Vinyl Review: "Lebe Dich Leer" by Bethlehem

Lebe Dich Leer

It's a tired story, but a true one.

An anonymous twitter user once stated that the best thing about metal is that no matter how well versed you are, no matter how long you've been in the scene, and no matter how many albums, records, CDs, or tapes you have...

You'll always feel like a newbie.

Well, here stands before you today, someone feeling like an ignorant chud who just bought his first Metallica tape last week.

Me.

Why? Because in my lap has fallen the latest release from this legendary band, but they're a complete unknown to me.

Had I known they existed and that I didn't know about them and knew that I was wholly ignorant, that would've been something.

Alas, not the case.

Bethlehem

They were founded back in 1991 and released their debut, Dark Metal in 1994.

There were some little lineup changes here and there, followed by a series of LPs, EPs, etc.

They never really went away, but never pounded us with material.

This is one of the rare cases when I didn't request this album and previewed nothing. Most times I know what the band is about and that I'm going to love what they do.

But here we are, blind.

Wiki says they're black metal, but they say they're dark metal. Let's define dark metal first I suppose. (Narrator: He could not in fact define dark metal.)

This record is has some strong black metal leanings, but it's not black metal. The biggest defector from the classic sound is the vocals.

That's what took me by surprise.

They are somewhere between abject screams of horror, black metal growls, and the stereotypes of metal as seen on sitcoms.

Even with a-melodic vocal stylings, they have to sound right. In this case, they didn't sound right. They were harsh, atonal, and went against the grain of the music. Instead of blending into the thunderous rhythms, they stuck out.

It took time, but as this record spun on, the power of those screams began to enlarge. Vocalist, Yvonne Wilczynska, started to grow on me. So, in the end, her vocals are right.

In order to benefit the song, mood, and feel, they had to hurt and they did.

Once that was taken into the right compartment for me, the rest of the band's efforts began sticking out rather than just the singing. The drums are perfection. Double bass when needed, staying in the pocket when not.

The guitars are just what the doctor ordered for this album. Just, don't go looking for Steve Vai level soloing, or even Euronymous level ability.

What you're going to get is some great riffage and tasty accents only to service the song.

During the progression, the full picture becomes clearer and clearer. This is a band that's greater than the sum of its parts.

This LP holds the most perfectly (or barely?) controlled chaos that extreme metal has to offer.

It's all going to take you into a crescendo of what I assume to be blasphemous ecstasy....as the lyrics aren't in any of the three languages I speak, it's hard to say for certain.

The 180g record, featuring ZERO surface noise and perfectly flat spinning motion, comes housed in a gatefold cover with a perfectly evil cover.

Check it out.

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