Alternative Weekend: Numph
Why is it when I discover a band with some potential, they have already broken up? It's the story of my life, I tell you.
I picked up on a comment while browsing that Facebook, ‘thing’, the commenter stating, 'if you like this, then listen to this'.
I take comments like this with a pinch of salt generally as when listening I hear the same old crap, more generic sounds, or regular humdrum that does not tingle my bells.
On my first Numph listen, or is it supposed to be spelled all in upper-case 'NUMPH', I heard something. Now fuck me.., now this is a very rare case so I did some digging.
They are an Italian Prog-Rock band formed in 2011 and have released all their material on Bandcamp. I know @steevc goes on about this source of music but I have never taken a lot of notice until now.
They released a debut EP named 'Four Zoas' full of more grungy sounds in the guise of Opeth or Tool with a touch of Karnivool as a garnish.
Then came a larger offering 2 years later in the form of ‘Theories of Light' which is slightly little less in your face followed by a single offering in 2015 and then GONE!
The GONE part is a damn shame as they have a lot of potential.
I paid around 7 Euros for their entire discography and feel it was money well spent. I hope we have not heard the last of them. They are doing what Opeth did before they went all soppy.
Theories of Light – Numph (Theories of Light - 2013)
This is the song that brought the band to my attention and the title track of their middle release, which at 8 tracks is a little short to be considered an album, or is it?
I can hear Tool very clearly in the song but unlike the American alternative outfit, halfway through we get a switch from clean vocals to growling more reminiscent of Mikael Åkerfeldt and an ever so Opeth sound. I'm sure @dannewton will approve.
Oneiros - Numph (Four Zoas - 2011)
From their initial EP, this one is more in your face but surprised me with a complete change of direction halfway through and I thought I was listening to the music from the original Diablo game for a minute.
If you like Gothic dark stuff, with a mixture again of clean and growling then this one may be for you; more for the Opeth fans without the extreme hardcore sounds.
Black Madonna - Numph (Black Madonna - 2015)
The final song I wanted to highlight has unfortunately not been placed on YouTube by the band.
You can still hear it here: https://numphband.bandcamp.com/track/black-madonna as an audio track.
I did think the band may be mellowing after my initial listen of the first few minutes, but that is not the case as the song digresses into some growling further on.
It is a very accessible tune and I wonder if this was the direction they were heading before the tunes dried up.
It struck me that these dudes are quite young and not the general gnarly bunch that produces progressive music. Now I know those Italians can produce some sounds that I actually like.
...and just look at that artwork. If you want to be a progressive band then you need shit like this..., it goes with the territory! As a buyer of their discography I also was gifted a large .pdf file with all the lyrics and artwork.
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Never heard of the NUMPH before. When I get the kids to bed I will give them a listen!
Try the middle track, I know you like your chuggy stuff. If you don't like growling it's probably not for you!
I am more open to growling these days :0)
I do like a good bit of chuggery though. The middle it shall be!
Hey nice recommendation! I will have to check them out here today as I work.
Here is one you probably never heard of...
More rock/metal than alternative but I was scratching my chin for something that came and went and was awesome. The harmonica at the beginning is legit and it romps the whole way through. Plus.......COWBELL!
Hope you are doing well old friend.
Well now.. this is not bad at all, with a large dose of harmonica overload!
Sounds cool. Maybe I'll buy it. I have a lot of music from Bandcamp. Take a look at my collection. Maybe you can find something for yourself. 😎
I'm getting more into Bandcamp, no restrictions on files such as drm and other things I loathe. Some of your collection are 'Sold Out'. How can you sell out of digital content?
maybe is that for vynils or CD's or simply they don't want to sell anymore... you know ... artists ... 😎 😁
Good lookin out.
I still feel like a dick cuz I'm the one who introduced all my buddies to MGK however many years ago.
My bad
Who's MGK? Just a guess (below)...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machine_Gun_Kelly_(musician)
Yeah.. him. That dude hit the scene about 7 years ago with that d-d-d-d-d rap he was great. And puts on a hell of a show too. Saw him several times. I dig that fast rap stuff.
But now he does.... whatever the hell it is he does, he should be embarrassed.
It sounds like this is probably a bit heavier than the stuff that I generally listen to. I am glad you were able to find them though. I am sorry that they don't seem to be still together. I have a Tool CD around somewhere, but I can't say as though I have ever really listened to it.
I can't see this being your cup of tea (as we say here) @bozz. There's a little Pink Floyd in some of their other tracks. Which Tool CD do you have?
Lateralis maybe, does that sound right? I think it is a copy someone gave to me.
They have some cool tunes. I hope they are still collecting their royalties even if they are not recording. I've just found that a lot of artists I like happen to be on Bandcamp and listening to some has led to others.
I do wonder how much of that 7 Euros and something cents they get? I could get used to this paying for music thing, I always associated it with the horrible DRM crap, you remember that?
If it's good, the artist should get something. Maybe my Pirate genes are fading away in old age?
Bandcamp take 15% on downloads and 10% on physical media. I don't think that is too bad. I've followed you on there so I can see what you buy.
There doesn't seem to be a Prog section on Bandcamp.., is it too out of date to even be considered a genre now? Alternate is the closest.
There are prog rock and progressive rock genres there. No idea what the difference is.
Hey! This is pretty good! I am NOT on Bandcamp, but, I may have to just do it. I think during this pandemic, I have become more open to everything.
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ooh thats piqued my interest...
I certainly do! Some pretty interesting stuff there, definitely worth checking out. Shame theres so little material to listen to though. Some bands have so much potential and yet for whatever reason it doesnt seem to work out.
I'm a big fan of bandcamp, in most cases the actual artist is involved in running their page, and you can be confident that they are actually getting paid for each sale compared to crap like spotify.
Thanks for the tag etc (i found it eventually lol), and in the spirit of 'sharing is caring' here is another band on bandcamp you may find interesting... Amplifier. This is their magnificent debut album (released early 2000), standout tracks are motorhead and panzer but the the whole album is fantastic slab of psychedelic space rock
I have a copy of 'Trippin' With Dr. Faustus' but it didn't register (as most music doesn't with me). As it's on Bandcamp I can have a listen.. thanks.