Polymoon has been one of the more interesting bands to emerge from the Finnish psychedelic/progressive rock realms in the last decade, and the way they’ve combined such a diverse set of influences has made their material stand out. 2020’s Caterpillar of Creation blurred the lines between the psychedelic, progressive, and space ends of the spectrum but also had a metallic sheen to its instrumentation, while follow-up Chrysalis went for a more melodic and vocal forward approach that shifted the sound significantly. Three years later Mariposa Magic! transforms things yet again, returning to some of the denseness of the debut while keeping the more confident vocal performance and hazier melodies from the sophomore effort. It’s admittedly a bit denser than its predecessor and doesn’t have the same immediate hooks, but this is one of those albums where it rewards listeners as they spend more time with it and reveals different details with each time through.
Even though Mariposa Magic! feels like a natural combination of the band’s first two albums, I must admit that it took a bit longer for this one to sink in and really hook me in the same way as the first two. Part of this is due to the more subdued and exploratory nature of the first half (excluding “I End, You Begin”), which still has plenty of huge shimmering peaks but compared to the heights the second half reaches didn’t hit in quite the same way. But over repeat listens the nuances of what is happening on each side of the record have started to jump out at me more and I’ve come to appreciate the material in its entirety. Some of the noisier layers and density of Caterpillars of Creation have returned with this new effort, but the sense of confidence and brighter flourishes of Chrysalis are also woven in, giving Mariposa Magic! this balance between light and dark that makes things even more dynamic. Opener “Ultra Bloom” is one of the best examples, as it’s subdued and moody for the first minute or so before exploding into shimmering guitars and synths that cut through the drearier tonality. The interplay between the softer and louder textures makes for slightly less bold peaks on this opener, and that may be one of the reasons it didn’t immediately hook me the first time through, but over time I’ve come to appreciate its rhythmic variations and shifts from pure psych territory into prog.
For me, Polymoon is at their best when they shift between the spacey, shimmering psychedelic realms and heavier, metallic sheen, and Mariposa Magic! gives me plenty of that. “I End, You Begin” fleshes out the low end of the sound significantly, channeling similar influences as more recent psychedelic rock bands like Ecstatic Vision and pummeling you with a dense wall of sound, but there are parts after the psychedelic freak-outs where the guitars have so much distortion and weight that they remind me of something closer to later Ministry. “Welcome to Another Dimension” and “Glass House, Mortal Rooms” also have some of that heavier sheen that brings things closer to the modern “doomgaze” end of the spectrum, giving some of doom’s weight alongside classic shoegaze distortion and shine. But even with these stylistic shifts, psychedelic and space rock remain at the core of the band’s sound and they reach some of their highest peaks on “Glass House, Mortal Rooms” and closer “Harvest of Stars”. Here the band finds the best balance between huge pop centric hooks that envelop you with warm melodies and muscular, dense riffing that recalls plenty of 70s hard rock. There are more small details than make sense to mention in the scope of a single review, but it has been exciting to dive in and find more with each listen.
One of the biggest shifts from album one to two was the vocal work, as Kalle-Erik Kosonen went from being slightly obscured in the layers of distortion to front and center. This was also reflected in the photos of the band during the Chrysalis release cycle, which went from more of a mysterious vibe to one that really showcased each member. That sense of confidence and power comes through on Mariposa Magic!, as Kosonen soars over the louder foundation and the ebbs and flow of the performance follow the instrumental’s shifts between dark and light. Early songs like “I End, You Begin” showcase Kosonen’s range, as there are darker, moodier sections where the way things are sung have this almost hypnotic cadence to them, but later in the song things lighten up and the singing soars over top of the rest of the band. If Chrysalis represented a more vocal forward approach and a shift in Polymoon’s sound, Mariposa Magic! feels like the next evolution of that, as it showcases the most dynamic and confident sounding singing to date.
Mariposa Magic! needed a bit more time to grow on me than its predecessor, and I still found myself most drawn to the noise and layering of Caterpillars of Creation, but Polymoon’s evolution from album to album has been fascinating to experience and this third effort is just as compelling. Their foundation of space and psychedelic rock has leaned further into shoegaze and adjacent areas, resulting in material that spends just as much time exploring darker, muted textures as it does soaring into the skies. It does need a few listens to fully get a feel for, but the effort is worth it. Mariposa Magic! is available from Metal Blade Records / Vesperian GmbH.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg