Depopulating Planet Earth

I have read that the population of the African continent is growing by 30 million people each year. In 2050 there will be two billions people in Africa. But wait a moment, four dudes from Bavaria are against it and have a master plan. They simply want to depopulate the Earth. Great idea. To depopulate only Africa would have been an act of racism and everybody with a clear mind would try to stop the crazy Bavarians. But killing the whole mankind is just fair, right?

Either way, don't become confused or even depressed by too much global statistics, try to find comfort with a good black metal album. Too bad that "Depopulating Plant Earth" cannot help you in this context. Perhaps I am still an absolute beginner when it comes to black metal. However, I cannot express it differently: this album mainly delivers constant noise. I miss almost everything, for instance clear contours, ice-cold melodies, dynamic guitars, thundering drums, charismatic vocals, intelligent tempo changes or breaks and horrifying scenarios. Everything is at best average, but many components do not even reach this level.

The most annoying details are the absence of comprehensible song structures and the absolutely shabby production. You say these two defects go hand in hand? Probably you are right. The drum sound is terrible and the guitars do not even deliver a minimum of sharpness in view of the muddy mix. But the compositions themselves also reveal immaturity. The songs want to deliver "trve" blackness, but they just rumble down their way without taking the listener with them on their journey. If I forget the dominating hatred for just one moment, the full-length completely lacks emotions. Maybe the opener and the fifth track have a few good moments, but that's definitely not enough to shape a recommendable record. And especially the title track on the fifth position ends in a very strange way. The final solo sounds as if they played their instruments under water. All in all, there are not many sequences where the quartet is creating something good and so their biggest advantage might be that they are not prone to external influences. This wants to be black metal and nothing else.

Be that as it may, one has to endure seven pretty long tracks before the album clocks in at 43 minutes and the prevailing impression is that I have listened to a kind of black metal mishmash. This is a typical debut from the category "We want, but we can't". I know that their third and their fourth album sound much better and I don't want to blame the group for being incapable, but back in 2008, it was not yet time for them to release an album. Thus, I don't speak about a band that lacks integrity, but a band that still had a lot to learn. So now with their better albums in their luggage, Total Hate can re-start their program of depopulation. Hard job. Guess they don't want to know how many - hopefully healthy - African children have seen the light of day while I wrote this review. It took me half an hour, so I think we can welcome roughly 1.700 new African babies. Impressive.

Some time ago, I did a review of this cd. It was short and not really in-depth. After listening to Total Hate's new cd, I decided to go back and give this first cd the proper review that it deserves. I hope that those of you that do check out this release will enjoy it as much as I did. Starting this cd out is the track "Humanity Banished". It starts with with a fade-in and some nice riffing that lets you know about the sonic blizzard that is to come. There is a nice little piece of drumwork at the beginning that wasn't too thick or too thin but it really gives this tune something to build on. Chaos ensues for the rest of the track as the band make it clear that they are ready for war. The vocals were typical black metal vocals but original in delivery as they are strategically placed to avoid the redundancy of screaming for the sake of screaming. this track was a great way to start off this album. "Essence of Evil" starts out slower but it is still straight forward and in your face. The music here reminds me of Mayhem's "Deathcrush" and "De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas" mixed together. Aside from that, there seems to be influences from the likes of Aborym, Immortal and Old Man's Child just ot name a few. As for the vocals, they sound like a mixture of the vocals from Darkthrone's "A Blaze In the Northern Sky" and "Transylvanian Hunger" as well as vocals from the epic Enslaved track "Slaget I Skogen Bortenfor". this is an awesome track for those long winter nights ahead! Cold and evil to the utmost degree! "Decapitation (of Jesus Christ) " starts off with a small ambient type intro with some spoken vocals and then, without warning the shit hits the fan. This song is just oozing with an unadulterated, blasphemic heaviness that a lot of black metal bands lack. while the title of this track may garner some unwanted attention, the real shock is in the music and vocals. This track is put together very well. The riffs, bass, drums and vocals really compliment the lyrical content. This is definitely one of the best put together songs on this cd.

"Chapel In Flames" reminds me of some old Impaled Nazarene somewhere around the "Tol Cormpt Norz Norz Norz" era. The riffing on this track makes for a real classic in the world of underground black metal. The torturous agony of the vocals is presented in a way that lets you know that this is absolute hell. And, while the drumming may be typical of this genre, it is performed in a way that adds total originality to the track. I would say that the drummer is very proficient in his craft but even so there is still room to grow and improve. There is real talent here and you don't find it like this very often especially with this type of music. "Depopulating Planet Earth" is pure chaos from beginning to end almost to the point of insanity. This track is definitely the war cry of the album and seeing this is the title track it's easy to understand why. The band really knows how to make you feel the intensity of their hatred for the world and religion as well. The solo around the 6:10 mark is a good way to end the song and it lets you know that the hatred expressed here goes way beyond just this song."Total Hate" is the insane continuation of the intensity of the previous track. Definitely a song to play at high volumes as the winter snowfalls heavily outside. That may sound corny to some but this band is just so cold and unforgiving as can be the cold winter season. This is by far the best track on the cd. Plain and simple, this is absolute annihilation. The guitars are sharp enough to carve you to the bone and the other aspects of the music will pick and tears at your mind and leave you at a complete loss of words. This will, without a doubt, leave a lasting impression on your soul for all eternity.

"Invocation of the Fallen Angel" starts off with a really cool drum roll type thing and quickly gets down to buisiness. Over 6 minutes of rage here that will plague your mind with all that's unpure and leave you wondering what in the hell just happened.The guitar work sticks out here and it reminds me of what it would be like if you took the guitars of Entombed's "Left Hand Path" release and combine it with old Behemoth. Extremely well done and a very fine end to a near flawless cd. Total Hate really stay true to classic black metal and do not deviate from the blueprint of this genre. But, even so, they push the limits as much as they can. The delivery of these tunes is traditional in the utmost fashion and still they add their own touch of originality to create an unmistakable brutality that will withstand anything put in their way. I'll keep an eye on these guys and review them every chance I get. Contact them to get this cd. It is well worth it.

A raw sub genre of black metal has existed pretty much since the creation of the genre itself. In actual fact, raw black metal is usually inspired by the originators of the second wave, bands like Darkthrone, and that busy buzzing noise that the era generated. Bad production, tremolo repetition and the most evil conjuration on vocals typified the sound of the olden generation, or what some consider the golden generation, the era when all the best material was created and since then, things have deteriorated into a perpetual state of negativity which doesn’t just exist in the music, but is the music itself. Black metal seems to force a great divide between the fans. There are those that appreciate the olden days more, which are long gone but not forgotten and then there are those who appreciate the modern era and its twist and variation on the traditions that bands like the aforementioned Darkthrone laid down which gave us a basis of material upon which we could judge newer spawns of the black metal genre, and its many sub genres, against. Total Hate, another German reincarnation of the second wave are here to anal probe us with their misanthropic and Satanic vision of black metal. ‘Depopulating Planet Earth’ is a traditional piece, which a few variations on the old take which gives their material fresh appeal. There must be something in the water in Germany because no matter what the fans have to throw at their musicians, they always have an answer to the dubious questions that plague the genre in this troubled modern era.

This debut, which has agonisingly taken a remarkable eight years to release, is a worthy effort for its genre, the raw sub genre, but does not produce the same sort of consistency that other, more notable sub genres creates. The constant buzzing that the instrumentation draws out does not bode well in the long run and can begin to stem the flow of creativity, which is negatively effected by the production and limited style that continuously restricts the dynamism and innovation. Despite the obvious flaws of such a sub genre, Total Hate do manage to gain some plaudits for an approach which does at least try to do something different with the ragged and weary depiction that they use to portray their rather clichéd lyrical themes of hatred, misanthropy and Satanism. Reminiscent of recent bands like Sweden’s Avsky, Total Hate are competing in a sub genre that still seems highly marketable amongst black metal fans, thus making the field even tougher to compete in and lead in. Total Hate don’t quite have the maturity or the skill to fuse their different sounding instruments into one coherent noise that exists to terrorise the population. Yes, it does do a good job at detailing the downfall of humanity with its passionate vocals, which perhaps overkill on the screeching and the repetitious vibe that fixates itself on the listener. Of course, with a sound like this, elements like bass are deeply effected and often omitted from having its say.

‘Depopulating Planet Earth’ is, as previously stated, a traditional slice of black metal in the present day. The raw sub genre, which I personally feel this record falls into, often has a habit of sounding far too synthetic for its own good, thus creating problems for itself and numerous fatal flaws which means the faltering opinions are only further justified, as opposed to having some redeeming aspects to fall back on. Overall, I’m not too fond of the raw sub genre. I have no problem with fast paced music, but the hazy effect that this genre complies upon the listener just gives me a headache. In my grand old age, I’m looking for subtlety and more so often than not, a dose of calm and relaxing music. Once in a while, of course, its great to kick back with an angst ridden piece of material that will metaphorically kick you in the genitals repeatedly because it does seem to relief some tension and in the long run, does itself induce a calming effect within me. Limitations are a problematic source of constant annoyance as Total Hate begin to sound the same as the record draws to its close. Although there may be some redeeming features, the bigger picture is about as bleak as the atmospheric tendencies, which prove rather clichéd too as they continue to depict the desolation of the Christian world.

Songs like ‘Invocation of the Fallen Angel’ do at least aim to take a different direction, spicing things up with creative solos and lead riffs that are really rather enjoyable. The twin guitar performances are the most noteworthy contribution to the piece, levelling up the scores between the good and the bad, the sublime and the downright average. If this record were a colour, it would be grey. Though this record does supply a hefty amount of passion, the odd form and content stress the listener out. Unusual undertones that resemble a sombre feel, with one guitarist seemingly adding a semi-acoustic pattern to the background. The odd song structures lead to a lot of confusion. Too much double bass, clean production that doesn’t do anything to enhance the ‘dirty’ feel of the music and confusing variations in the soundscapes which turn from a constant blaring noise (I.E. too much double bass and over exaggeration of vocals, which are screeched) and softer textures on songs like ‘Essence Of Evil’ which begins superbly, but fades away with repetition. Reviewing this record is difficult because, whilst it sounds the same to a great extent (lots of repetition), it does actually contain more subtle reworking of an old genre. Perhaps, with time, Total Hate can harness this early potential and recognise their own abilities by producing a second effort that scales the heights of the top of the leader board.