Well I was expecting a total head battering from this split EP from the ever reliable Power It Up but then again that was before I got my first ever taste of Eisenvater. These Germans have been around since 1992 and have by the looks of things released three albums I, II and (you can guess). It would appear that they have not done anything since 1995 and as the press release states they are now back. What it also mentions is that they started as an “experimental grind doom outfit,” which is what immediately peaked my interest. Surely the two things are at extreme ends of the musical spectrum, one being very slow and the other mentally fast? How could the two combine? Well I suppose with hindsight there is time for a slow grind and it can be just as vicious, just taking a certain amount more inventiveness as it steamrollers you to a flattened pulp.
Eisenvater’s sole offering ‘Vater Kommti’ is full of arcane and moody guitar passages and harsh Germanic vocals. It is immediately a bit of an unsettling listen, partly perhaps as I feel I am being told off for something by the clear gruff vocals but do not know what for exactly, as I do not understand them. The rhythm lurches rather drunkenly all over the place and has a sludge doom feel about it mixed with a bass sound that reminds me of Killing Joke at their most mystical. Bit difficult to fully get to grips with a band on just the one song but it certainly leaves me interested to hear more.
The ever reliable Japanische Kampfhörspiele are obviously not as unknown and how could they be with stacks of albums and splits behind them? JaKa open their three numbers with ‘Tote Den Roboter’ an absolutely storming track. Starting with a mellow xylophone this suddenly goes into symphonic black metal territory before going completely gonzo and storming away like The Cardiacs on speed. This is one mental track and I have been sitting here playing it over and over again. Things slow right down after it and the next two numbers unfortunately pale into formulaic territory in its wake. A nice grinding bass groove shudders through ‘Angstfrass’ and ‘Der Pitch’ kicks it off with high slung vocals and teeth-shaking, solid riffing. Nothing particularly wrong with either of these tracks but it is just so obvious here that the first one is the highlight. They also have it on their MySpace so go belt it out now!
http://www.myspace.com/eisenvatercom
http://www.myspace.com/jaka
