The 3rd and the Mortal
Memoirs

I have already written it elsewhere: The 3rd And The Mortal have been magically strange. Starting from a wise blend of doom and psychedelia, the Vikings (yes, I repeat it!) managed to embrace the cause of twilight and graceful sounds (who said Dead Can Dance?) to flirt, in works like "Painting On Glass", with the most compelling experimentation.

With their latest release, dated 2002, The 3rd And The Mortal lost their way and unfortunately produced a work that is not very convincing.

It's okay to try to progress, it's okay to test new solutions, it's okay to stay "up to date", but jumping on the electro and trip hop trend, at least for our group, did not prove to be a particularly happy choice.

"Memoirs" is not a record to throw out the window, yet, even after repeated and careful listenings, it remains quite difficult to assimilate and love.

I have criticized My Dying Bride for failing to "progress" while now, oddly enough, I accuse The 3rd And The Mortal of going a bit too "far"! But believe me: there's no inconsistency in my words!

Indeed, while the Bride preferred to repeat a certain formula ad aeternum, our band deliberately abandoned the more intelligent experimentation characteristic of works like "Painting On Glass" and "In This Room". The reason for this abandonment? Perhaps, to appear more accessible and to build a more marketable identity. Electro and trip hop, as already written, but also dreamlike atmospheres that often evoke icons like Portishead or Bjork (aaaaaarggg!!).

There's another notable new development: for the first time, our band decides to use male vocals. In "Spider" and "Those Of My Kind", baritonal and dark vocalizations replace the more graceful and feminine ones that have always characterized all the compositions of the Scandinavian band. And, in my opinion, these "male" tracks present the most compelling points of interest.

After "Memoirs", silence! The band, in fact, seems to have disbanded or at least entered a long period of dormancy.

Synthesizing it all: not a disappointing effort but certainly a record very distant from the lucid madness that animated The 3rd And The Mortal in the early '90s. My dear ones: come back and do not disappoint us!