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░ ██ ██ Artist: Front ██ ██
▓ █░░ ■█ Album: Der Wasser der K÷ln █■ ░░█
■ █▓▀ █ Year: 2017 █ ▀▓█ ░
█ ▓ Rel. Date: 2017-08-10 ▓ █
▒ ▒ Genre: Thrash Metal ▒ ▒
█▄ ░ Label: Global Thrash Attack ░ ▄█
░ █▄ ░ Source: CD ░ ▄█
░ █▓ Type: Reissue ▓█ ░
▓ █ Quality: VBR, 44.1kHz, Joint Stereo █ ░ ▓
▓ █ █ ░ ▓
▄ ■ ■ ▓ ■
░█ █░ ▀
█ FRONT's 1986 demo "Metallizacija" is usually █
█ credited for being a pioneering piece of thrash █
█ metal in the former USSR, anticipating recordings █
█ by other thrash brethren like SHAH, BLACK OBELISK, █
█ CLINIC and others. The vast majority of Russian █
█ metal during the days of the iron curtain was █
█ quite watery, let's put it this way, so whatever █
█ brutality that FRONT were able to generate back in █
█ the mid-80's was a breath of fresh air, despite █
█ garage recording and the band's less-than-stellar █
█ performance. Said demo, however, along with the █
█ above mentioned bands' albums are but smaller █
█ bricks next to a cinder block that was 1990's "Der █
█ Wasser Der Koln". The iron curtain already went █
█ down but the USSR would still stand for another █
█ year, so placing this album in that previous era █
█ seems the right thing to do. █
█ The most striking aspect here is what a big fat █
█ rabbit FRONT were able to pull out of a hat. It █
█ seems like the band were looking right through the █
█ water and, due to some lucky coincidence or █
█ favorable planet alignment, tapped all the right █
█ sources and absorbed all the right influences from █
█ such monoliths as CELTIC FROST, AMEBIX and SLAYER, █
█ to name a few. Given the limited information flow █
█ from the West, it is quite possible that the █
█ latter was the only band FRONT may have been █
█ directly familiar with at the time. And yet it did █
█ not prevent "Der Wasser Der Koln" from bulldozing █
█ its way through the turning point of the era. █
█ FRONT's trump approach consists of juxtaposing █
█ sluggish, sludgy FROST/AMEBIX segments on the one █
█ end of the spectrum with a full-speed thrash █
█ assault on the other. The opening dirge "Devil" is █
█ a good example of that. It immediately sets off to █
█ plaster a listener with a pulsating bass-heavy █
█ riff that is partially crusty and partially doomy, █
█ and blessed (cursed) with hellishly thick tone. █
█ That construction is placed atop an elephantine █
█ tempo driven by a rudimentary drum pattern and █
█ embellished with super gruff Tom Warrior-school █
█ vocal style that was quite unprecedented for the █
█ USSR or Russia at the time (although, to be █
█ honest, I do not know how, for instance, TRUPNY █
█ YAD sounded back in those days). Three minutes in, █
█ the band unleash their loose screw, hit the gas █
█ and thrash away towards the aural ambrosia without █
█ losing the thickness of the sound. That pretty █
█ much sets the blueprint for the entire record. █
█ Similar slow/dirgy start ups to fast/thrashing █
█ build-ups are used freely on a number of songs █
█ such as "Death Come Tomorrow", "Executioner's █
█ Block", the title track (and its "OHHH-HOOOH" █
█ vocal exclamations) and "Slow Poison". The █
█ latter's opening minute is exemplary in its █
█ harrowing atmosphere and a culminating vocal cry █
█ before settling on a comfortable mid-paced thrash █
█ assault for the remainder of its duration. █
█ Elsewhere the band choose to stick squarely with █
█ the medium to fast speed as on "Black Catafalque", █
█ catchy quasi-anthemic "Iron Fist" or the breakneck █
█ "Dog's Business". There is a good deal of punkish █
█ simplicity lurking beneath the surface that █
█ occasionally seeps through, specifically on an █
█ excellent crossover song called "Lullaby". █
█ FRONT were not the most technically proficient █
█ bunch on this album, merely adequate, yet they █
█ possessed just enough chops and a natural instinct █
█ for putting songs together. All riffs are basic, █
█ but they always hit the spot. The sound is meaty █
█ and deliciously old-school but also clear and █
█ balanced. Instruments are well heard, all of them. █
█ The band have a knack for simple but great guitar █
█ leads, thus interspersing almost every track with █
█ great solos that are short, tight, memorable and █
█ just right for its place, and bereft of any █
█ technical wankery. They play around a little with █
█ start and stop rhythms during the closer "Old Man" █
█ as well as insert a bit of carnival-esque █
█ keyboards in said track. Otherwise, there is no █
█ filler or foreign objects or any kind of flab what █
█ so ever. What is present is high quality █
█ doom/thrash done the way your grandparents used to █
█ get down with. █
█ With its first full-length FRONT churned out a █
█ masterpiece for the fledging Russian scene and █
█ quite a noteworthy piece of work for the rest of █
█ us. Find it! █
▓ ▓
▒ ▒
░ 1. Diavol 4:57 ░
░ 2. Zhelezny Kulak 3:35 ░
░ 3. Sobachie Delo 3:38 ░
░ 4. Zavtra Nastupit Smert' 3:22 ░
░ 5. Plaha 3:42 ░
░ 6. Kolybelnaya 2:28 ░
░ 7. Chernyi Katafalk 3:41 ░
░ 8. Der Wasser der K÷ln 4:47 ░
░ 9. Medlennyi Yad 4:21 ░
░ 10. Staretz 3:26 ░
░ 11. Mech (Bonus Track) 3:44 ░
░ 12. Voin (Bonus Track) 4:45 ░
░ 46:26 ░
░ ▒ ▒
▓ █ ░ ▓ ░
■ █▄ ░ ██
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