I don't know why, but I can really appreciate the name "Prügel." I just like this word. Above all, it reminds me of my daily work routine within the "Ramtatta" editorial team, when the two bosses stroll through the long rows filled with work computers and mistreat the pathetic editors if they dare not to work even faster. "Prügel" is thus a recurring practice to push hopelessly underpaid writing slaves to absolute peak performance.
What can be said about the album "Musik..." will be discussed in the following section:
Although it's not my style, I'll start with the things that bother me. A change of scenery is necessary sometimes:
First of all, I have to say that I always have the suspicion that this is Skinhead rock, rather than "metal, punk, and hardcore," as described on the packaging. Many lyrics are already familiar: solidarity, drinking, cops, state, work-is-so-dumb, and local patriotism, all nicely kept in the typical "skinhead style." The lyrics are not as bad as those of other representatives of the "scene," but I still have to apply the red pen at times because the bluntness has been swung too much. This ranges from the tedious and outdated 0815 slogans to some pretty strange rhymes or sentence structures (which fortunately do not occur too often). Also rarely occurring, but still worth mentioning, is that the singing does not always manage to convince, as the collaboration with the instruments does not always work perfectly. But this point is, as mentioned before, a luxury problem that hardly stands out.
So, enough complaining. Now for the good sides: The singing almost constantly reminds me of the band "Schizo-Sturm" or the singer of the band "Hass und Gewalt," which already accounts for a decent amount of sympathy points. Those who really can't appreciate this kind of singing and are not as "pre-damaged" as I am can already deduct a few points from the band. I like this slightly brash and anti-social growling singing (which only alcoholics might find appealing), which can melodically accompany the choruses very well, although this sounds quite paradoxical on paper (or monitor). Therefore, one should rather listen to the samples to understand what is meant.
The sound is just fat and stands out SIGNIFICANTLY from other bands in this direction. The instruments are all played a bit harder, a bit dirtier, and more robustly, which makes an incredibly good impression overall. This is also the part where I find the label "hardcore" truly justified, although there are certainly one or two variations to be heard here. Especially the guitars contribute to the overall enjoyment and form the heart of "Musik..."
The lyrics are also somewhat – although they received a criticism earlier – still quite nicely done. This is more of a "rollercoaster ride through the lyrical outpourings of 'Prügel'" than a permanent descent or ascent. I particularly want to mention "Achterball," "Erfahrung," and "Hirnlos," which really stand out from the other lyrics. They may not fulfill the expectations of lyricists or particularly hard-to-impress German studies students, but they still have something like quality to show, even if the "good lyrics" are in the minority.
In the end, the Wittener offer me a nice little slice that I particularly enjoy musically. If they should strive even more in the future to construct the lyrics more profoundly and powerfully, the next album could certainly score even more points, as the rating just barely missed the 7-point mark.
But viewed as objectively as possible, the lyrics score below average compared to the singing and instruments and bring down the initial forecast of 7 points.
For my part, I am looking forward to a continuation of the Prügelknaben.
