(written by Islander)
The title of Verheerer‘s new album (their third) is Urgewalt. Like many German words, it probably doesn’t have a precise English translation, but based on our own searches it could be rendered as “elemental force” — “a sense of raw, untamed, and powerful force, often associated with nature or something fundamental.”
In the context of the album, that force is the absolute will of humanity to destroy, to the point of self-destruction. The album’s even more specific context is the horror of World War I, as described in this press preview of the record (which will be released on April 4th by Vendetta Records):
The new album was composed and written with this basic idea in mind and with the First World War, which revealed a new level of cruelty and dehumanization and at the same time shaped our world like no other conflict to this day, the canvas was also found on which Verheerer paint their very own pictures. Of the loss of humanity in an industrial machine of destruction, of seduction and the mechanisms of power that make the incomprehensible possible in the first place.
And thus the album’s cover art (by Misanthropic-Art) is a fitting one — the remains of creatures who irresistibly fought and died, horns locked together and unable to escape. It’s a representation of the truth “that every supposed victory in this bloody game must be paid for all the more dearly.”
BST (vocals), SMN (guitars, chanting, spoken words), MYR (bass, keys), KRZ (drums)
photo by Sarah Sauerland
The album’s specific thematic focus is reflected in the imagery of the booklet that accompanies it, and we’ll scatter some of those pages throughout what follows. And what follows are some extensive thoughts about the ways in which Verheerer have manifested their chosen themes in the music they’ve made — but the most important thing which follows is the chance for you to hear Urgewalt from beginning to end.
The thematic conception of the album is borne out in the music, which encompasses cycles of violence, ruin, suffering, grief, hopelessness, and the kind of bleak recognition that in human history those cycles are destined to repeat themselves. The album is named for elemental force, for primeval power, and the music itself often sounds like a terrible and intractable force of nature.
The album throws the listener into the war zone immediately, with a harrowing intro track that brings sounds of bombs and maddened commands, sounds of building chaos that flow directly into the album’s title song. There, Verheerer unleash waves of searing and roiling riffage, weapon-like percussion, and furious screams that are raw and ragged in their intensity.
In the title song they build blood-lusting chaos and a kind of martial fanaticism, but also, with an enormous bass sometimes leading the way, they channel confusion and pain. The music ruthlessly hammers and feverishly spasms, and a blistering, fire-bright guitar solo, followed by a wild cacophony of voices, pitches the madness to an even higher extreme. The wordless gasps and tortured screams at the end put an exclamation point on the violent horrors embedded in the music.
The song is absolutely exhilarating to hear, and it pounds the pulse with primal power, but it’s also a primally effective representation of mindless blood-lust and blood-spray, of physical ruin and agony, of the “will to destroy, to the point of self-destruction.”
The title song isn’t the only one on the album where Verheerer manifest such terrors, and elsewhere (“Totenvolk” and “Lungs” being prime examples) they continue doing so through the use of truly harrowing vocals, burly bass-lines, drums that sound like machine-guns and mortar fire, harsh and squalling riffage, fleet-fingered and relatively clear-toned leads, elevated keys that dramatically expand the scale and sweep of conflict, and spectacular soloing.
However, even in the midst of those storming musical calamities Verheerer display an elaborate and dynamic songcraft, and they embed hooks, both rhythmic and melodic, so that no one would mistake what they’re doing as “war metal.” Indeed, though it often savagely slashes and thrashes, at a high level it’s better thought of as an amalgam of melodic black metal and melodic death metal, with lots of filigrees from beyond those bounds too.
But as forecast earlier, madness and violence aren’t the only aspects of human fragmentation that Verheerer represent in these songs. As already evident in the title song, and again elsewhere (as in “Hail Mary“, “Totenvolk“, and “Arsonist“), some of those melodic hooks, even in the most violent songs, are distressing in a different way, wailing and moaning in ways that channel frantic anxiety, paralyzing fear, hopeless suffering, and terrible grief.
In addition, the album includes songs whose overarching moods are grim, grievous, and heart-aching. That comes through in “Stahlgrab” and in the hard-rocking and richly melodic “Grabenwurm“, which is one fine example of the fact that in telling their tales Verheerer don’t feel strictly bound to standard conventions of black and death metal.
Verheerer also often embellish their historical narrative with spoken-word samples and other old recordings. Through it all, the band benefit from a rhythm section that delivers heavyweight punch, but also nimble variety — and the vocals are relentlessly, fanatically, and imperiously insane (as if single-handedly embodying the deranged and self-destructive impulses of humanity).
At the end comes “Kriegstreiber” (“warmongers”), and it’s a very fitting finale — haughty, harrowing, and haunting but also a bounding body-mover of a high order, and one that includes a piano intro and outro (and an extensive vocal recital in the outro), prominent melodic bass lines and, for the first time, heart-felt singing in which bassist and drummer join in (unexpectedly, that’s part of what makes the song a stand-out).
As we say in the trade, there are zero weak links in Urgewalt. I’ll also venture the opinion that if people pay attention to it, as they surely should, it will be front of mind when year-end list season arrives.
Urgewalt was written and recorded on various occasions and places between 2020 and 2024. Mixing, reamping, and mastering was handled by Skull Tone Studios. It’s available for pre-order now on vinyl LP, CD, and digital formats, with apparel.
PRE-ORDER:
https://verheerer1.bandcamp.com
https://vendettarecords.bigcartel.com
VERHEERER:
https://www.facebook.com/verheerer
https://www.instagram.com/verheerer/