Valborg
Endstrand

44 minutes of blind fury for a full-scale sonic assault: this is "Endstrand," the sixth studio album by Valborg. The German trio, formed in Bonn in 2002, decisively distances itself from the progressive and gothic tones of the previous "Romantik" to strip its industrial metal to the bone, alongside the already present doom, death, and black shades with a strong punk attitude. Everything revolves around an unyielding wall of raw and rough sounds; the synthesizers have completely disappeared, leaving free rein to the primitive and hammering work of guitar, bass, and drums.

The thirteen tracks of "Endstrand" follow one after the other without pause; a real lava flow of sharp distortions and wild screams that never gives the listener a break. The impression is that Valborg's goal is precisely this: to strip the genre of any frills and focus entirely on sheer impact force, giving life to heavy and obsessive music that elevates anger and primal instinct to cathartic experiences.

The intentions are clear right from the first seconds of the opener, "Jagen": a piercing feedback quickly gives way to complete chaos punctuated by a drum that pounds like a factory machine. No room for solos or melodies; the lyrics (all in German) are often limited to one or two words shouted into the microphone, as in the satanic anthem "Orbitalwaffe" or the equally infernal "Beerdigungsmaschine" ("Funeral Machine" in Italian). The very few less harsh moments (the pseudo-new wave of "Bunkerluft," the clean arpeggio on the verses of "Geisterwürde") are swept away by the punk blasts of "Blut am Eisen" and "Exodus," while slightly more elaborate pieces like the industrial "Stossfront" and "Plasmabrand" counterpose the genuine roughness of "Alter" and the edgy blasphemy of "Ave Maria."

Between Killing Joke and Celtic Frost (with a pinch of hardcore), "Endstrand" represents a substantial step forward in Valborg's career: the bold choice to "strip down" their musical offering and immerse it in a vat of scorching molten metal has proven absolutely successful. The adoption of a more immediate and minimal approach compared to the "Romantik" experience rewards the talent of the German trio, still little known but ready to take off. An excellent album that I dare to recommend to all those who, from time to time, don't mind having their eardrums sanded old-school style.