Best German release of 2003?

[Life Sucks]

So what do you think was the best CD released by a German band in 2003? I think it was Dew Scented - Impact, with Destruction - Metal Discharge at a close second.

 

[Cold Gin]

Brainstorm - Soul Temptation

 

[DrillSergeant]

Easily Kreator with Live Kreation! I don't think of 2003 as a good year. Rather mediocre and not only for the German scene but for the whole thing. But I have to admit that this might be the case because I’ve been really short on money for the last six months or so. In other words: I have missed many CDs in the first place which I’d usually get on the time of their release. Christmas was great to fill at least the most urgent gaps but there’s still a shipload left I need to haul up. So ask me again next summer

 

[Creeper]

Of course Dew Scentend's Impact...
Then Destruction's Metal Discharge,Gamma Ray's Skeltons in the Closet and Blind Guardian's Live

 

[DrillSergeant]

Say, is Dew-Scented really that good? I've never heard anything from them except for one single song on a promotional CD from some magazine. And that one was just average Death Metal, I'd say. I don't want to piss anyone off but I really can't see what they have to offer all the other Old School bands don't have. So what do you think?

 

[Life Sucks]

I don't consider Dew Scented death metal, they are more of a modern thrash band. On their previous CD, Inwards, it seems like they recycle riffs a little bit, as riffs in different songs sound somewhat similar. But the songs are still good though. Their latest CD, Impact, is heavier and more technical, and they don't really recycle riffs. Anyone into heavy, brutal thrash should like Dew Scented. If you were to check them out, I would recommend buying Impact first.

 

[DrillSergeant]

Who am I to argue with you about the label as you're the expert! All I can say is that my first impression pointed more into the Death Metal direction and that I can remember ads which referred to them as a Death Metal band. Anyhow that’s really hard to tell these days. Bands like The Haunted which are commonly considered being Thrash bands are definitely heavier than a band like Arch Enemy which is often referred to as Melodic Death. Ugh, I suppose that’s one of the outcomes when you’re an old fart who grew up with Thrash bands like Anthrax, Megadeth, Metallica and Over Kill. I know, the differences in today’s productions compared to the 80s stuff can really fool one’s ears but still I’d consider them not as heavy as e.g. The Haunted. Take The Crown for example. If this band had released one of their records in 1989 everybody would have called them Death Metal. Nowadays people argue whether they’re Thrash or Death. I don’t know if you can remember that but that’s actually one of the reasons why I asked for the differences between those two styles from a musician’s point of view a few weeks ago.

 

[Life Sucks]

I know what you mean. I'm almost 27 years old, and I started out listening to thrash a long time ago when I was 12 or 13 years old. Back then Sepultura was considered death metal, though now everybody would say that they were a thrash band (the new stuff being utter nu-metal crap). Yeah, no one calls bands like Dark Tranquillity, Arch Enemy, and In Flames thrash, because they really don't sound like thrash at all, so the terms "Gothenburg" or "melodic death" are used to describe them because they have death metal vocals (though they riffing sure isn't death metal at all). I would consider The Haunted, Dew Scented, Carnal Forge, The Crown, etc. post-thrash or modern thrash. These bands rely less on a somber atmosphere and very melodic guitar passages, and instead are more focused on thrashy riffing and speed. Yeah, I think all the different sub genres are confusing as well. I don't really care about them, because I like bands from all metal genres, whether they are death metal, thrash, black metal, doom metal, traditional metal, power metal, or gothic metal.

 

[DrillSergeant]

Exactly!!! Man, I couldn’t have described it any better! And the more modern Thrash bands rely on pure speed and the more Death Metal bands weave “catchy” melodies into their songs the less you can tell the difference. Back in the old days I considered Thrash to be more rhythm oriented and to put more attention on riffs while Death Metal seemed to be more focused on really unorthodox, disharmonic melodies and making things sound as unaccessible as possible. You know, e. g. when the drums play more or less against the actual rhythm of the song.
I basically agree with you about the unimportance of categorizing music too much. My collection shows as it ranges from Kiss and Bon Jovi up to Marduk and Darkthrone. But I really can’t stand it when you can’t tell A from B anymore and everything sounds alike. You know, take Destruction for example. I really like this band and I’m glad that the days of the crappy sound are definitely gone. But on the other hand, I often catch myself thinking that they sound just like another one of those countless Swedish Deathsters. This Hypocrisy guy surely knows how to extract a shipload of fury out of the mixing console but he took a lot of the bands identity away as well.
Btw you and I seem to have experienced a pretty similar evolvement. I recently turned 28 and I started my listening career at the age of 12 or 13 just as you did. The only difference is that I got stuck in the 80s, hahaha.

 

[Life Sucks]

Your tastes are even broader than mine I guess. I don't listen to any hard rock. But I'll listen to any form of metal: death metal, black metal, thrash, power metal, gothic metal, folk metal, doom metal.... I like bands from each genre. And I wouldn't say that Destruction sound like Swedish death metal. To me they sound like a more catchy, more "rockish" Kreator. I like the catchyness and the rockish feel of their music; it distinguishes them from other thrash bands. Metal Discharge is a great CD, but I thought The Antichrist was even better. Destruction are helping keep old school thrash alive today, and that is good to see.

 

[DrillSergeant]

And I wouldn't say that Destruction sound like Swedish death metal. To me they sound like a more catchy, more "rockish" Kreator. I like the catchyness and the rockish feel of their music; it distinguishes them from other thrash bands. Metal Discharge is a great CD, but I thought The Antichrist was even better.

Me, too! I also liked The Antichrist more and - unlike most fans - I even prefered All Hell Breaks Loose over The Antichrist. Anyway, this doesn't make Metal Discharge a bad album at all. In fact, despite being my least favourite output after the reunion I'd rate it higher than any album from the 80s. And even those ones are killers.
As for the Swedish Death Metal thing - I don't consider them similar in style. That's just in terms of sound. Especially on All Hell Breaks Loose. Furthermore that impression has disappeared on Metal Discharge. I guess, it had to do with the producer and his studio...

 

[elysian]

Nice choose: Dew Scented - Impact. I would compare it with Slayer (now you can kill me... ), perhaps a modern version but the guitars are very similar.

But even better than DS is the new Disbelief masterpiece "spreading the rage". That's great modern psychotic death/trash-metal not compareable to any other band because of their shouter Karsten "Jagger" Jäger - he is phenomenal. I'm listening to them for 4 years now and attended many concerts and everytime it's fu**ing neckbreaking!

 

[Life Sucks]

Disbelief are pretty cool. I checked out Spreading the Rage. It's good thrash/death with lots of metalcore influence.

 

[parimal2k29]

Back to best release lol I hardly get to hear anything, but a friend sent me the first CD and some songs from the second of Gamma Ray's "Skeletons in the Closet". They're awesome Great feel (really powerful intro) and near-perfect recording (well, i dont mind the overdubbing) So there, I vote for Skeletons!

 

[Verago]

I only bought 1 release of a German band from the last year - that was Aaskereia´s "Mit Raben und Wölfen" and it surely wasn´t the best one.

Sad but true...

 

[Grindy]

"the last night on earth" from "end of green" i think..

 

[delize]

Dew Scented - Impact

 

[TheGraveDigger]

Grave Digger's Rheingold would have to be my favorite but you also have Rabbit Don't Come Easy by Helloween, Metal Discharge by Destruction, Soul Temptation by Brainstorm and Soundchaser by Rage all which kicked ass.