Megaherz - "In Teufels Namen"
Warning: Strong Opinions (in German) Contained Within
Megaherz is a blend of Neue Deutsche Härte (New German Hardness; henceforth “NDH”) and Industrial Metal. NDH is a specifically-German Rock/Metal genre which also covers Rammstein, among others. Rammstein also blends their sound with Industrial Metal, which is ultimately just a blend of Metal with Industrial elements. So fans of Rammstein might find a lot to love about Megaherz.
Which could be welcome if Till Lindemann is found guilty in his pending trial.1
In Teufels Namen is an incredibly outspoken album.2 And, if the cover art isn’t enough to give it away, let me warn you, as well, that it’s also incredibly sacrilegious. “In Teufels Namen” translates to “In the Devil’s Name”. And, I mean, they don’t waste a moment - the album launches with the title track, and the first verse translates as:
I wish for a life of abundance All the warners and prophets just talk nonsense I believe in the church, its institution I pray every day, demand absolution Seducing little kids, I just look the other way Someone else will clean up, I like living in the dirt I have no values, that's why I believe in you Because you promise everything without regrets
Immediately and directly calling out the Catholic Church.
This combative tone is repeated at least twice more on the album, discussing various elements of society. “Der König der Dummen” (“The King of Idiots”) calls out right-wing conspiracy nuts directly and “Alles Arschlöcher” (“All Assholes”) calls out everybody with a shred of power or wealth. Other songs are more veiled. “Amnesie” (“Amnesia”) immediately follows “Der König der Dummen” and includes the lines:
Because only one wound closes the old one let me forget what happened
It could, potentially, be vaguely referencing willful ignorance; we can’t divorce the band’s nationality from their artistic statements, and no nation knows the harm of far-right politics better than Germany.
That could, of course, be a huge stretch, as several songs seem to lack political statement or motivation, as well. “Kannst de den Himmel Sehn?” (“Can You See the Sky?”) is similarly structured. With clouds gathering and a world in chaos, can you find hope for the future? It’s a beautiful metaphor in a beautiful ballad, easily one of the best tracks on the album. But it’s debatable how much of a statement this song is.
And then you have “Menschenhasser” (“Man Hater”; or, probably more accurately, “People Hater”) and its epilogue “Ich Hasse” (“I Hate”). These feed into the same tone set by the title track, but in a more extreme, sociopathic sort of way. I mean, we all say that we hate people, but the tone of this song makes it something you can easily see a supervillain jamming to, making it almost comical. Also, it’s incredibly repetitive. And it isn’t the only song on the album to cross that particular line.
Overall, the album is good. It doesn’t ‘wow’ me, but it isn’t bad.
Rating: Green