Valborg
Werwolf EP
(Temple of Torturous)
At first glance, I was assuming this to be a brand new recording from Germany’s Valborg after having released their fifth album Romantik just last year. Unfortunately, that is not the case and this is merely a sampling of their next output, which seems like a kind of heavier Gothic metal in the vein of early Paradise Lost and mid-era Rotting Christ. It’s extremely bass-heavy, with thumping overtones that give way to light atmospheric passages. The vocals consist of forceful grunts, which contain unexpected mounds of heavy gravel and mark a strong departure from the Romantik material. It’s overly heavy and feels like trying to lift a ten ton slab of concrete while being on a slight acid trip. Maybe there’s a bit of modernism to be heard in the lead bass-lines of opener “Ich Bin Total” bringing off a slight post-metal feel. Gentle doses of keys help to give these cuts enough room to breathe, but my issue is that “Werwolf” sounds so similar to the opener that the band are possibly taking a risk that could backfire in a record in which every song sounds too derivative of the others. While I can’t say as to whether or not the band’s next record will mirror this, if that is the case, this could either be hit or miss depending on how much substance the disc has. From the view of a non-critic (takes off cap) I could see listeners that just want something that sounds dark and heavy being pretty happy with this one. “Werewolf” is a much darker song, almost quite grim and it sounds pretty damn cool to me. Putting back on my critic’s cap, I think that if these gentlemen carry the same heft as they do on the next record as on this title cut, there might really be a pounder here. Again, it’s a break from Romantik, so don’t even expect that kind of material. You might as well consider Valborg a different kind of band now and they very much are with this new arc of music. Give it a listen, because it’s pretty solid.
