⛧
Thuringian Pagan Madness (1995)
Despite being one of Germany's most well-known black metal bands, Absurd's earliest output was hardly deserving of such a label. The primary reason the band was even known had less to do with their songwriting abilities and more to do with the murder of one of their schoolmates. In the end, the entire episode was rather foolish and not at all something to be proud of. Rather than dissolving as a musical entity, the band members were still able to record music and carried on with their particular brand of noise pollution.
The material on Absurd's 1995 demo, Thuringian Pagan Madness, has more in common with Oi-punk than with black metal. The guitar riffs and drumming patterns owe a lot to early punk bands. There is a catchy vibe to these songs, especially on those that feature clean vocals, like "Gates of Heaven". Even the utilization of harsh vocals fails to lend more of a black feeling to the music. The riffs lack any sense of darkness or evil, whatsoever. There are moments where a gloomy feeling is conveyed, but it is very mild. The production is total rubbish, which says a lot for how awful this sounds. The percussion is a little too high in the mix, though that makes sense as this appears to have been recorded live. There seems to be little or no distortion to the guitars, which do not sound metal in any way at all. To label something like this as black metal is very misleading, regardless of how Absurd's sound developed in later years. While they may have enjoyed listening to Bathory, Darkthrone and Burzum, their music bears more similarities to the Misfits than any of those groups.
In truth, this demo is barely worth hearing. It offers nothing for black metal fans, nor does it resemble the band's later material in any meaningful way. Its crude, punk-inflected sound might appeal to those nostalgic for lo-fi garage rock, but anyone seeking the grim, atmospheric black metal that defined the mid-'90s German scene should listen to Moonblood instead.
The material on Absurd's 1995 demo, Thuringian Pagan Madness, has more in common with Oi-punk than with black metal. The guitar riffs and drumming patterns owe a lot to early punk bands. There is a catchy vibe to these songs, especially on those that feature clean vocals, like "Gates of Heaven". Even the utilization of harsh vocals fails to lend more of a black feeling to the music. The riffs lack any sense of darkness or evil, whatsoever. There are moments where a gloomy feeling is conveyed, but it is very mild. The production is total rubbish, which says a lot for how awful this sounds. The percussion is a little too high in the mix, though that makes sense as this appears to have been recorded live. There seems to be little or no distortion to the guitars, which do not sound metal in any way at all. To label something like this as black metal is very misleading, regardless of how Absurd's sound developed in later years. While they may have enjoyed listening to Bathory, Darkthrone and Burzum, their music bears more similarities to the Misfits than any of those groups.
In truth, this demo is barely worth hearing. It offers nothing for black metal fans, nor does it resemble the band's later material in any meaningful way. Its crude, punk-inflected sound might appeal to those nostalgic for lo-fi garage rock, but anyone seeking the grim, atmospheric black metal that defined the mid-'90s German scene should listen to Moonblood instead.
(3 Mar. 2012)
Last Updated: You are Visitor #: