Tankard definitely are an intriguing band. They simply describe themselves as “German thrash metal about getting pissed” True statement indeed and they also say they created their own genre called alcoholic metal. One member left because Tankard was giving out the image that they were just some drunks. That’s how pissed they are and it is a great combination. It is new and good to see a thrash metal band not talking about death but alcohol is still a pretty predictable subject to base your songs on. This is basic thrash metal in all honesty though. The same rough vocals, double bass and chugga-chugga riffs, you can easily the influence from the likes of Slayer but sometimes they pull it off excellently.
Andreas vocals are an acquired taste, his isn’t as low as say, Kreator’s or Slayer’s. It is high compared to those bands but it is still rough around the edges. Unlike other thrash bands, Andreas does vocals and nothing else (in the same vein as Anthrax though they sound completely different). Andy and Axel handle the guitars very well but they seems a bit boring sometimes with the chugga-chugga riffs but sometimes they can pull off some great melody lines and it sounds great. They also have some great solos sprinkled throughout the songs. Frank can do great bass lines when he is audible but he lies underneath all the distortion sadly. Oliver is a great drummer but because of the production, his snare sound like a click than a bang.
I’ll be honest; this is as generic as hell. They have all the elements of a thrash band but they never push the borders except when it’s a joke song. “Try Again” can’t be a serious song as is sounds like a pop-punk song and the melody line is like Sum 41 metal style. They do have a lot of humour in their music as well as lots of heavy songs about drinking. They can have good guitar solos sometimes but other times it sounds like a Slayer solo which is just one note played over and over again while pressing down on the whammy bar. Andreas voice can get a bit annoying sometimes with his screeches but he sounds very original while doing it.
The lyrics can get stupid at times and they take the whole drinking concept a bit too far. Even making fun of the ten commandments,
[Thou shalt not waste and thou shalt not spill/ Just drink your beer – Commandments] And the night that you get so drunk you don’t remember it,
[Can this be or am I dreaming?/ What a mess!/ Woke up drunk lying on the floor/ This cannot be, my place is trashed]. The lyrics are amusing for awhile but they end up getting old especially in the song “The Morning After” which can create some awkward imagery,
[Broken bottles everywhere/ Vomit oozing down the stairs] The album does have great song on them. The first song to catch your attention is the fun titled “***-face” which is a typical fun thrash song and quite fast. The chorus type thing includes some chants saying “***ing ***-faced!” The solo is bad though and uninspired. “F.U.N.” is funny as it starts like a jazz song with a jazz beat and bass line. It is quite a fun bouncy song after the intro though with some girls saying “FUN!!!”
All the songs are fun, joke song or riff crunchers. The novelty in a lot of songs wear off and you definitely can’t listen to this for a long period of time, it gets boring after awhile so be sure that you only give this an occasional listen or you’ll get bored and turn it off. It has everything thrash has but nothing more. If you are a die-hard thrasher then buy this straight away for some fun chaos but general metal fans might be turned off by the amount of stupidity in the album. FOR THRASH FANS ONLY.
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Recommended:
***-Faced
F.U.N.
The Morning After
