Μνήμα (Mnima) - Drowning in Hallucinogenic Visions EP
Digging your own grave XXII: The past always catches up.
As we move towards the final stretch of Μνήμα’s discography, the frequency of releases from 2022 onwards struck me as quite peculiar, particularly in conjunction with the overall quality and emotional resonance of most of the material, splits notwithstanding. In a way, it made up for how busy 2021 was, where the overall quality of the output suffered somewhat due to the mixed nature of the splits. Less is more and all. This measured approach to their output has undoubtedly resulted in some of their best work to date, evidenced by their full lengths, Καταραμένα Λείψανα in particular being so good as to raise the same question as their better work tends to do: “where to now?”.
It’s this question that Drowning in Hallucinogenic Visions takes upon itself to answer, and it does so with a resounding “to the past”. For once, we see Μνήμα wilfully adopt an atavistic approach to their music, channeling the energy seen in their 2018-2020 run, whereas up to this point they were either exploring new territory or moving laterally in terms of their approach with everything they did. It’s not something I can begrudge our unnamed mastermind for, as I myself do hold some of their early work in high esteem, and it’s hard to think about going forward after something as monumental as the sophomore. The evocatively titled “Swallowing a Thousand Needles” sallies forth with zipping riffs and torn vocals, the likes of which we haven’t heard in quite some time. The roughshod and erratic aspects of their early work are here in full force, only slightly tempered by the development and maturity that occurred in the interim, be it through discreet melodic flourishes or by putting together a tense break that writhes throughout the latter half of the track. It’s as if despite all the regression, it was impossible to shake off everything that happened, thus providing a sense of continuity and a bridge to the past. Even a sorely missed sub-3-minute rampage like “Ενδοψυχική Κρύπτη” (Inner-spirit Crypt) is riddled with shifts in pace and style, be it punky strumming or the decrepit break that caps things off. There’s an incredible amount of flavour in each composition, caked under the layers of grime and noise that have defined Μνήμα’s sound, and I can’t help but be grateful that they’ve never used it as a means of hiding shoddy songwriting.
What truly defines the songs here and allows them to stand as more than a mere rehash of past glories is the emotion that courses through them. While the band’s earliest output treated the music as an outpouring of hatred, the compositions here are defined by melancholy and anguish. Even when things get more angular on “Venomous Atonement”, the riffing punctuated by these little screeching licks, you can’t help but hear the music cry out in pain, the primitiveness of the drumming (some of Μνήμα’s fastest and most straightforward in recent times) further adding to the rawness presented. The droning intonation and inversion of the mantra “You were beside me in my death” from Καταραμένα Λείψανα only serves to cast an even grimmer shadow over the proceedings, especially in conjunction with deranged shrieks heard throughout.
The title track arguably makes for the record’s defining statement, given its longer runtime, bolstered by an appropriately ambitious structure. Though the pace is blistering for most of its runtime, I do want to attract special attention to the break a third of the way through, because it results in what is hands down one of the most impactful moments in their discography. It maintains a solemn tone, with only a few tuneful touches providing a counterpoint to the weird vocalisations that float about, and it then drops us into this lonely and rather lowkey tremolo passage. Neat, but nothing we haven’t heard before. But it then lingers for a few bars, before X.’s voice suddenly causes the song to combust, his breathless howling unwavering alongside the other instruments. And, perhaps in a moment of passing the torch, we get a repeat of this pattern, only this time it’s our unknown instrumentalist rasping his lungs out. X. has always loomed large over Μνήμα’s body of work, even after his passing, and it’s in moments such as these that this fact comes into sharp relief. All this is capped off by the fittingly named “Γαλήνη” (Tranquillity), an acoustic denouement whose resignation is underpinned by a feeling of discomfort, acoustic notes echoing through the emptiness. It isn’t often that we’re treated to outros of this sort by the band, but the fact that they always have a lot of thought always makes their appearance an occasion worth noting ,especially considering how nicely they fit every time.
Ultimately though, despite there being much to appreciate about Drowning in Hallucinogenic Visions, I find myself having to engage in an off-putting balancing act between the regressive tendencies of the EP, and the brutal honesty coursing through it. It’s true that I do quite enjoy the tunes presented, each brimming with vim and vigour, but I’d be lying if I said that they totally stack up to what I consider Μνήμα’s best to be. On paper, it is everything I could have possibly wanted from the rest of their work that sounds like this, but it has the unfortunate fact of being released in 2025 looming large over it. While I wouldn’t discount it within their canon, on account of its sincerity and retroactively acting as a bridge between two disparate eras, including the fact that it’s hands-down the best interpretation of their early sound, it all comes with the dubious honour of following what has thus far been their artistic peak. I suppose the answer to the question of “where to now?” has “down” written in small letters next to it sometimes.
Highlights: Swallowing a Thousand Needles, Drowning in Hallucinogenic Visions
It’s this question that Drowning in Hallucinogenic Visions takes upon itself to answer, and it does so with a resounding “to the past”. For once, we see Μνήμα wilfully adopt an atavistic approach to their music, channeling the energy seen in their 2018-2020 run, whereas up to this point they were either exploring new territory or moving laterally in terms of their approach with everything they did. It’s not something I can begrudge our unnamed mastermind for, as I myself do hold some of their early work in high esteem, and it’s hard to think about going forward after something as monumental as the sophomore. The evocatively titled “Swallowing a Thousand Needles” sallies forth with zipping riffs and torn vocals, the likes of which we haven’t heard in quite some time. The roughshod and erratic aspects of their early work are here in full force, only slightly tempered by the development and maturity that occurred in the interim, be it through discreet melodic flourishes or by putting together a tense break that writhes throughout the latter half of the track. It’s as if despite all the regression, it was impossible to shake off everything that happened, thus providing a sense of continuity and a bridge to the past. Even a sorely missed sub-3-minute rampage like “Ενδοψυχική Κρύπτη” (Inner-spirit Crypt) is riddled with shifts in pace and style, be it punky strumming or the decrepit break that caps things off. There’s an incredible amount of flavour in each composition, caked under the layers of grime and noise that have defined Μνήμα’s sound, and I can’t help but be grateful that they’ve never used it as a means of hiding shoddy songwriting.
What truly defines the songs here and allows them to stand as more than a mere rehash of past glories is the emotion that courses through them. While the band’s earliest output treated the music as an outpouring of hatred, the compositions here are defined by melancholy and anguish. Even when things get more angular on “Venomous Atonement”, the riffing punctuated by these little screeching licks, you can’t help but hear the music cry out in pain, the primitiveness of the drumming (some of Μνήμα’s fastest and most straightforward in recent times) further adding to the rawness presented. The droning intonation and inversion of the mantra “You were beside me in my death” from Καταραμένα Λείψανα only serves to cast an even grimmer shadow over the proceedings, especially in conjunction with deranged shrieks heard throughout.
The title track arguably makes for the record’s defining statement, given its longer runtime, bolstered by an appropriately ambitious structure. Though the pace is blistering for most of its runtime, I do want to attract special attention to the break a third of the way through, because it results in what is hands down one of the most impactful moments in their discography. It maintains a solemn tone, with only a few tuneful touches providing a counterpoint to the weird vocalisations that float about, and it then drops us into this lonely and rather lowkey tremolo passage. Neat, but nothing we haven’t heard before. But it then lingers for a few bars, before X.’s voice suddenly causes the song to combust, his breathless howling unwavering alongside the other instruments. And, perhaps in a moment of passing the torch, we get a repeat of this pattern, only this time it’s our unknown instrumentalist rasping his lungs out. X. has always loomed large over Μνήμα’s body of work, even after his passing, and it’s in moments such as these that this fact comes into sharp relief. All this is capped off by the fittingly named “Γαλήνη” (Tranquillity), an acoustic denouement whose resignation is underpinned by a feeling of discomfort, acoustic notes echoing through the emptiness. It isn’t often that we’re treated to outros of this sort by the band, but the fact that they always have a lot of thought always makes their appearance an occasion worth noting ,especially considering how nicely they fit every time.
Ultimately though, despite there being much to appreciate about Drowning in Hallucinogenic Visions, I find myself having to engage in an off-putting balancing act between the regressive tendencies of the EP, and the brutal honesty coursing through it. It’s true that I do quite enjoy the tunes presented, each brimming with vim and vigour, but I’d be lying if I said that they totally stack up to what I consider Μνήμα’s best to be. On paper, it is everything I could have possibly wanted from the rest of their work that sounds like this, but it has the unfortunate fact of being released in 2025 looming large over it. While I wouldn’t discount it within their canon, on account of its sincerity and retroactively acting as a bridge between two disparate eras, including the fact that it’s hands-down the best interpretation of their early sound, it all comes with the dubious honour of following what has thus far been their artistic peak. I suppose the answer to the question of “where to now?” has “down” written in small letters next to it sometimes.
Highlights: Swallowing a Thousand Needles, Drowning in Hallucinogenic Visions
Rating: 70%
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