary Holt, Jeff Mantas Dunn, Kristoffer Rygg, Olve Abbath Eikemo, Frank The Baptist, Chris Holmes, Ralf Gyllenhammer, Douglas Blair, David Vincent, Michale Graves, Randy Blythe, Alissa White Glutz, Devin Townsend, Myrkur and Chris Georgiadis).
(4 / 5)
