Das Scheit - Superbitch
Black Lotus Records
Gothic Industrial Modern Metal
12 songs (46'50")
Release year: 2005
Black Lotus
Reviewed by Alex

I have to preface this review with a statement. I do not like Rammstein. Never did and doubt I ever will. Call me old-fashioned and close-minded, but I find their music artificial, completely devoid of passion and emotion, created exclusively for show and high shock value visual presentation.

I had a fair warning with Das Scheit, but reached for it in the promo pile anyway. A German band with a German word for the moniker, bandmembers with grotesquely painted faces, the absence of a real drummer and one dude looking eerily similar to Marilyn Manson (here is another band I can’t stand). This had gothic-industrial-modern metal written all over it, and Superbitch certainly is all that.

It could very well be that Das Scheit is one of the best bands in their genre, just as the promo sheet says, I wouldn’t know. The album definitely contains a number of songs that have all those elements which turned me away from this direction of modern heavy music in the first place. 7 Seconds, About U, Hardbody epitomize industrial metal with their mechanical lifeless rhythms, whole bunch of electronic effects, distorted guitar chugs and vocals processed in multitude of ways. With so much electronics it is very hard to say where the man ends and machine begins, so no comment can be made on the musicianship. Shoot Song goes one further and puts on a tough getto-like act with lyrics mentioning “shoot, kill, whore, fucker”. More of a manifest than a song, if you ask me. Whenever this style of music professes anger, it does feel even more forced and unnatural.

I much prefer Das Scheit being all gothic, soapy and somewhat romantic. They pull off a decent wall of sound Finnish gothic rock style on Coming Up Roses and chorus on Much Deeper has got some distinct memorable hooks. Keyboard melodies can be dark and rich, enveloping the listener (Earth Stands Still). Ten songs into the album mostly up- or mid-tempo Das Scheit decided to decelerate completely and finish the proceedings with three slow tracks. Brooding, with spacey keyboards the band takes us first on Long Walk, then Lonely Walk (can you imagine song titles back to back like this??!!) with Until I’ve Been Forgotten calling it a day. A better song sequence would actually help to break the monotony in the middle of the album.

Clint’s vocals have as many shades to them as chameleon trying to mask himself on the rainbow. His real voice, which is quite pleasant on the ears actually, gets lost in the myriad of effects, from crackled voicebox (7 Seconds) to alien words (Earth Stands Still) to hardcore screams (Shoot Song). Guitars mostly chug along with few melody and solo lines along the way (Catpiss, Coming Up Roses).

Das Scheit smartly keep their songs short and punchy, rarely going much over 3 min, and they come up with some melodies people would definitely enjoy, whether they are into goth subculture or not. To me this band, along with Rammstein, is still a representative of Euro heavied pop rather than metal, and I am not trying to be harsh. I am sure this style has a dedicated following and those fans will find Superbitch quite up their alley.

Killing Songs :
Coming Up Roses, Much Deeper, Earth Stands Still
Alex quoted 53 / 100
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There are 2 replies to this review. Last one on Thu Apr 14, 2005 10:56 pm
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