Gute Musik für die Dunkelheit

DYING VICTIMS PRODUCTIONS is proud to present HEXENBRETT’s highly anticipated second album, Dritte Beschwörung: Dem Teufel eine Tochter, on CD and vinyl LP formats.

It was but May of the cursed year of 2020 when HEXENBRETT truly came into their own with their shockingly masterful debut album, Zweite Beschwörung: Ein Kind zu töten, courtesy of DYING VICTIMS. While the enigmatic duo of Josto Feratu and Scarlettina Bolétte had definitely turned heads with the Erste Beschwörung demo in 2019, their debut album’s idiosyncratic kaleidoscope of Varathron, Jean Rollin, Danzig, Goblin, and Van Halen emerged as completely unique and unlike little else around.

Predictably unpredictable, HEXENBRETT returned the following year with Intermezzo dei quattro coltelli nudi, a crazed ‘n’ crazy EP that was the result of canceled concerts and tours. As suggested by its title, the record was no “beschwörung” but, rather, an intermezzo: for the first time in the then-brief history of HEXENBRETT, this EP did not feature performances by the duo but, instead, the live line-up for 2020 – of course, under the watchful eyes and ears of the clandestine couple. A split EP with fellow Austrian eccentrics Hagzissa followed in 2022, with the duo returning to recorded format.

Josto and Scarlettina continued to refuse playing live but managed to recruit musicians to perform their music on live stages. Their recruits recently finished the IN CONCERTZIONE 2024 European club tour with labelmates DEATHSTORM. During that time, Josto and Scarlettina laid the finishing touches on what would become HEXENBRETT’s second album.

Now, at long last, comes that second full-length to eclipse all that came before. Titled Dritte Beschwörung: Dem Teufel eine Tochter, HEXENBRETT’s second album is a devilish and drama-filled rollercoaster ride through cult metal and cult cinema alike. Arguably more so than their previous recordings, Dritte Beschwörung: Dem Teufel eine Tochter truly encapsulates their demi-tag of “The Sound of the Bloody Iris,” for a wide panoply of sounds and sensations swarm the listener, wrapping them in a wild and bewildering but above all kaleidoscopic headspace that easily avoids simple categorization.

While other bands are usually influenced by heavyweights of heavy metal music like Judas Priest or Bathory, HEXENBRETT take their main inspiration from Euro cult cinema and soundtracks; some of the most important names are Sergio Martino, Jess Franco, Jean Rollin, Bruno Nicolai, and Alessandro Alessandroni. One will readily hear that influence here in the prominent usage of vintage synths as well as chimes – the latter both beautiful and ominous – as readily as one will hear guitar leads that are alternately haunting / heroic. But the salient point is that Dritte Beschwörung: Dem Teufel eine Tochter moves in a most filmic fashion – metallic, sure, but this is far, FAR from your Normal Metal Music.

As such, Dritte Beschwörung: Dem Teufel eine Tochter is an amalgamation of love and hate, and represents the duality of birth and death. Its purpose is to enable listeners to escape; it strangles and stabs the status quo of normality. Normality is surrender – escape with HEXENBRETT!

LINE-UP:
Josto Feratu – Everything
Scarlettina Bolétt – Everything

ARTWORK:
Solo Macello

REVIEW

“Um Mitternacht” begins with a brief sample taken from, what I think is an Italian movie, before a dirty as hell riff rips itself to the forefront. The accompanying melodic leads contrast that abrasiveness in such a way that it almost circles back around to being gorgeous. The vox are a cacophony in the all of the best ways, harsh and gruff but there’s still an amount of harmony and emotion carrying them. Best as my ear can tell, they are not in English. While the obvious black metal side of things is prevalent, I felt that the underlying trad metal sound was present enough to keep the song grounded and gave it almost VENOM-like feel.

“Dem Teufel eine Tochter” had a much more black metal adjacent riff to start off, complete with ravenous blast beats, and some wonderfully placed synths. The combination of the more extreme riffs with the synths made me recall CHILDREN OF BODOM. The bits of isolated vocals throughout the track were a stunning way to break up the onslaught. I was really feeling this one at around the halfway mark, bobbing my head to the beat and imagining a quaint little sacrifice in the woods. Loved this one a ton, even more than the first.

“Marisa” had a much more MERCYFUL FATE inspired riff to kick it off, and I was half-expecting King Diamond himself to shriek his way into the track. There’s a certain completeness that I was feeling by this point, that really impressed me for a two-person project. I can best compare this one to MERCYFUL FATE’s “Gypsy”, in that it’s an awesome track that unfortunately doesn’t stick around for quite as long as I’d like it to.

“Imhotep” had another riff that sent me to the First Wave of Black Metal (aka, the best wave of black metal). A bass heavy introduction with some mostly clean vocal work made it stand apart from the others almost instantly. By about the midpoint, this one began to remind me less of black metal and more of hardcore punk. Scarlettina’s repetition of ‘Imhotep’ in the background was icing on the cake for this one. Really into this one as well! HEXENBRETT has me hooked as of song four, which means that I would at least continue listening to the end. Remember kids, never give up on a band after 1 or 2 songs!

“Wozu die Angst?” was only a bit over 2 and a half minutes long, and for some reason reminded me of surf rock, mixed with a bit of punk. Damn, the bass is going insane in this one. Nothing too flashy, mind you, just amazing tuning and volume. I again found myself enamored by the vocal melody and cadence, as my transition into bonafide black metal dude continues.

“La plese de la nuit” was, in contrast to the previous track, the longest on the album at nearly 7 and a half minutes. As well as being curiously titled in French, and being an instrumental. Lengthy instrumentals can always be a gamble with me, but I did find myself digging the smooth bass in the beginning stages. There was a melodic ambiance here that was something I wasn’t accustomed to with this style of metal, and it was something that I found myself appreciating. Despite the length, this one flew by and was chock full of great riffs and more fantastic synth.

“Leder im Nachtverkher” reminded me a bit of early METALLICA or SLAYER, particularly the latter, in the beginning of the track. Ooh, there was more tasty bass in this one, and I realize that I haven’t shouted out the drums yet. The drumming is certainly on point as well, though I found that it can get a bit lost amidst the barrage of metal being thrown one’s way (though this could be more of a me issue as someone who is only just getting into the more extreme side of things). Kudos to the epic solo to bookend the track, and the evil laugh. Take note, evil laughs are always a bonus point from me.

“Denn der Tod lächelt nicht” again had some delicious bass to start it off, coupled with a riff that was impossible to not headbang to. I appreciated the brief interspersed bits of quiet spoken sections, even if I couldn’t quite make out what was being said, they added character to the track. As did the marvelous picking frenzy near the 3 minute mark. I also can not get enough of the brief riff at 4:53, perfection.

“Sette gocce rosse su velluto verde” again changes the language of the title, this time into Italian. Opening like some sort of demented nursery rhyme, which is really most nursery rhymes when you think about it. The eerie melancholy communicated through the music box-like opening gave the track a heinously evil air about it. The nature of the Italian in this track reminded me a bit of nu-metal rap verses (GASP!), and I don’t think that was a bad thing. Metal is a spectrum of sounds and genres, and it’s important to look to all avenues for inspiration and enjoyment.

CONCLUSION

I have to admit, I never know quite what to expect when I go into blackened metal and it’s various forms, but I have found that I tend to like things where black metal isn’t the only genre present. Blackened speed metal is a personal favorite of mine, for starters. HEXENBRETT is no different, the musicality and variety present is enough to please fans of the more traditional side of things. The references and touches to horror movie soundtracks and score, especially giallo films (Italian splatter movies) were abound. All told, HEXENBRETT’s sophomore release was a great trip to the more extreme side of metaldom.

TheNWOTHM Score: 8.5/10

HEXENBRETT‘s Dritte Beschw​ö​rung: Dem Teufel eine Tochter releases on 20 December, 2024

LINKS
Bandcamp