Asenblut
Von Worten und Taten

Germany’s Asenblut are back with their second album one of words and actions that is said to be one that gives a lasting impression. The band was otherwise formed back in 2006 and then reformed in 2007 which is the band that we have today, they have done one album before this one and that sent ripples through the underground according to the press info that followed the album. I think the cover artwork looks fairly cool and fantasy like. The music is inspired by many things, like classic heavy- and thrash metal and more modern pagan metal to form something of a unique blend of music.

I don’t know about unique because the album sounds quite typical of german pagan metal, nothing wrong with that of course and the fact that they sing in german is something that sets them slightly apart. The music feels quite melodic, almost to the style of power metal but with growly vocals and some influences of more extreme metal. I think that the vocals sometimes takes a bit of a front row place in the music which I think takes away some of the melodic feel of the album, so there are some slight niggles to point out about the production which is alright but nothing spectacular. The same goes for the variation which is okay but think more clean vocals could have added a lot more depth to the album which is a tad on the long side with 52 minutes playing time over the eleven tracks.

It is a fairly good album, all tracks hold a fairly high level of quality and works out okay on an entertainment level. Some small things are the vocals that could have been more varied, the playing time and the fact that the album is missing a hit song that could be a good focal point and something that would make me want to play the album. As it is, all the songs on this album are about the same, not necessarily in style but in quality which is why it feels like the album never really takes off. So I would say that they have a bit to go with their music before they reach the highest levels, but this is still good and especially those of you who enjoy pagan metal will think so.

To conclude we can state that this is a good album, it has some flaws but I can clearly recommend anyone of you who are into pagan metal to take a closer look as it will most likely appeal to you. I miss a real hit song and I think the album becomes a bit too static to really work for me, nevertheless I can admit that they do offer us a good album with this one.

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