Mortal Man Revamps Classic Metal
Wilmington metal band Mortal Man brings a classic sound into the 21st century.
Wilmington’s Mortal Man has the scruffy, bearded look of any number of metal bands. However, the group has decided to steer their sound in a direction that’s miles apart from their shrieking nü-metal contemporaries to create a story and sound that makes the genre accessible to a wider audience.
Mortal Man (from left) Keith McAndrews, Max Sweeney, Mike Desjean, Matt Murray, and Brandon Autry
The Mortal Men
The men, their ages, their instruments, and their beards:
Matt Murray, 26, vocals, 6 inches
Max Sweeney, 27, guitar, 5 inches
Mike Desjean, 27, drums, 1 1/2 inches
Brandon Autry, 28, guitar, an inch even
Keith McAndrews, 20, bass, 0 inches
The mortal beards. Murray (from left), Sweeny and Autry display their tufts.
An Epic Sound
On a Sunday afternoon Wilmington’s Mortal Man blasts their epic sound from Max Sweeney’s shed-cum-studio. The space is littered with beer cans, guitars, various bits of a drum kit, a single maraca, and a copy of Pro Tools for Dummies. Matt Murray, the vocalist, leans into the mic and whispers, “There was a guy and he did some stuff and then he found the scroll…”
This brief, improvised lead-in says much about Mortal Man. It’s a metal band of both lyrical and musical complexity and puerile camaraderie. Some of the members have been friends for years. McAndrews and Desjean played together in Throw It to Lucas and Sweeney and Autry are both Wilmington locals and attended the same high school. The guys spent interludes during Mortal Man’s practice discussing Ralph Wiggum quotes, Davis Cross sketches and genitalia.
Just Metal
Mortal Man is as traditional as a metal band can be. Like Black Sabbath (or even Led Zeppelin) before them, they focus more on lyricality and melody than sonic dissonance and volume. (And that’s not to say they’re not loud…) The vocals are clear, the lyrics decipherable, and the instrumental performances are precise and Wagnerian, articulating as manifestly as the lyrics themselves. It’s a sound that any fan of prog rock could embrace, though the band members themselves roundly agree they are a metal band (with no frills). However, they realize their sound has a wider appeal than just the metal community. “I like that we can b e a metal band that’s not only for metal fans,” Brandon Autry, guitar, noted.
The band cites forerunners Judas Priest, Thin Lizzy, AC/DC, and Black Sabbath as influences. Murray draws vocal inspiration from diverse sources such as Metallica; Dio, the band of former Black Sabbath vocalist Ronnie James Dio; and Elvis.
The Plot
Mortal Man’s moniker is the result of a serendipitous find by Autry. While reading The Lord of the Rings, Autry stumbled upon a passage stating death is a gift to mortal man, a theme first explored by Tolkein in The Silmarillion. “Death is their fate,” Tolkein writes, ” the gift of Ilúvatar, which as Time wears even the Powers shall envy.” The concept sparked Autry’s imagination. However, at first, the discovery merely inspired Mortal Man’s band name. It wasn’t until later that the band created the character of Mortal Man and began to weave the epic tale of his quest into their music.
The story of Mortal Man is a blend of Dr. Who-style science fiction, Tolkeinesque fantasy and myth, Homeric Odyssey and zombie lore. When asked to provide an overview of the plot, the band members exchanged glances and launched a convoluted narrative that included a zombie lord, a time immortal, several mystic relics, and Apocalyptic devastation.
The band seems earnest about their epic hero but also amused by their own gravity. When asked when Mortal Man’s story is set, Sweeney laughed and replied in a movie trailer intonation, “Thousands of years ago in the far distant future.”
Concept Band
Opeth and Mastodon, groups the band cites as contemporary influences, have both released concept albums. However, Mortal Man is quick to explain that the adventure of Mortal Man won’t be limited to a single release. “We’re not a band with a concept album,” Autry clarified. “We’re a concept band.”
The group hopes to expand the story of Mortal Man to create a sort-of band mythology. “Our first album will be the story of the rise and demise of Mortal Man,” Murray explained, “and we’re thinking of retelling the same story from different points of view in future albums.”
The Response
So far the concept seems to be working in Mortal Man’s favor. “We kind of did this as an experiment,” Murray explained. “I took some theater classes in high school and found that I like getting into character. I’m not just bullshitting between the songs, I’m creating part of the narrative. So far, we’ve gotten a great response.”
The band believes that the story of Mortal Man makes metal more accessible to audiences who might not be familiar with or even might not like the genre. “People have come up to me and said, ‘I’m not really into metal, but I really got into the story’,” Murray explained. “We’re really excited that people like it,” Autry added. “We were afraid they weren’t going to get it.”
Upcoming Shows and Projects
Mortal Man will be playing at the Soapbox on November 15th with the Black Skies, Rapture Cabaret, and Pride Parade. The cover is five dollars. There are no mp3s available on Mortal Man’s Myspace site as of yet, but the band has plans to start recording within the next couple of months and to begin the design of a Mortal Man comic to be distributed with the CD.
About the Article:
I actually set out to do an article on voter registration and expected turn out. However, neither the Pender, New Hanover, or Brunswick Board of Registration returned my email or phone calls. I also contacted the Obama campaign to speak to a person who had been registering people on the streets but they had trouble finding someone that was cleared to speak to the press. Finally, I contacted the director of Democracy North Carolina, who also didn’t get back to me.
Luckily, I had gotten the information for Mortal Man’s singer when I saw their show because I’ve been thinking of pitching a local music review to Wilmington’s weekly, Encore. The Encore’s audience is locals, people interested in entertainment in the area. It’s Wilmington’s version of The Independent. So, I called the band and asked if I could sit in on a practice (since they didn’t have any shows scheduled for the week). I then went out to a local bar and interviewed three members of the band. I mostly let them talk while I took notes, but I loosely structured my interview to cover the following topics:
- Band member names, ages, and instruments
- Band history, previous projects
- Influences
- Self-described genre
- Origin of the band name
- Explanation of the band’s concept
- Plans for recording/distributing
- Performances so far and audience response
- Upcoming shows
- How do you distinguish Mortal Man’s story from Frodo’s quest in LOTR (This question arose spontaneously from discussion of the Mortal Man plot.)
Unfortunately, their practice wasn’t scheduled until Sunday, so I was pressed for time on writing the article. But I liked how it turned out overall. I did a good deal of research on the bands they named that I didn’t recognize so that I could make accurate comparisons. I also looked up the part of the Lord of the Rings they referenced.
If I were to webbify the article I would encourage the band to allow me to provide a free download of one of their songs, a streaming video feature, links to the band’s myspace page and the myspace pages of the other bands playing with them on the 15th. I would also include a sort of fast facts box with band name, genre, influences, and upcoming shows.
About the Revision:
I changed the title of the piece, and then added some introductory information to give a reader an idea of what the article is about, which was actually really tough because everything that I tried sounded fawning. I do like the band, but I hate when band reviews gush. I hope I struck a good balance. I also changed my first subhead to make it a little more explanatory.
