When it comes to evil and raw black metal, you cannot possibly expect Marduk to deliver anything that is less than outstanding. The maleficent Swedes are back with Frontschwein, that someone might label as a fairly good album out of expertise. Which is in part true: there is nothing here you wouldn’t actually expect from Marduk, but that’s no bad news. If you know and enjoy the band, this is a full-fashion, honest and straight Marduk work; otherwise, it is also a good way to start getting into their sound, of which it is quite representative overall: fast, crude and somewhat melodic in riffs that, whilst might not be genial, stick easily and immediately into the listener’s ears and memory, connoting each track with its own personality. More to their credit, Frontschwein is certainly to date amongst Morgan’s and Mortuus’s best acts ever: the riffing is direct and sharp and is the real driving force of the album, and the vocalist’s performance is more insane and raw than ever. The new drummer Fredrik Widigs also earns his spotlight, paradoxically enough on the slower tracks.
Again a World War II-themed album, Frontschwein is connected to Panzer Division Marduk by the song 503 that is a follow-up to 502, dedicated to the (in)famous German heavy panzer batallion and is one of the most stubbornly traditional black metal songs on the album.
The title track and also the opener has a nice, martial, warlike beat. If ever there was a somehow “lighter” track on Marduk’s whole discography, that would be “The Blond Beast”, a song that has a stunningly “cheerful” (as cheerful as Marduk can be, at least) mood to it, but it’s not bad at all, considering the riffing-oriented spirit of the album. But it doesn’t take long before the assault comes back with the booming “Afrika”. Standout guitar work can be heard on the brilliant “Wartheland” and “Between the Wolf-Packs”. “Nebelwerfer” is a slower track that introduces what looks like a separated triad in the tracklist, the other pieces of which are “Falaise-Cauldron of Blood” and “Doomsday Elite”. The former is built on a recurring, uncanny riff that gives the track a hint of old Marduk’s murky and sinful charm. The latter is by far the longest song on the platter and features one of the best bass lines to date in the tracklist. Sweet final with “Thousand-Fold Death”, the ultimate, relentless and bestial Marduk signature on the album and the real reminder that true black metal is still around.
Notwithstanding a good overall impression and a performance close to excellence by Mortuus, there is certainly some awkwardness around Frontschwein. If one doesn’t focus too much on the lyrical content, rather average wartime celebration, also wearing on the long extent, Frontschwein is almost perfect and a proof of mastery of craft, maybe it misses the brilliance of a flicker.
Notes:
Frontschwein was recorded at Endarker Studio in Norrköping, Sweden, September - October 2014. Released on January 19, 2015 on Century Media.
Again a World War II-themed album, Frontschwein is connected to Panzer Division Marduk by the song 503 that is a follow-up to 502, dedicated to the (in)famous German heavy panzer batallion and is one of the most stubbornly traditional black metal songs on the album.
The title track and also the opener has a nice, martial, warlike beat. If ever there was a somehow “lighter” track on Marduk’s whole discography, that would be “The Blond Beast”, a song that has a stunningly “cheerful” (as cheerful as Marduk can be, at least) mood to it, but it’s not bad at all, considering the riffing-oriented spirit of the album. But it doesn’t take long before the assault comes back with the booming “Afrika”. Standout guitar work can be heard on the brilliant “Wartheland” and “Between the Wolf-Packs”. “Nebelwerfer” is a slower track that introduces what looks like a separated triad in the tracklist, the other pieces of which are “Falaise-Cauldron of Blood” and “Doomsday Elite”. The former is built on a recurring, uncanny riff that gives the track a hint of old Marduk’s murky and sinful charm. The latter is by far the longest song on the platter and features one of the best bass lines to date in the tracklist. Sweet final with “Thousand-Fold Death”, the ultimate, relentless and bestial Marduk signature on the album and the real reminder that true black metal is still around.
Notwithstanding a good overall impression and a performance close to excellence by Mortuus, there is certainly some awkwardness around Frontschwein. If one doesn’t focus too much on the lyrical content, rather average wartime celebration, also wearing on the long extent, Frontschwein is almost perfect and a proof of mastery of craft, maybe it misses the brilliance of a flicker.
Notes:
Frontschwein was recorded at Endarker Studio in Norrköping, Sweden, September - October 2014. Released on January 19, 2015 on Century Media.
| Tracklist: 1. Frontschwein 2. The Blond Beast 3. Afrika 4. Wartheland 5. Rope of Regret 6. Between the Wolf-Packs 7. Nebelwerfer 8. Falaise: Cauldron of Blood 9. Doomsday Elite 10. 503 11. Thousand-Fold Death | 03:13 04:26 04:00 04:17 03:52 04:28 06:17 04:58 08:11 05:12 03:45 52:39 |
Personnel:
Mortuus – Vocals
Morgan – Guitars
Devo – Bass
Fredrik – Drums
Text by Arianna
arianna@unholyblackmetal.com
Mortuus – Vocals
Morgan – Guitars
Devo – Bass
Fredrik – Drums
Text by Arianna
arianna@unholyblackmetal.com