Emotionale Endstation

On the outside, Selbstentleibung, a four-piece band from Austria, seemed like a distinguished group of individuals. They look professional and like they mean business with their grotesque appearance, which is definitely in keeping with black metal roots. However their debut full-length, entitled ‘Emotionale Endstation’, doesn’t live up to the early potential shown by their willingness to embrace the black metal traditions. In actual fact, it falls horrendously flat on its face in pursuit of a direction it cannot reach and a desired sound it cannot perfect. Rather surprisingly, though it does not seem like it at first, this is a rather abrasive depressive black metal album with ties to the more traditional roots. I wasn’t expecting a depressive black metal album, so this came as a shock. The image of the band and the way they portray themselves doesn’t fit the sound of the music. So, from the off, they’re already a mish-mash of ideas that don’t sit well with each other and it’s downhill from there on, I’m afraid.

Generally, the lyrical themes, song titles and appearance of the band give it away but not with this Austrian band who appear to be nothing more than a throwback to the olden days. In certain aspects of their play, they are, but that isn’t entirely the case with this rather varied album which does show signs of some decent song writing. The album is typically metal and by that I mean very riff-orientated. Unlike most depressive black metal, Selbstentleibung don’t rely as heavily on atmosphere and emotion to get their point across. Most of their approach is simply based on memorability and “headbangability” of the riffs. To some extent at least, the riffs are catchy and infectious but that doesn’t mask the fact that, despite the depressive hints here and there, this is very much a by-the-numbers type affair with minimal content worthy of a second, or third listen. Much of the material is very mediocre with the guitars doing most of the legwork in terms of forging memorable structures. The bass is audible but not in the least bit refreshing. The vocals are too varied and therefore inconsistent.

Unfortunately, in my case, I’ve got to listen to this album more than once but that’s only because I HAVE to. I wouldn’t advise listening to such mediocrity more than once otherwise your brain cells may rot. There are few confusing traits to this album which don’t add up in my mind, such as the vocal approach. The vocalist chooses to portray the lyrical content in a few different forms, with the main style being that of any typical depressive black metal band, but without the emotional intensity that carries the lyrics so well. The vocals are nowhere near as powerful despite being fairly over-the-top, as shown perfectly on the opening song ‘Danksagung an den Tod’, as well as a number of other songs. Also, I don’t understand why the band have chosen to insert a number of cleanly spoken samples. They’re all in German, I believe, so I don’t understand what they’re saying but, even if I did, I’d probably still conclude that they’re a meaningless and pointless addition to the album which serves no purpose whatsoever. They detract from the natural pace and progression of the album and hinder the evolution of the sound, though it isn’t particularly exciting anyway.

These are not the only substandard aspect of the album. The instrumentation, whilst not lacking in ambition or creativity as far as this sub-genre goes, fails to deliver on almost every occasion. There are a few things done right, like the production. It’s very crisp, though the instrumentation doesn’t tie itself together well at all. Each aspect sounds individualistic and none of the instrumentation works as a team to pull the songs in a consistent and noteworthy direction. The atmosphere fails to deliver in terms of what I’d expect of a depressive black metal band. The vocals may wail all they like, but they’re not convincing emotionally, nor do they sound right alongside the instrumentation. Those slower ambient sections with the cleanly spoken vocals, as featured on songs like ‘Mit dem Kreuze erschlagen’, do not fit in at all well. Generally, the pace of the songs is quite fast, so these slower, supposedly more poignant sections have no place amidst the fast, unrelenting material. At times, during songs like ‘Klingen der Macht’, the Austrians resemble bands like Forgotten Tomb, but without the atmospheric tendencies and ability to draw up a connection with the listener on an emotional level. In conclusion, this album is a very average affair which fails to consistently deliver. A poor showing from a band who don’t appear to know what they’re doing.