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Band Profile
Nahemah
NahemaH is the result of the artistic interests of musicians placed in Alicante, a Mediterranean city on the south east of Spain. The project was born in early 1997 and it became more than a band, but a way of life for those involved. In 1999 the band self-released their first album "Edens In Communion". 2001 brought the release of NahemaH's second album "Chrysalis" (Iberian Moon Records). Pulling from such influences as Dark Tranquillity or Opeth, the album proved to be very successful and was received well within the media exposure that was attained. Read more at last.fm
Nahemah Web Links
Nahemah
A New Constellation
Lifeforce, 2009
Nahemah are a rather different band. Coming out of Spain a country not generally known for their metal and playing a style different than most. They play a style of metal that involves prog, post metal and death metal among others. While some might read that description and picture a band not being able to find a direction and coming out with a giant uninteresting and/or jarring mishmash of sound. Nahemah glides right through this concern by making the most of their talents and creating transitions from song to song with ease.
Each member is clearly talented and takes pride in each song. This results in each instrument getting its own spotlight in each song when appropriate. The best comparison to make to another band would be Burst. The sadly missed swedish powerhouse. Both bands played with dynamics and structure while not playing too far over anyones heads. Each note strikes the listener with force and purpose. The main difference between these two bands is while burst stayed strong avoiding synthesizers and making strong use of screaming Nahemah does neither. In fact, keyboards make a huge presence throughout the album in some cases being the lead instrument. Pablo Egido’s voice stays strong and clear through the recording without relying on screaming or other modern metal trickery. This is not to say there is no screaming but when it is done it is done forcefully and with a strong sense of the song that is going on around it. Each song has a defined structure and very good sense of movement. Each song feels like its own mini orchestra of sorts with a small movement being used to fit with another to help make for a while defining piece.
Nothing on this record is truly overdone. The production is clear and absolutely stellar in that you can hear each instrument and how it integrates with the rest to make for a strong song. The keyboards do tend take up center stage sometimes and this could throw off the listener. This leads to my main complaint. The keyboards, at points feel over used, almost as though the band uses them to be able to stand out. Needless to say this is not necessary as the songs and talent would be enough for them to stand out on their own. Maybe next time the band will give the keyboards a little bit of a rest and let the songs speak for themselves a bit more.