REVIEW: Man in the Arena - a rebirth for The Sound of Origin

The Sound of Origin are back with their second full-length in three years, Man in the Arena. After the release of the excellent The All Seeing Eye during lockdown, the band appeared at Bloodstock Festival for the first time in 2021 and recorded a cover of Alice Cooper's Sick Things for Pale Wizard Records. A rebrand followed, introducing a new drummer in Jack Walker, also of Gandalf the Green. On Man in the Arena, he brings a distinctly different flavour compared to the previous drummer, assuredly stamping his mark onto the band. Other than that, the deliciously fuzz-soaked riffs are still present and the other addition to personnel is Kyle Thomas, famously of Trouble, Alabama Thunderpussy and Exhorder, who lends his distinctive vocal prowess to two songs on the record. What does it sound like, then?

Sound of Origin - Lockjaw/Morning Bird (live at Bloodstock 2021)

The two Kyle Thomas-guested songs are a neat encapsulation of the two sides to Man in the Arena. Frail Old Bones is a real toe-tapper, with a groove that almost has a bit of an alt-metal feel to it, while titular track Man in the Arena is a slow-burning, grinding, much doomier number. It's nothing that feels too alien compared to the previous album, but they really seem to have taken their sense of light and shade and ran with them in new directions. For me, these two contrasting elements are very much present through the whole album.

They really throw the more doom-inspired material into the abyss for Album Two. Man in the Arena sees fantastic vocal synergy between Kyle and Origin lead vocalist Joel, with thought-provoking lyrics inspired by President Roosevelt. The high clean vocals are exceptionally striking - they'll make your hairs stand up! Kyle's vocals are well-mixed over Frail Old Bones - if you're not paying attention, you wouldn't necessarily notice he'd taken over a verse - but you can feel his presence a lot more on Man in the Arena. The Sound of Origin do very well at weaving soulful, clean vocal-led lines over sludgy gloom, so Kyle's guest spots feel very much natural. The All Seeing Eye definitely dooms, but never sounds quite as morose or desolate as the territory that The Sound of Origin go into over its follow-up.

Across the second half of the album, Gold Drenched in White is also particularly ugly and doomy, with a wonderfully mournful key change partway through. Thousand Year Curse is the most outwardly heavy, punishing track on the record, highlighted by a few breakdowns that even lurk into groove metal territory. Sonically, this is pretty novel and fresh for The Sound of Origin, but still recognisable as them. Despite its crushing weight and Azriel's thunderous bass tone, it's not a one-dimensionally heavy song, with screams that feel more emotive rather than for the sake of brutality. Along with some mystical cleaner vocals and Joe's dreamy guitar effects, there is a clear yin and yang to this track, even with the band at their harshest.

What about when they're at their lightest?

Origin have been teasing Birthright, a short, stoner blast boasting one of the biggest 're-listenability' factors across the whole record. It's easy to see why they've chosen this one to tantalise their fans with. With an ice-cool Kyussy groove and some Jerry Cantrell-inspired riffing that's simple but ever so effective, it's pretty easygoing and chilled out throughout. It doesn't hang about for longer than it needs to, but has just enough grit to keep it interesting and some nice additional guitar parts towards the end. Joe's replication of Joel's vocal lines on his instrument is a brilliant touch, which for me rings across like a cool tribute to Josh Homme's playing style. The riffs and vocals are awesome, and this will surely be a live favourite in time. Its sense of bluesiness is irresistible - something reprised by Frail Old Bones later on in the album.

They also open on a strong note. The gloriously dirty opening riff to first track This Ain't Free begins proceedings with a real statement of intent. It's got the groove, riffs and killer vocals that we all expected listening to Album Two for the first time, but you can hear the effect of Jack's addition on the drums straight away. He follows the guitars and bass with his patterns and fills more directly than the more laid-back drum style on The All-Seeing Eye in a very tasteful way. Origin then subtly but effectively nod the tempo up for a powerful midsection, sitting somewhere between stoner and hardcore. The use of tremolo picking and double bass drumming is, again, definitely something new for the band, then leading into a final verse. Rather than dropping the intensity back down to where it was, the cymbals continue to carry the power and Joel completely reimagines his vocal melody into something much bigger and more powerful. An easy option could have just been to scream over the top, but his creative, charismatic and controlled lines elevate the final minute to a new level, helping to tie up the song nicely.

Crown of the Cynic follows these two songs, where the mood becomes more ambivalent; a glance into the abyss, more than anything. It straddles this divide of moods more than any other song, and this is a large reason why for me, it's a clear overall album highlight. Its tone is more sombre and epic, but also mystical, with transcendental vocal lines, Eastern-inspired throat singing, and thought-provoking lyricism. Ambitiously but self-assuredly going through different tempos, the grooves are fat and the riffs are solid. Frail Old Bones is up next, which for the most part is still on the lighter side of the spectrum, with shades of a big, fun late-90s metal anthem amongst its stoned-out vibes. It's addictive and feel-good, and Kyle's vocal cameo is great. Yet its bluesy breakdown at the end brings in a serious sense of sonic power that stoner can't always achieve. It's a natural bridge from the light to the dark.

The second half of the album then has the mentioned Thousand Year Curse, title track and Gold Drenched in White, so to end on Lightbringer is an inspired move. It's a real breath of fresh air, with energetic stoner riffs and infectious, supremely well-executed vocal hooks. With bags of attitude and swagger, it feels more like the band are affirming the beginning of their new chapter than ending an album, with a sense they'll certainly be back for more.

Clearly, then, there's a lot to talk about and dive into when this album drops in October. The vocals - from both Joel and Kyle on his appearances - are magnificent, full of emotion, power and range. I have always tended to listen to instruments first in music, but there is something a little different about the charismatic and diverse vocal performance that you get upon an Origin record. Every so often I'll catch a cool lyrical tidbit or a harmony or a technique, and it's hard not to be impressed.

Photo: Jess Boothroyd

This isn't to take away from the rest of the band. Jack really holds his own on his debut Origin recording, unafraid to do something different from his predecessor. His fills, flair and technicality really stands out and he fits the band like a glove. Meanwhile, Joe and Azriel shine with brilliantly fuzzy tones and killer riffing, drawing from a surprisingly wide range of influences in a genre where it's easy to rehash the same ideas. Origin get the best of both worlds - the sonic palette is pretty varied, but the cohesion comes from the four of them doing their own thing and the well-produced sound that brings everything together. They sound like a confident unit after a relatively short amount of time under their current lineup.

Man in the Arena is an exceptional album from a band pushing their own boundaries and redefining who they are, resulting in an enjoyable, replayable collection of songs that deserves to take them far and wide.

Man in the Arena will be released on 27/10/23

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