Minenfeld‘s tour of death metal duty started in 2017. The explosive German quartet’s war-themed anti-life anthems are heavy and severe. It’s the sonic equivalent of splashing through a bloody and muddy trench. On the band’s upcoming Night Raid EP they offer two tracks of rumbling, riotous death metal and battle crust. The EP is scheduled for launch this Friday from killer label Lycanthropic Chants. Decibel Magazine is honored to share these tracks before they venture into combat on November 12th.
After some ironically cheerful intro music, the title track is a full-out riff barrage. The song’s churning, mid-paced first half recalls Hail of Bullets and later-era Bolt Thrower with a scuzzy edge. Once the song charges into war the energy remains rabid until the final shot fires. The second track “The Sea of Madness” begins with the buzz of flies and distant tortured cries. From that ambient unpleasantness, Minenfeld’s tempo speeds into a blast of shrapnel. Harsh bellows reverberate as riffs crush skulls like tank tread. The song’s doomy denouement adds an atmosphere of bleakness to the death metal bloodshed. The song feels like searching a smoky battlefield for survivors, and finding none. That emotional response is absolutely intentional.
“Night Raid is a tale of futility, of hopelessness and despair—and our first cohesive record to date,” Minenfeld shares. “Two grim and pounding tracks present the story of a soldier who escapes death, only to become one with soil and corpses. There is no beginning, there is no end; the graves of today will be the battlegrounds of tomorrow.”
Strap on your battle helmet and listen to this blast of rotten death metal below. Pre-order one of the limited copies from Lycanthropic Chants.