After reviewing a slew of bigger releases and personal favorites in recent months, it’s nice to reconnect with the underground and plunge into the dank, mysterious corners of the promo sump. In doing so I stumbled across Germany’s Kadaverficker and their fifth full-length album, Superkiller (A Musical Journey Between Life and Death). Kicking around the traps since forming in 1993, Kadaverficker released a hefty collection of demos, splits, compilations, and various other shorter-form releases, eventually dipping into full-length territory on 2012’s Exploitation Nekronation. What can you expect on an LP that leaves nothing left in the tank across a whopping 71-minute runtime? Well, my friends, expect the unexpected from this eclectic crew.
Loosely labeled death metal, Kadaverficker boast a shifting sound not easily pinned down to a specific genre label. There is a shit ton of material and strangeness to absorb across the ambitiously long Superkiller (A Musical Journey Between Life and Death). Opener “Counterfeit” fires an early trick shot to expectations, riding an electronic wave of pulsing synths, as retro goth rock vibes and melodramatic clean vocals set in. Ill-advised harsher vocals also appear and the dreary cleans get stuck in a repetitive loop. It’s a strange and not particularly good song. Immediate follow-up “The Last Mask” marks another curious gear shift. Here the goth rock elements reappear but the template is flipped, ranging from a blackened, punky bounce, to deathly gallops, and odd vocal choices, forming a weird, clunky trip. Kadaverficker’s all-bar-the-kitchen-sink approach to songwriting veers haphazardly, encompassing elements of death, black, punk, goth, melodeath, hard rock, and folk. Humor and silliness abound, Kadaverficker is a band that does not take themselves too seriously.
The thicker riffage and Goreminister’s varied, mixed-bag vocals and muffled death grunts lend a hefty, deathlier edge on “Unethical Machines,” offset by Kadaverficker’s punk-fueled anthemic assault. Throw in weird, off-putting blackened howls and folk metal vocal hooks and you have a recipe for a strange, ultimately messy ride. For all the choppy and confused writing on offer, there are moments of fun to be had. The thrashy, blackened death rock of “Hot for Dead Planet” features nice riffing and a catchy, punk streak, evoking Tribulation vibes. Elsewhere, the grooving pulse, solid leads, and bouncy melodicism of “Hail the Promiscuous Dead” is a decently engaging tune, while the blackened bluster of “Waves of Demise” channels Mantar to solid effect. Other solid, if largely unmemorable songs crop up, but genuinely engaging material is few and far between. Furthermore, there are occasional riffs, hooks and melodies to pique interest scattered across the exorbitant runtime, but impact is fleeting. Cherry-picking the more fleshed, aggressively hooky nuggets into a drastically shortened release may have salvaged something from the album’s bloated belly.
Kadaverficker’s quirky, ambitious nature and competent musicianship stands out, but in the context of coherent, engaging songwriting, Superkiller (A Musical Journey Between Life and Death) falls well short. The scattershot songwriting lacks focus, the stylistic switch-ups and genre-blending not executed well or consistently enough to overcome its shortcomings, exhausting length, and awkward missteps. Adding to the issues is the all-over-the-shop vocal delivery that is consistently inconsistent and hit or mess in effectiveness. Meanwhile even the most highly skilled songwriters in the biz struggle to write consistent albums of this length, so considering the frequently uneven songwriting exhibited across the 21 songs, coupled with a loud mastering job, it becomes a chore to plow through from start to finish. Despite the diversity, repetition also rears its head, with the bouncier, melodic grooves often bleeding together.
The gruff, bluesy crunch of penultimate tune “Krom” presents a solid example of the band’s groovy, riff-based swagger. Winding up with an ill-advised rendition of the Talking Heads classic “Psycho Killer’ is a silly and probably fitting way to conclude a madcap ride. Superkiller (A Musical Journey Between Life and Death) wins points for its unabashed genre-smashing ambition. It’s bonkers and unpredictable, but sadly, not often in a good way, despite the fun, party vibes and occasionally hooky riff or vocal refrain. A ruthless editing job, and refinement of their songwriting to harness the more successful material would serve these German wildcards well. For now, Kadaverficker’s wacky, experimental opus is a bold curiosity, that ends up crushed under the weight of its creatively ambitious misfires.
Rating: 1.5/5.0
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Massacre Records
Websites: facebook.com/Kadaverficker | kadaverficker.bandcamp.com
Releases Worldwide: September 29th, 2023
