Rome is an unusual chimera, mixing genres and aesthetics, but somehow emerging all the stronger for it.  After an ambient start, Masse Mensch Material continues with “Der Brandtaucher,” a fusion of militaristic drumming and Gothic/New Wave elements.  Following that is “Das Feuerordal,” a post-industrial folk song in the vein of Death in June, complete with nods to the use of layered background vocals.  You really won’t be able to accurately predict where Rome is leading you from song to song, but by the end of the record it all makes a kind of sense.  (I’m especially enamored of the Thomas Nola-esque “Der Brandstifter.”  Where did that song come from?)  The thread that ties all of these various influences together is Jerome Reuter’s strong, deep vocals.  In music of this nature, female vocals tend to steal the show while their male counterparts skate by on being quirky or raw, but Reuter’s voice has a definite presence that is both compelling and familiar.  Lyrically, Masse Mensch Material falls somewhere between Douglas P., Leonard Cohen, and Michael Gira; the album is somber and sincere, with slight flickerings of hope to light the darkness.  Rome is burning, let it shine.

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