Endstille - Infektion 1813 review
Band: | Endstille |
Album: | Infektion 1813 |
Style: | Black metal |
Release date: | May 16, 2011 |
Guest review by: | Slayer666 |
01. Anomie
02. Trenchgoat
03. Bloody H (The Hurt-Gene)
04. The Deepest Place On Earth
05. When Kathaaria Falls
06. Satanarchie
07. World Aflame
08. Wrecked
09. Endstille (Völkerschlächter)
O hai there, old-school black metal, we meet again.
During the recent onslaught of post/atmospheric/shoegaze/psychedelic/menstrual black metal, I couldn't help but feel a sting of nostalgia for the genre's roots, and thus Infektion 1813 was given a chance to impress. A chance it missed, although not completely.
The bulk of releases I've heard in the past months have taught me to expect a long intro that slowly unrolls and develops the sound, so I was somewhat taken by surprise when Infektion 1813 smacked me right in the face with blast-beats and merciless chugging, razor-sharp riffs from the very start. These Germans then start showcasing their ability to weave a sublime melody behind all the chaos, an approach they use throughout the entire album, sometimes with more and sometimes with less success. Infektion 1813 offers virtually no breathers, keeping the listener pinned down by a constant sonic barrage. Comparisons to early-mid Marduk (specially Panzer Division Marduk) are more than spot on for this, with a more noticeable difference being Endstille's tendency to keep the atmosphere more in the vein of an eerie, post-apocalyptic landscape.
However, this album's simplicity may easily be considered a weakness. Too many tracks sound too much alike, and may even blend into one huge blast-beat driven, faceless pile. Exceptions to this rule are the groovy, punk-ish "Bloody H (The Hurt-Gene)" or the narrative "Endstille (Völkerschlächter)". Infektion 1813's staying power is also not of the highest order. Really, why would you bother listening to an entire album again and again if 7 out of 9 tracks are practically the same thing, only some are better than the other? All the chaos and instrumental rampage may turn to monotony quite fast, unless you're an avid fun of this particular style of black. That being said, I'm also not a fan of the production on this one, as it is a bit too clean for my tastes. It's entirely possible that this album indeed works better that way, but I can't help but wonder if I would have enjoyed it more if that lovely guitar fuzz was present here.
All in all, a very decent release, but with so many great ones out there, does one really have the time to bother with just "decent"?
Rating breakdown
Performance: | 7 |
Songwriting: | 6 |
Originality: | 5 |
Production: | 6 |
Written by Slayer666 | 30.01.2012
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
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