CoC : Wolfnacht - Night of the Werewolf : Review

Wolfnacht - _Night of the Werewolf_
(Independent, 2002)
by: Alvin Wee (5 out of 10)

Indicative of the downward spiral the NSBM scene has taken in the past year or so, _Night of the Werewolf_ awkwardly straddles the realms of stock NS-rock and semi-melodic black metal, failing to execute either style with convincing verve or vigor. The title track starts off promisingly enough with a catchy, hum-along riff worthy of any Honor album, but soon begins to wear thin as the lack of inventiveness in song-writing shines through. Things take an abrupt black metal turn with "Black Bubonic Plague", but sadly any vague hope of consistency vanishes with the next track "Aufstand", a dreadful foray into pure banal NS-rock with lamentable black metal vocals. The cover of Halgadom's "Wotan's Kreiger" presents an even grimmer picture of Wolfnacht's failings, sounding thin, uninspired and vocally abysmal (the horrid production on this track not helping in the least). Things begin to look up somewhat towards the end, with the epic black metal "Wehrwolfsschantre" and the barely adequate cover of Absurd's "Eternal Winter" scarcely managing to salvage the dismal proceedings in the dying minutes of the disc. Despite having three "bonus tracks", the entire album clocks in at a mere 30 minutes, half of which is practically unlistenable. Last I heard, the respected Battlefield Records was slated to release this disc, but the inlay suggests an independent release by the band itself.

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(article published 16/3/2003)