Metal Debate Album Review - Die Urkatasthophe (Kanonenfieber)

The Great Metal Debate Podcast

Welcome back to The Great Metal Debate podcast. Today we will be focusing on a black metal band called Kanonenfieber with their second full-length studio album Die Urkatasthophe. Admittedly I didn't jump on Kanonenfieber for their Menschenmühle debut, and when I did I was blown away. I loved how this band had melodic riffs but still managed to keep the semi-raw sound yet still be catchy. I have grown tired of the obligatory intro tracks for every fucking metal band in existence but I actually kinda like "Grossmachtfantasie" because it just kinda fits. The first single they released for this new record was titled "Panzerhenker" and it completely flew under my radar. But then I listened to it and was thoroughly impressed. I loved the repeating word "Deutschland" in the lyrics, especially since it has triple vocal layering between the lead vocalist and the backing vocals from both guitar players. Another nice touch was the reverse breakdown towards the conclusion of this track where all the instruments temporarily cease from blasting away so the vocal lead can have a whispering segment. "Sturmtrupp" begins with guitar chugging with marching drum beat but you hear an actual war whistle in the background before the song picks up its speed. The entire song is groovy and is undoubtedly a real head bobber. "Der Maulwurf" was the 2nd music video. There's undeniably a rhythm to the melodic sounding chorus that seems like it's being yelled in your face. I love how the song ends with a gun cocking sound followed by a gunshot. The next track "Lviv zu Lemberg" opens with another radio transmission before throwing you head first into the bullet storm that is this band's music. There's a slow break in here but it swings back with a vengeance to roar your ears off. Moving on we have "Waffenbrüder" which was released a while back with a lyrical video that I never got around to seeing. Nothing really stands out much about this one aside from the wonderful guitar melody towards the middle. Nevertheless, it's bad ass much like the rest of this band's work. The next track which is titled "Gott mit der Kavallerie". I love how you hear not just gunfire but war horses too. One complaint that I have about this one is that it seemed longer due to its somewhat repetitious structure. "Panzerhenker" was another one of the earliest singles released for this new album and for good reason. This one fucking rocks! It sounds aggressive and there's even a funeral doomy section halfway through this song where the guitars have a soft whine to them while the vocalist preforms these slow deep growls. Definitely my favorite part. Its cool how "Ritter der Lüfte" opens with the sound of an old bomber airplane engine. I love how you also hear the planes flying overhead periodically during this song. "Verdun" is a short intermission track where you hear a German soldier speaking in his native tongue loud and clear with the faint sounds of bombs being dropped in the distance. All the while there's a somber guitar tone being plucked to help add to the background noise. I won't even try to pronounce the name of this song but its the long A word. "Ausblutungsschlacht" Nothing too outstanding about this one. Its a little lengthy with a five and a half minute runtime. I like the piano at the end of this track. Too bad it’s short lived. The final track on this incredible album titled "Als die Waffen kamen" is presented to us in the form of acoustic guitar and clean singing. It may not be considered metal but its certainly a nice little pallet cleanser. This album is definitely an improvement from the debut. I wish they would have done a callback to the machine fire drum beat that was used in the song "Grabenlieder". It would've been so cool if they did that again but for a bit longer. I'm going to give this one a 8.5/10 rating. Support Kanonenfieber by purchasing merch from their Bandcamp page. You can also listen to their music on all streaming platforms.