Mantar (band)

Lore & Background

Mantar was formed in 2012 by two old friends, drummer Erinç Sakarya and guitarist Hanno Klänhardt. The duo released their debut studio album, Death by Burning, in 2014 on Svart Records. In 2016, the band signed to Nuclear Blast and released their second album, Ode to the Flame, that same year. Their third album, The Modern Art of Setting Ablaze, followed in summer 2018. In 2020, they released the cover album Grungetown Hooligans II via their own label Mantar Records. In April 2022, the band announced their next album, Pain Is Forever and This Is the End, which was released on 15 July. That remains their most recent studio album.

Reader's Guide

Mantar's significance lies in their stripped-down, bassist-free approach to sludge metal, drawing on the raw energy of early Melvins, Darkthrone, and Motörhead. Their discography, spanning from Death by Burning (2014) through Post Apocalyptic Depression (2025), shows a consistent output on labels including Svart Records and Nuclear Blast. The band's move from Bremen to Hamburg and guitarist Hanno Klänhardt's relocation to Gainesville, Florida in 2015 reflect a transatlantic dimension. Their legacy is that of a duo that achieves a full, heavy sound with only drums and guitar, maintaining a steady presence in the underground metal scene.

Did You Know?

• Mantar is Turkish for 'mushroom'.
• The band plays entirely without a bassist.
• Guitarist Hanno Klänhardt has lived in Gainesville, Florida since 2015.
• The band released a cover album, Grungetown Hooligans II, on their own label Mantar Records in 2020.

Formation & Sonic Identity

Mantar, a name drawn from the Turkish word for mushroom, emerged in 2012 as a German sludge metal pairing of drummer Erinç Sakarya and guitarist Hanno Klänhardt. The two, long-time friends hailing from Bremen, built their project around a deliberately stripped-down configuration: no bassist, no additional players. Instead, Klänhardt's guitar work and Sakarya's drumming carry the full weight of the sound, with both splitting vocal duties. Their sonic palette draws heavily from the raw, unpolished energy of early Melvins, the blackened aggression of Darkthrone, and the relentless motorik drive of Motörhead. This combination of sludge weight, punk urgency, and metal ferocity defines the duo's identity from the very first note. By eliminating the bass role entirely, Mantar forces every element into a denser, more claustrophobic space, making their two-piece format not a limitation but a defining creative choice that sets them apart in the broader metal landscape.

Label Moves & Discographic Arc

From their 2014 debut Death by Burning on the independent Svart Records label, Mantar charted a steady upward path through the metal industry. In 2016, the duo secured a deal with the major metal imprint Nuclear Blast, the same year they delivered their second full-length, Ode to the Flame. Their third album, The Modern Art of Setting Ablaze, arrived in the summer of 2018, continuing a thematic thread of fire and destruction that runs through much of their catalog. A notable shift came in 2020 when Mantar released Grungetown Hooligans II, a cover album issued through their own imprint, Mantar Records, signaling a desire for creative and business autonomy. The next original record, Pain Is Forever and This Is the End, was announced in April 2022 and dropped on July 15 of that year. Beyond full-lengths, the pair have issued a string of singles and EPs between 2013 and 2018, plus a live recording, St. Pauli Sessions, in 2016. Their most recent studio effort, Post Apocalyptic Depression, is slated for 2025, confirming the duo's commitment to a roughly biennial release cycle.

Geographic Roots & the Duo Dynamic

Mantar's story is inseparable from movement. Both Sakarya and Klänhardt grew up in Bremen, the northern German port city that gave them their early musical grounding. The pair later relocated to Hamburg, where much of their early recording and performance life took shape, as evidenced by the 2016 live album St. Pauli Sessions, named after the Hamburg district. However, the band's physical geography has continued to shift. Since 2015, Klänhardt has been based in Gainesville, Florida, meaning the duo now operates across an Atlantic divide between the United States and Germany. Despite this distance, the two have maintained their partnership without interruption since 2012, with both credited continuously on drums-and-vocals and guitar-and-vocals respectively. Their friendship predates the band, and the absence of any third member means there is no rotating lineup to manage. The transatlantic arrangement, while logistically demanding, has not slowed their output, as evidenced by the consistent stream of recordings that have followed their 2014 debut.

Creative Independence & Thematic Consistency

One of Mantar's most distinctive traits is the through-line of imagery that binds their catalog together. Titles like Death by Burning, Ode to the Flame, The Modern Art of Setting Ablaze, and Pain Is Forever and This Is the End create a coherent narrative of combustion, suffering, and finality. This thematic unity is matched by an equally consistent work ethic: a full studio album roughly every two years from 2014 through 2025, punctuated by singles, EPs, and a live set. The 2020 release of Grungetown Hooligans II, a collection of cover songs, marked a creative detour that also served a practical purpose—it was the first project distributed under Mantar's own label, Mantar Records. This move toward self-distribution underscores the duo's preference for control over their output. The fact that they have remained a two-piece throughout, sharing vocal duties and refusing to add a bassist, speaks to a philosophy of essentialism: every note must earn its place. Their 2025 album, Post Apocalyptic Depression, extends this tradition into a new era while maintaining the raw, unadorned intensity that has characterized the project since its inception in 2012.