Kadavar - "Berlin" (Album Review)

By: Charlie Butler

Album Type: Full-Length

Date Released: 21/08/2015

Label: Nuclear Blast Records

Kadavar have avoided the pitfalls of slavishly recreating the sound of rock legends of yesteryear. Instead they have taken their obvious influences and reassembled them in an exciting new configuration. The sheer exuberance and energy of their delivery, combined with masterful songwriting skill, sounds completely vital whilst being unashamedly in thrall to the past.

“Berlin” CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. Lord Of The Sky 4:27

2. Last Living Dinosaur 4:05

3. Thousand Miles Away From Home 4:53

4. Filthy Illusion 3:45

5. Pale Blue Eyes 3:28

6. Stolen Dreams 3:57

7. The Old Man 4:05

8. Spanish Wild Rose 4:30

9. See The World With Your Own Eyes 4:07

10. Circles In My Mind 3:47

11. Into The Night 4:30

12. Reich Der Träume (bonus track) 6:39

Kadavar is:

Christoph “Lupus” Lindemann | vocals, guitars

Simon “Dragon” Bouteloup | bass

Christoph “Tiger” Bartelt | drums

The Review:

I’d never heard a note of Kadavar before my first spin of “Berlin”. This is the Berlin power trio’s third LP and sees them in possession of a massive following earned via their retro 70S hard/psychedelic rock stylings. I was going into this expecting some serious Sabbath/Purple worship in the vein of Witchcraft and Graveyard, but what I found was something a little bit different. While Kadavar are certainly not averse to sounding like Aston’s finest, particularly on the suitably monstrous “Last Living Dinosaur”, it appears they’ve cast their net further into the seas of classic rock than the standard doom touchstones.

“Lord of the Sky” kicks the album off with a fizzy Stooges style riff before settling into a groove reminiscent of The Who drenched in fuzz. The band mine this furrow further to great effect on “Filthy Illusion” and “See The World With Your Own Eyes” while elsewhere things take a more psychedelic turn. “The Old Man” adds a Hendrix/Cream flavour to proceedings and packs a killer chorus which will be lodged in your brain for weeks to come. “Spanish Wild Rose” sees the band slow down and space out with some tasty lead guitar and vocal echo. “Into the Night” closes the record in fine style, switching from fist pumping heavy metal to a swooping effects laden climax which brings a welcome injection of prog grandeur.

Make sure you get a copy of “Berlin” featuring bonus track “Reich Der Traume”. A cover of an obscure Nico track, it offers a stark contrast to the rest of the album featuring an array of synths and minimal drums. Here the band sound almost contemporary, conjuring up a strange and effective mix of Yes, Kraftwerk and even modern weirdoes Animal Collective. It will be interesting to see if this is a sign of things to come in the future.

Kadavar have avoided the pitfalls of slavishly recreating the sound of rock legends of yesteryear. Instead they have taken their obvious influences and reassembled them in an exciting new configuration. The sheer exuberance and energy of their delivery, combined with masterful songwriting skill, sounds completely vital whilst being unashamedly in thrall to the past. “Berlin” is a killer album that may help them to attain the immortality of their heroes in the eyes of future generations.

“Berlin” is available now

FFO: Witchcraft, Graveyard, Deep Purple

Band info: facebook