21st June 2023

Review: “Zwielicht” by Mental Cruelty

“Let us embrace a new era of darkness by bringing the “black” into blackened heavy music. Join us on the way down to infernal gates of hell to be rebirthed back to life. The album will contain the most mind-bending variety of different heavy musical influences and sounds. Epic symphonic orchestras accompanied by slam breakdowns; this will have it all. Inspired from metaphors written by nature, death, and inner demons. We can’t put into words the level of excitement we feel by announcing this album to you. We hope you feel the same way! Thank you for being with us…” ~ Mental Cruelty

Having woven a rich bloodstained tapestry that brings together elements of both Black and Death Metal into their largely Deathcore based sound, German Extreme Metal standard-bearers Mental Cruelty have jumped ship from Unique Leader Records to Century Media for album number four. A new era begins with new vocalist Lukas Nicolai as they look to build upon the foundation of 2021’s “A Hill To Die Upon” with “Zwielicht” (translated in English as “Twilight”) and they have once again returned to producer and mixer Josh Schroeder (Lorna Shore, The Browning) to ensure that things are done as we have come to expect. Having formed in 2014, there is not a single original member left in the group, guitarist Marvin Kessler being the longest serving of those who are currently in the fold having joined in 2015, bassist Viktor Dick having joined a year later. Guitarist Nahuel Lozano and drummer Danny Straßer joined in 2020 meaning that the new album is essentially the second of the instrument playing part of the group…

…Arguably the hardest cog in the machine to replace, the vocalist is often no only the mouth piece but also the lyricist and in Lucca Schmerler Mental Cruelty had someone who considered a hero to many. However the show must go on and while he is a the toughest of tough acts to follow, with the new material at least the band seem to have got that decision right in choosing Lukas Nicolai of Sun Eater fame. Cinematic instrumental introduction piece “Midtvinter” builds an atmosphere of Gods and Monsters glaring at each other as they prepare for an apocalyptic war to end all wars before the soundscape explodes into “Obsessis A Daemonio“. An Extreme Metal odyssey the combines rich dark melodies from the guitar work with savage Slam influenced vocals, the presence of a huge and brutal mid track breakdown serves as the reminder that the band have Deathcore roots in style. A clean-ish vocal moment is fleeting but gives even more indication of just how far Nicolai’s range goes, the cut taking a leaf out of the Lorna Shore style Symphonic Deathcore book and delivering the message in style.

“Forgotten Kings” then batters the living daylights out of the soul and Nicolai switches between a shriller unclean and a deeper, more gravelly low, the difference between the two voices giving the impression that two vocalist rather than one at the helm. The cinematic elements give the soundscape a sense of epic majesty, the haunting leads reminiscent of the work of Scott Carstairs of Fallujah fame while Straßer’s jackhammer footwork and Black Metal orientated fills are a lethal dose of German hatred. This one also has a pure Deathcore section, a staccato riff break infested passage accompanied by Slam vocals that thins the herd with consummate ease, such is the level of intensity in the fire and brimstone. An attack on the senses from all sides with an artillery shelling bomb-blast of percussive battery “Pest” manages to combine the ugly with dark beauty from orchestration seamlessly to create an alchemy which is incredibly well balanced. To have the vision to create this monstrous masterwork is one thing but to have the musicianship to carry it off is another. The complex acoustic patterns of the introduction to “Nordlys” demonstrate that perfectly before leading the discerning listener off down Alice’s rabbit hole into a turbulently violent World of fantasy and flamboyant virtuoso guitars, soaked in Black Metal influences. At no point is anything done for the sake of it, each moment is well thought out and cleverly executed, the result being nothing short of jaw dropping.

The second half of the album begins with “Mortal Shells“, the perfect blend of light and shade that is delicately balanced on a knife edge before delving into the bands rich past to pull out yet another Slam inspired mid cut passage that is a bloody and vicious contrast to that which preceded it and follows it. The transitions into and out of those extreme and violent parts are as impressive as the music that surrounds them, the solo that follows this one being something really special. If you thought the band had lost what it takes to deliver a downtempo finale, then guess again because this closes with the kind of skull crushing that reduces venues to rubble…

…From one extreme to another the Nordic Folk of the 93 seconds of the album title track may leave you feeling like you’ve been zapped into another realm of existence, let alone another bands work. Not that there is anything wrong with the vocal harmony in traditional style, just that it is so far adrift of anything else here, it leaves you wondering why it was included. That bleeds into folk leaning moments in the first half of the return to brutality that is “Symphony Of A Dying Star“, although the clean and unclean vocal intertwinements and Progressive Death Metal guitars in the final moments that sound like Nekrogoblikon playing an Obscura cover is experimental to say the least. Those two cuts combined are the six minutes of the record that don’t really cut it and that’s partly due to the insane level of quality on first half of the record. Fortunately “The Arrogance Of Agony” returns to the style of the earlier offerings with the injection of a haunting atmospheric offering something else. Nicolai sounds like self immolation is impending as he roars restlessly and relentlessly, while the deep rooted sense of melancholia threatens to drag anyone who listens down into the black depths. The longest cut on the album is the grand finale of “A Tale Of Salt And Light“, a seven and a half epic masterpiece that encapsulates the album in a single captivating and compelling offering… [8/10]

Track Listing