Atmospheric black metal with a psychological and even psychedelic touch is what’s being offered here. The duo behind are responsible for other black metal projects including Vargsblod and Goat Sabbath, but why there was a need to create another one in Calcarata will have to remain a mystery.
The framework of the opening track “Calcarata” is interesting. The guitar line has a strong post metal air about it. The vocals, which reminded me of Rammstein vocalist Till Lindemann, have a folksy element. My German isn’t what it used to be or I’d have got more out of the lyrics. The musical side of it only partially addresses this. The post metal element is followed by a quieter section and then a piercing roar amid the melancholy. The flat-sounding folksy vocals complement shrieking growls which could wake the dead. The tempo increases and the tension is palpable. It’s all interesting but there was just too much going on for it to break into my consciousness. “Morgenrot im Totental” (Morning Dawn in the Valley of the Dead) develops the atmosphere with a defiant riff and those shrieked guttural vocals which add a chilling air. The harshness gives way to a haunted acoustic section. The mists and the ferocity level rise. Yes, it’s atmospheric but I’m missing something here. It all seems aimless. Cranking up the power while the vocalist shrieks himself hoarse wasn’t inspiring me.
“Heilung” starts out in epic mode before once again toning down reflectively and exploding and returning to a yet more expansive atmosphere, with the added fury of the raucous vocalist. In spite of all this energy and vastness, we’re 9 minutes in and nothing seems to have developed. An expressive instrumental section sends us into a long, flamboyant solo and a final acoustic closeout. The final slab is the title track “Der müde Mensch” (The Tired Man). The pattern is the same: furious delivery, gruff vocals and a melancholic, imperious progression which promised to take us somewhere but deviates into a navel-gazing acoustic section asking how a human being can be so tired and be yearning after darkness and other similar reflections. The passage which follows has pomp, sadness and majesty and provokes a final burst from the growling section.
I didn’t really know what Calcarata were trying to achieve here. I think there were some potentially good ideas and amongst other things those raucous vocals could be really powerful in the right setting but however strong the atmosphere is, there didn’t seem to be any direction to all this. For me, “Der müde Mensch” was shapeless. Structurally it seemed to consist of a series of passages and statements which musically didn’t make up a unified whole. I’m guessing the intention was that I should have been swept along by it but I remained indifferent and this didn’t happen.
(5/10 Andrew Doherty)
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