It’s true that Porta Nigra‘s 2020 epos Schöpfungswut didn’t quite sync as well as it should with us. The record was one of those love/hate affairs. The godly theme was snazzy enough but – sometimes – the songwriting got stuck in a loop which didn’t quite help matters over at the RMR review desk.
But then, we cannot really deny a band named after a famous Roman city gate in Trier and that comes with a swagger bigger than the Milky Way. They’re also prone to bigger-than-thou themes that may or may not hinder quality and progress. And this time, PN here talk about the end of the world, no less. Or more precisely, the horrors of World War I. Weltende is here to haunt us – a retrofit to today’s troubled world. So what else is there to hold us back? Right, nothing.
The record garnered the band some controversy even before it aired. First, the Käthe Kollwitz cover didn’t sit well with a few grouchy fellows out there. Then, there was that infamous gesture by a band member in a photo for the press. As it appears, the OK sign is now a hate symbol. Because these idiots of the White Supremacist movement in the US and the UK seem to use it for their own nefarious purposes. And – of course – some busybody at the Anti-Defamation League had to list it. Thus, the band faced some heat from the US about that photo. But really, Porta Nigra didn’t exactly strike me as very right-leaning so far. There are more pertinent candidates out there in the German metalsphere for that specific kind of garbage badge.
The band also lost their long-standing member Obscurus, replaced by Jöschu Käser on drums and bass. And that departure – allegedly – led to a freer songwriting style, as Gilles de Rais so succinctly put it in one recent interview. Well, hells bells, so much news in the run-up to a new record.
But all of the above wasn’t the reason to give Weltende a go. The first track Es ist Krieg still roared ahead somewhat in the vein of Schöpfungswut. Somewhat, and the rough-hewn solo already got on our good side. But after that, there’s new-found spice in the tune and a spring in the band’s step. A remarkable uptick in almost frantic energy and quality of songwriting. And it shows. PN delivered speedy beats already on their previous record, true. But Weltende thrashes yer metallic behinds at full throttle with the speedometer out of control and the drummer in mad overdrive.
And no worries for the diehard fans out there, the band still dishes hardened Black Metal out with wanton oblivion. Only here, the psychedelic level increased and you get a better integration of prog elements that weren’t there on the previous record. In other words, some sort of a weird mix of storytelling that meets fast-paced blackened prog power is now on the menu. Weltende often reminded us of what Rotting Christ did when they explored further.
And boy, André Meyrinck‘s vocal powers got an overhaul as well. That’s next-level stuff from an artist with a truly elastic voice. Add to that Kraal‘s1 guest vocals, and you’ll find a rich multilayered jambalaya of growls, snarls, howls, screams, and clears. Plus some richly embroidered recitals from the long-defunct Oskar Werner that perfectly fit into the war-like theme of this record.
The RMR reviewers had one caveat, though. And that’s the rampant complexity Weltende is prone to. Unshackled songwriting is one thing, but too many elements introduced at once may very well make that pie burst at the seams once the heat is turned up a tad too much. And that takes away from flow and consistency, and might very well lose the band some fans in the process.
Overall, however, Weltende returned much better metal value than its predecessor. Less down-in-the-pit Black Metal drunk on wrap-around riffing. But more wild and delicately blackened almost psychedelic Extreme Metal. Refined storytelling on a trve metal foundation. And finally, a record more adapted to the swagger the band’s so overtly displaying.
Ed’s note: Need more of Jöschu Käser’s considerable talent? RMR has got it.
Record Rating: 7/10 | Label: Soulseller Records | Web: Facebook (band)
Release Date: 28 July 2023
- The Odd Footnote!
- Obscurus’ buddy over at Membaris-↩