Album number three from the anti-war black/death metal band is set to drop on Friday, and I couldn’t be more excited! We loved their last album, to our surprise, so when we saw this one come across our emails there was no way we weren’t doing a deep dive! Join us in checking out all the glorious heaviness!
The album opens in a pretty punk way, with a marching drumbeat over the top of what I assume is some sort of old war speech. It all builds perfectly, the screams exploding into the chorus alongside some insanely fast drumming. The same break-neck pace keeps up through the verse, staying heavy and feeling like the perfect blend of death, black metal and hardcore punk. The pre is low and menacing too, building perfectly back into that massive, surprisingly catchy chorus. And, while I have no idea what is being said, I do like the concept of the band using its music to commemorate all those who have fallen in wars, outlining the true horrors of them. A particularly poignant message in these current worrying times. It’s a really excellent track to open the album on, and definitely a big early highlight for me!
‘Heizer Tenner’ once again builds masterfully in its intro; some ambient stuff and a low guitar riff running before it explodes into the massive black metal stuff. It’s very in-your-face I’m the best way and sounds pretty epic, almost giving off Rotting Christ vibes. I love the more straight-forward verses too, going more death metal and then adding in the black metal stuff for the choruses. The dynamics throughout are incredible, dropping down and building back up throughout, keeping it constantly interesting. That scream on its own near the end is incredible too, having so much emotion and anger in its delivery. It’s another damn good song!
After a brief interlude track, we get the AWESOME, stomping riffing of ‘Kampf und Sturm’. It almost feels industrial, adding yet another great element to their sound. Of course it then heads quickly into the chaotic black metal stuff, but that riff was a really great, unexpected addition. And that slower almost-breakdown in the middle is AMAZING, too! This is another incredible song, and one that easily makes it onto our playlist!
Starting sinister with that riff, ‘Die Havarie’ keeps a slower pace, once again reminding me of the newer Rotting Christ stuff. It sounds awesome, again setting a brilliant atmosphere as it builds and builds. Once again, we get plenty of heavy black-punk afterwards, but the scene the intro sets is amazing. The heavy, slower pace still returns for the pre-choruses too, bringing it back in an awesome way! Then we get an almost power metal-infused chorus, which is also excellent! It’s a real epic song throughout, drawing in so many different sounds and influences yet sounding like nothing else really around today. Yet again, it’s another fantastic heavier metal song!
The two part ‘Der Füsilier’ is a masterclass of all things heavy. The main vein of black metal is plenty present, but it has a lot of death, hardcore and noise (pun intended) throughout too! It’s 10 minutes of epicness, and both parts fit together perfectly. I imagine the story being told is really cool, and I’m going to have to track down the lyrics and translate them! The two parts are definitely worth a listen together, and are once again high points of the album.
The final two tracks on the album, ‘The Yankee Division March’ and ‘Die Fastnacht der Hölle’ are both awesome heavy songs again, and the perfect way to cap off an album like this! I liked the little Rammstein nod in the latter track, it definitely being my favourite song from that band. Both songs are amazing, and while their sound did get a little similar this late into the release, it was hard not to still love it. The closer is honestly one of my favourite songs on the release, though all of them are amazing!
Overall: This is a damn good, damn heavy album. The band are such incredibly talented musicians, and Noise is such a fantastic songwriter, that they really keep going from strength to strength. As much as I loved their last release, this may even inch ahead of it into my favourite! If you are at all a fan of the heavier side of metal, do yourselves a favour and check this out immediately! I need to see them live soon!
The Score: 8.5/10