Didn’t we already encounter some bastardly punkfaces earlier this year? We indeed did. Wolfbastard hail from the windy island in the North Sea, though, whereas here we got ourselves brutal German fare. Straight Teutonic power. Relentless and brutal.
What piqued our attention, though, was the weirdly similar album names. The former called their concoction Satanic Scum Punks, whereas Arroganz here had theirs down as Death Doom Punks. Let’s just hope that this is a naming oversight of the arrogant ones and no botched creativity attempt. But whatever the truth, that’s a godawful load of fucking punkery. Thus, let them ferocious feelz leed us where they may.
Well, the difference lies in the style. Wolfbastard err more on the blackened side of the Extreme Metal spectrum with a sick penchant for their trve punky urges. Yet this iteration of Arroganz here does most of its metallic hunting in traditional Death Metal country, worse than the late Frozen Soul ever did. Albeit, that some blackened geekery and punky crust patterns are never very far away from this here offering (Pain Forged Armor). And when the axeman goes into overdrive, suddenly you’ll find little gems that blatantly drive into tech death, the way the purported masters of the metal underground play it ad nauseam. In other words, Death Doom Punks suddenly ain’t all that straightforward anymore. Instead, Arroganz serve a miasma of many of the dark undercurrents that glow darkly in this metalverse’s underbelly.
Death Doom Punks is a take-no-prisoners record. This is Death Metal, straight from the proverbial horse. No frills, but lots of rage-infested thrills, if you get my drift. Delivered by a band that visibly won’t condone the injections of melodics into their brutal metal fare. Meaning, the fans will get a no fucks given descent into whatever these guys have been producing since the band started back in 2008. True, the lineup changed in the meantime. But methinks, the arrival of the new guitarist in 2025 brought even more mayhem into the fray. And that is a good thing.
Death Doom Punks won’t ask for brownie points, and they will be given none. Instead, their metal is raw, vile, and full of grit and grime. There is no ounce of clear voice vocals in this (very long) 38 minutes of playtime. To the contrary, the relentlessly merciless rasps, snarls, and croaks will continue to grate on your bones until the last sickly note peters out. This results in a number of crescendoes where all scarce instruments AND the vocalist will try to rip the ears off your skull. The most memorable of which is the passage towards Incubus’ Veins‘ end. Just ferociously delicious, if that makes any sense.
That said, Arroganz here may stick a bit too closely to the old-school Death Metal tropes. And that may very well lose them a few fans and have them garner negative critique when the act just sticks to their guns. And proficiently so. Not that they will care in any which way, that is. Because, apart from being a stickler to brutality, there isn’t much to bitch and moan about on this record. After all, their fare is well-paced and comes in at a crisp airtime that neatly avoids sensory overload. In addition, Death Doom Punks rides in on a pretty snazzy mix that doesn’t lose any element in the process. Even the bass remained audible throughout the pandemonium, this record so gleefully dispenses.
Ultimately, Death Doom Punks came as a surprise to us. At first, the crew didn’t believe in a lot of mileage out of this record. But after a few spins, the gems will emerge from the murky depths of Neanderthal brutality. Lastly, the legacy of punk and – what they call – doomy influences can be felt throughout the record. And it is that special crust that will finally deliver that extra spice that made us return to this piece of riotous havoc more times than we actually should have.
Record Rating: 7/10 | Label: Testimony Records | Web: Official Band Site
Release Date: 15 May 2026