I first came into contact with the band from Graz when they released their third album titled "I can’t relax in Hinterland" in 2017 and toured with bands like Terrorgruppe and Dritte Wahl. I was surprised to find that the band from Austria played German-speaking punk rock. Now, I don’t know much about the punk scene in Austria, but I would say that Missstand has been and still is the biggest German-speaking punk rock export in recent years.
After the release of "I can’t relax in Hinterland" and the subsequent live performances, things went quiet for the band. I didn’t even know if the band still existed when I learned that, after lineup changes, they were back with a new album, and I was curious.
The thirteen songs included on the album "Bon Apathie" mostly make a strong impression lyrically. The themes are also diverse, which is refreshing because you can tell that the band thinks deeply about what is happening in the world. Unfortunately, it is also the case that there are not fewer but more grievances.
Among other things, the album addresses police violence ("Kommando 13. Dezember"), lethargy and self-imposed hopelessness ("Heute Alles"), the deeply rooted and often felt structural and taken-for-granted racism ("P-34A"), or one’s own comfort, which could also be described as one’s own comfort bubble ("Wasser, Wein und Ich"). In addition to these themes, it is also discussed that we white people live in a relatively nice land of milk and honey. Where is the solidarity with those who are not white and who experience structural racism more or less every day? Everyone needs to take a good look at themselves.
Engaging with one’s own actions is exactly what hurts and leads to a long, very long process of change. Questioning one’s own life is not something one enjoys doing. Self-reflection is painful.
Musically, the band has largely remained true to their style. Fast, melodic punk rock, both demanding and catchy at the same time. Personally, they remind me a bit too much of Alarmsignal. It almost seems as if the band has very well copied the style of the band from Celle. That’s certainly not a bad reference, but it’s also not something entirely original, something completely new.
On the other hand, does everything always have to be innovative and new?
Perfecting what is tried and tested is also not a bad option.
The recording, which was mastered by the experienced Andi Jung in Berlin, is exceptionally powerful yet nuanced. The mistake was also not made of bringing the music too loud or too far forward in a genre where the lyrics are important. So there’s really not much to complain about here, except, in my opinion, the very close stylistic proximity to Alarmsignal.
