Nemesea
The Quiet Resistance   

By Todd Jolicoeur

Who is Nemesea?  Only one of the better Dutch female-led symphonic metal bands around that isn’t afraid to show its pop and rock influences.  This disc, the third release from the band, is its strongest yet.  Much sleeker than its predecessors, this disc is very easy on the senses and helps increase their ranking within the ever growing population of symphonic/gothic metal bands.

Disc opener, “Caught In The Middle” (along with the intro piece “The Quiet Resistance”) is a great way to introduce the new material.  It has a very simple sound that helps prepare the listener for what comes next.  “Afterlife” has that rhythmic music that keeps you engaged and keeps the focus on the voice of Manda Ophius.  Next up is “Whenever.”  Another solid song that shows how strong Manda is as a vocalist.  She is less operatic than most, but don’t be misled – she is just as talented and her voice is as strong as any of her contemporaries.  “If You Could” is a little slower track that doesn’t really do much for me personally, but is still quality music.  The keyboard opening for this track is a beautiful piece that would be a fabulous instrumental in its own right.

“High Enough” is an interesting piece that features another female lead vocalist (Charlotte Wessels from another of my favorites, Delain).  This song showcases both vocalists, but the music really helps to tie the whole song together.  “Say” comes along and help kick everything up a notch with its solid back line and musicianship and background vocals.  This song, if it were from another genre, would garner a lot of spins on rock radio.  Next up is “It’s Over,” which features Matt Litwin and Marcus Klavan from BulletProof Messenger.  The use of male vocals really draws out the lush tones from Manda’s voice and compliments the solid keyboard and guitar work on this track.  “I Live” is another song with an absolutely beautiful piano/keyboard introduction and backdrop.  I would love to hear this track broken down and played acoustically with a piano and solo acoustic guitar.  “Stay With Me” really points more toward the typical symphonic rock music, with its anthemic keyboard and soaring vocals.  It points to what makes this genre so pleasant to listen to.

“Rush” didn’t really satisfy my listening hunger, especially when it clocked in over five minutes.  It solves the question of what would happen if you combined symphonic metal and industrial.  Good, but not great.  “Release Me” has a techo-dance flair to it.  I could take it or leave it.  The final track on the standard release, “2012” is the sole track that doesn’t feature Manda at all.  It is an interesting piece in that the music really has to stand on its own… which it does.  This song helped save the last third of the disc.  Bonus track, “Allein” sounds more like Rammstein  than Nemesea, but is a great disc closer – the combination of the heavy German male vocals with Manda’s lush vocal overtop really created the want for a new releases.

I cannot wait to see what else is waiting from Nemesea in the future.  I hope they grow as much on the next release as they grew on this release.