Album Review

The Mariana Hollow – Coma Heart

• 20th Aug 2010

How have this band not been officially signed yet? That was my first question after listening to just track one of this stonking debut offering from this London quintet, produced by Chris Sheldon, maestro of Foo Fighters and Anthrax fame. TMH quite literally have more talent than the majority of ‘promising, up and coming’ acts who’ve managed to acquire some kind of distribution deal and it just goes to prove the adage that a great band is not certain to be signed and go a long way.

Musically, The Mariana Hollow brings in influences from a number of different aspects in the rock/metal genre but most of the while keeping things on a brooding, melancholy note and keeping everything original. To drop names, I can hear aspects of A Perfect Circle creeping in from time to time. Singer, Rebecca Spinks has an amazing voice. Think a little Courtney Love, mixed with a little PJ Harvey and tinged with a tinge of Alanis Morrisette and a sprinkle of Maynard James Keenan for colour; she frankly makes this band as good as it is. Miss Spinks also has the look to captivate especially the male potion of the crowd and looks to be able to give a great front-woman performance, looking at the live pictures on their Myspace page.

There isn’t much between the songs to single out too much; all of the 7 offerings on Coma Heart are great and emotive, some of them anthemic but the first two tracks namely, ‘Come Undone’ and ‘Enemy Lines’ will become the most memorable from the entire album.

If they get what they deserve, The Mariana Hollow will become a big hitter in the dark, melancholic corner of rock and should be touring with the Katatonias, Perfect Circles and even the HIMs of the world. Look out for them supporting Lacrimus Profundere at the Camden Underworld in September.

Coma Heart is out now, distributed by Plastichead. I strongly advise if you are a fan of the melancholic rock genre, you give this a try.