Mandatory
| Mandatory | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Genre (s) | Death metal |
| founding | 2001 |
| Website | www.mandatory-death.de |
| Founding members | |
Guitar, bass |
Sascha Beselt |
Vocals, drums |
Stefan "Stinne" stone house |
| Current occupation | |
Lead and rhythm guitar, acoustic guitar, synthesizer |
Sascha Beselt |
Vocals, drums |
Stefan "Stinne" stone house |
guitar |
Steffen R. (since 2004) |
bass |
Adrian Kostrzewski (since 2004) |
Mandatory is a German death metal band from Euskirchen in North Rhine-Westphalia . The band was founded in 2001 and has been under contract with the Spanish record company Xtreem Music since 2009 after several self-press releases and underground labels . The band's style is largely based on the Scandinavian death metal scene of the early 1990s.
history
The band was founded in summer 2001 by Sascha Beselt (guitar / bass / synthesizer) and Stefan "Stinne" Steinhaus (drums / vocals). Music and text come exclusively from the two founding members.
The first MCD Divine Destruction led to a positive echo in print and online magazines of the metal scene in 2003. Particular mention was made of the stylistic orientation of the material, which was clearly based on the Swedish death metal scene of the early 1990s. The track Exelution was placed on the eighth edition of the metal sampler Deathophobia the following year .
Also in 2004, the two musicians Steffen R. and Adrian Kostrzeski joined them on rhythm guitar and bass. With this band line-up, the second MCD Curse of the Undead was recorded in 2005 , which led to a contract with the Australian music label Asphyxiate Recordings. The record company finally released the third CD in 2007, parallel to the band's own pressing … Where They Bleed . Both works again led to mostly good to very good responses. In particular ... Where They Bleed helped the band gain recognition in the international underground. A split CD entitled Altar of the Old Skulls , which, in addition to pieces by the bands Deathevokation and Kingdom, contained the material of the complete Curse Of The Undead -MCD, was released in 2007 on the record companies Time Before Time Records and Obliteration Records.
Particularly stimulated by the last MCD, the Japanese label Obliteration Records approached the band and released the compilation Exiled In Pain in January 2008 , which combined all previous releases as well as other previously unreleased pieces with 20 tracks. This album, too, received positive reviews.
In 2009 the band signed a contract with the Spanish underground label Xtreem Music for at least two full albums. In July 2010, Mandatory released the first of these two albums, Adrift Beyond . The international trade press largely agreed that the band had achieved a remarkable work with the almost one-hour album. For those familiar with the scene, it was surprising that the album was mixed in the Swedish Sunlight Studio under the care of death metal producer legend Tomas Skogsberg , whose productions in the 1990s significantly influenced the sound and development of Swedish death metal and thus the careers of well-known bands such as Entombed , Dismember , Grave or Evocation and in this context may be considered a scene icon. In addition to once again good to sometimes euphoric reviews in the Death Metal underground, the major German music magazine Rock Hard also gave the new album a positive rating .
A compilation of older material under the title In Torment was finally released in December 2010 on the American label Dark Descent Records . It includes the two MCDs Curse of the Undead and … Where They Bleed . A vinyl edition of the same release is planned.
In December 2010, the band announced that they would be releasing their second studio album in spring to summer 2011. The album was finally released under the name Ripped from the Tomb in May 2012. It contains old, previously unreleased, newly recorded songs from 2003. Reasons for the delay were not given. The band is currently working on their third studio album.
style
music
The style of the band mainly combines elements of the death metal school of Scandinavia - especially Sweden. Typical for the music of Mandatory are the style-defining guitar sound of the Swedish bands, as it emerged around central Stockholm in the early 1990s. At the core of this sound aesthetic are tube amplifiers and various guitar distortion models, such as those from the manufacturer BOSS (models HM-3 and MT-2 ). Since … Where They Bleed (2007) the acoustic guitar has become another characteristic of Mandatory music. In particular, the album Adrift Beyond (2010) shows increased use of this stylistic device, which is reflected above all in the two completely instrumental pieces Cursed Astray and Passing… . Since ... Where They Bleed " the way in which the band plays is characteristic of numerous polyphonic melody and harmony passages with the guitar. This becomes particularly clear in compositions such as the eponymous ... Where They Bleed as well as Silent Dementia , A Hallowed Sacrifice or Silenced .
Since Curse of the Undead (2005), the band has also been using synthesizers with preference. Examples of this are various album and song intros as well as songs such as Into Eternal Sleep , Silenced or Nevermore .
The singing is consistently based on the stylistic traditions of Death Metal such as the guttural use of the voice. Bands like Morgoth , Asphyx or Possessed can be regarded as significant influences .
Texts
The band's lyrics are diverse. These include those with typical Death Metal content such as murder, destruction and horror themes, as articulated on the first two MCDs in songs such as Dawn of Destruction , Eyes of Apathy , Rest in Pieces or Flesh Possessed , as well as texts on topics psychology (visions of death, fear of death, obsessive-compulsive disorder) as found in plays such as Obscure Mortitication , Crypta Crawler and Silenced . In the title songs of the MCD … Where They Bleed and the album Adrift Beyond , surreal descriptions of the realm of the dead and the afterlife are expressed. The text repertoire extends to strongly pro-religious, especially pro-Christian statements, e.g. in A Hallowed Sacrifice . The band members publicly profess themselves as devout Christians and speak out clearly against anti-Christian and anti-religious poetry in general. The band's aesthetics and lyrics are clearly differentiated from the white metal scene , because the content of the Mandatory music has no missionary character whatsoever and the religious text content also only makes up a small part of the oeuvre.
Discography
- 2002: Divine Destruction (MCD, in-house production)
- 2005: Curse of the Undead (MCD, in-house production)
- 2007: ... Where They Bleed (MCD, Asphyxiate Recordings)
- 2007: Altar of the Old Skulls ( split album with Deathevoktion and Kingdom, Obliteration Records / Time Before Time Records)
- 2008: Exiled in Pain (compilation, Obliteration Records)
- 2010: Adrift Beyond ( Xtreem Music )
- 2010: In Torment (MC compilation, Dark Descent Records )
- 2012: Ripped from the Tomb (Ablaze Productions)
reception
The reception of the individual releases of the band was generally positive. The well-known German underground magazine Carnage recognized the demo Divine Destruction with a rating of eight out of ten points . This was rated even better by Metalstorm.de in March 2003, for example . The author Tequila awarded 87/100 points and the review was closed as follows:
“It's unbelievable what kind of demos you can expect. With Divine Selection, the Euskirchner Mandatory cut a board that commemorates the glorious times of old heroes such as B. Unleashed and the other Swedish veterans. [...] Do I sound enthusiastic somehow? Hmm, then it will be like that! "
The MCD Curse of the Undead also met with a positive response. The Polish online magazine Burning Abyss said: “Yeah! 'CURSE OF THE UNDEAD' contains PURE OLD SCHOOL DEATH METAL in its best way. ”The German-speaking Extreme Aggression wrote:“ The almost 18 minutes of playing time is filled with rough, unpolished, groovy Death Metal that rolls blood-drenched from the speakers ”. Metal.de's rating of Curse of the Undead is also positive. Author Ole wrote: “With MANDATORY it rumbles a lot in the box. Old-school Death Metal of the brand hand-made and brutal shows its ugly hell-face in just under 20 minutes [...] for Death Metal newbies it could be the ideal entry-level drug. ”In the meantime, the band has also managed to attract attention in other European countries so that the American webzine Beowolf Productions.com commented on Curse of the Undead : “These guys have been in the scene for a little over 5 years & have been putting out some great old school styled Death Metal music. This new disc is their best effort so far. "
The band received the clearest feedback to date for ... Where They Bleed . Metal Age magazine was enthusiastic: "With a work like this, MANDATORY should be roughly the German counterpart to the divine DEATH BREATH ". "The name Mandatory is a guarantee for a death-metallic journey through history" praises Extreme Aggression.de and Lärmbelästigung.net confirmed the band's special quality: "Another high quality formation from our country whose material literally calls for more." the band for ... Where They Bleed good reviews. "They have a great thick solid sound that hits you like a brick house. […] A must for any Death Metal fan to add to their collection !!! ”writes the Beowolf Productions magazine. Burning Abyss from Poland was once again enthusiastic: “There are some fuckin 'great, catchy and melodic riffs, as well as the heavy sound that fits the music perfectly” The big Polish metal magazine Masterful Magazine also gave 8 out of 10 points - with the same The internationally renowned, multilingual Metal Observer also scored:
“I would like to put the MANDATORY EP to the armies of Death Metal legionnaires at the black heart. [...] Would you like to experience the raw, unbridled brutality that GRAVE, DISMEMBER, ENTOMBED, ... exuded in their early phase? [...] What the German band is doing here is enough to honor the old originals. "
The reviews of Exiled In Pain were once again positive: The major Indian online magazine Diabolical Conquest awards 8.5 out of 10 possible points, describes the band as "one of the best active death metal bands in the underground" and continues:
“Mandatory have gone all the way to please their deprived (one way or the other) fans by offering a demo anthology disc containing all their famous demos released in the past along with some unreleased tracks, which is kind of like getting a chance to have sex with all your ex-girlfriends you pine so much for at the same time. [...] Exiled In Pain is a mandatory purchase for all the fans of pure and old school death metal. "
With the release of the album Adrift Beyond in 2010, the band was able to live up to their reputation and again received mostly good to enthusiastic reviews. Andreas Stappert judged the Rock Hard with a positive review and the award of 8 out of 10 points. Ancient Spirit gave it almost the highest rating with 11 out of 12 points and stated: “The wait was worth it. At least for those of you who are into ancient Swedish Death Metal. MANDATORY actually sound like they were born and raised in Sweden. On Adrift Beyond it is raw, dirty and damn hard to "In Webzine. Hell-is-open.de the publication received almost full marks:
“Musically you make music here in the first division and you don't have to hide from anyone. It's damn good to have such a killer album from Germany slammed in front of the bib. Conclusion: Deathmetals have to risk an ear here, old school fans of the genre anyway. A versatile, very good and intense album that should be included in every good death lead collection. "
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d News , mandatory-death.de, accessed on February 23, 2013 (English)
- ↑ Carnage Magazin , Issue 11, June 2003, page 36.
- ↑ Tequila: MANDATORY - Divine Selection. In: metalstorm.de. March 6, 2003, archived from the original on November 17, 2007 ; Retrieved January 25, 2016 .
- ↑ a b Burning Abyss , issue 666, 2008, page 22, online at http://www.abyss.opoczno.net/ .
- ↑ Noisi: MANDATORY - Curse Of The Undead. In: Extreme Aggression.de. February 23, 2006, accessed on January 2, 2011 (German).
- ↑ Ole: Mandatory - Curse Of The Undead. In: metal.de. February 16, 2007, accessed on January 2, 2011 (German).
- ↑ MANDATORY - Curse Of The Undead. In: Beowolf Productions.com. July 2006, accessed January 2, 2011 .
- ^ Metal Age , Issue 11, p. 49.
- ↑ Noisi: MANDATORY - ... Where They Bleed. In: Extreme Aggression.de. February 16, 2007, accessed on January 2, 2011 (German).
- ↑ Michael: MANDATORY - ... Where They Bleed. In: Lärmbelästigung.net. Accessed January 2, 2011 (German).
- ↑ MANDATORY - ... Where They Bleed. In: Beowolf Productions.com. February 2007, accessed January 2, 2011 .
- ↑ Olo: MANDATORY - ... Where They Bleed. In: Masterful Magazine. 2006, accessed January 2, 2011 (Polish).
- ↑ Hawk: MANDATORY - ... Where They Bleed. In: metal-observer.com. February 20, 2007, accessed on January 2, 2011 (German).
- ↑ Kunal N. Choski: MANDATORY - Exiled In Pain (via archive.org). In: Diabolical Conquest.com. September 25, 2008, archived from the original on December 20, 2011 ; accessed on January 2, 2011 .
- ^ Andreas Stappert in Rock Hard , issue 284, January 2011, page 67.
- ↑ Falk: MANDATORY - Adrift Beyond. (No longer available online.) In: Ancient Spirit.de. 2010, formerly in the original ; accessed on January 2, 2011 (German). ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Exorcist: MANDATORY - Adrift Beyond. In: hell-is-open.de. October 21, 2010, accessed on January 2, 2011 (German).
