Fleischschirm – SchirmHerrschaft

I am pleased with Austrian-based Running Wild Productions for providing high-quality metal releases from non-English (typically German speaking) metal acts. Next in line is a death/thrash band from Vorarlberg, Austria. The band consisting of; Tankred ‘Tank’ Bergmeister (guitars), Werner ‘MetalWene’ Berchtold (vocals & drum programming) and Simon Muchitsch (bass), recently released their debut eight-tracker EP entitled, SchirmHerrschaft.

Prior to my first listening of SchirmHerrschaft I honestly expected more kind of a grindcore/deathcore sound, but after the initial first tones of the opening track, “Blutgruppe B”, I was convinced that it’s rather a nice blend of thrash & death metal, very much in the vein of mainly Swedish melo-death acts of the 90s. Sound is overall good, as this song provides a best first impression of Fleischschirm’s music, that is filled with darkness, fury, aggressive drive, and a decent take on the vocals. Next comes, “Schafott” which is, like most of the tracks on this EP, another mid-range song, where they go straight to the point. Before you now think that it lacks some variation, the trio turns over to a bit harsher, more grim, and overall leaning towards black metal on “Dein Untergang”. This is a very well-written and coherent track, which makes it my favorite alongside the opening, “Blutgruppe B”. Next one is called, “Königreich Der Qualen” (I hope the guys from Fleischschirm’s will forgive me if wrong!?), where I can hear references to Slayer, esp. in vocal department. Nevertheless, another bombastic and speedy thrash metal sonic assault that will please all fans of the aforementioned band. Speaking of varied nature of this EP, here comes the best proof, as “Kaifeck” has much more groove, heavy bass work, and otherwise modern sound. “Blutige Erde” features some wide-range, dark, grumbling roars and thrashy & scratchy shouting, covering both genres of thrash and death metal. There’s even a genuine ballad on this mini album, its called “LeidenSchaft” where they slow down and go for a more melodic approach, another nice and unexpected turn. “Nukular” ends this 25-minutes long EP on a high note, with this sharp, aggressive and fast thrash metal assault.

The entire lyrical content is obviously in German, but I could easily (a little knowledge of German does help though!) enjoy listening to their music with no distractions, as the music speaks for itself. Production of SchirmHerrschaft is brutally fat, perfectly clear, yet far from too polished. All lyrics are printed inside the booklet, and I like the artwork for SchirmHerrschaft, even though not completely confident if it’s representative of the band’s sound.

To sum up; I must admit that all these different sounds and influences would be too much to handle on their debut EP, but this trio from Austria convinced me. With melodic riffs, variable vocals and nasty lyrics, these guys from Western Austria know how to convince on their debut EP. Not to expect any major musical innovation or groundbreaking sound from FleischSchirm, but if you like a great mix of well produced death and thrash, you should treat yourself to a bite from the Fleischschirm as soon as possible.

More info on the mini-album SchirmHerrschaft at https://runningwildproductions.bandcamp.com/album/schirmherrschaft