By: Richard
Maw
Album Type: Full Length
Album Type: Full Length
“Hate Über Alles” CD//DD//LP track listing:
1. Sergio Corbucci Is Dead
2. Hate Über Alles
3. Killer Of Jesus
4. Crush The Tyrants
5. Strongest Of The Strong
6. Become Immortal
7. Conquer And Destroy
8. Midnight Sun
9. Demonic Future
10. Pride Comes Before The Fall
11. Dying Planet
The Review:
Kreator return with this- the latest studio album from the best of the Teutonic terrors of thrash. Kreator, of course, forged a reputation as perhaps the most extreme of the 80s thrash squads; the “Pleasure To Kill” album in particular was one of the only releases to rival “Reign in Blood” for intensity and violence.
Since their 80’s heyday the band has been through ups and downs but after a distinctly rocky 90s returned to a more thrash orientated sound on “Violent Revolution” and since then have gone from strength to strength. The albums from the band’s latter act- “Hordes of Chaos”, “Phantom Antichrist”, “Gods of Violence” have all been stellar examples of the band marrying an aggressive thrash approach with melodic choruses and guitar work. It’s a comfortable groove for the band and they have become a reliable proposition on record.
My pick of the latter-day records would be “Phantom Antichrist”- I think it does everything that Kreator do extremely well- and while I enjoyed “Gods of Violence” a lot I felt it was missing a little of the extremity and force of their earlier work. “Hate Über Alles” has the artwork and from the first notes when the full band kicks in on the title track, you can tell it has the production (having moved away from Jens Bogren to Arthur Rizk), but does it have the songs and vibe?
Well, this is firmly in the mould of latter day Kreator. “Killer of Jesus” has the chorus and melody, “Crush The Tyrants” is a mid-paced affair and thus is not what Kreator do best. “Strongest of the Strong” has a kind of Judas Priest vibe to the riffs and rhythms. So far, so good. Good riffs, playing choruses and arrangements. “Become Immortal” continues the Priest vibes with its triplet feel and reminiscing lyrics.
After a melodic intro, “Conquer and Destroy” ups the tempo and brings the thrash but settles into the melodic mid-paced bridge to chorus before blasting off again. “Midnight Sun” was an advance single and is one of the more experimental and interesting tracks here- it’s great, I think. It again repeats the thrash riffs and verses and then drops tempo for the chorus, but the female vocalist addition here is cool as is the chorus and themes. It’s a change for Kreator and a welcome one.
“Demonic Future” thrashes convincingly, “Pride Comes Before The Fall” and “Dying Planet” round the record off. It’s all good, it’s all convincing it’s all much better than any band of this vintage has any right to be. However, it’s by no means essential or flawless. The main issue here is memorability- yes, there are hooks but there is not that much that leaves an impression. The title track and “Midnight Sun” are probably the picks here and to be clear there are no bad tracks, but the intensity of old is missing, along with perhaps a little energy.
Overall, this is a decent late-period Kreator record. It is similar to “Gods of Violence”, but perhaps a little lesser than that one. It doesn’t quite reach the heights of “Phantom Antichrist” or “Hordes of Chaos” but… I’m grateful that Kreator are still around and still making quality music.
The German legends have their place cemented on the upper floors of the thrash building and their output easily outstrips the vast majority of metal bands there has ever been. If you compare their records of the last 22 years to that of, say, Metallica (and Slayer and Anthrax) well, Kreator are the clear winners. If you are a fan of the band, you must hear this. If you want a place to start, there are worse records to begin your journey with. While this may be ‘another Kreator album’ I do sincerely hope that there are more.
“Hate Über Alles” is available HERE
