PANZERCHRIST
Maleficium Part I

Fans of PANZERCHRIST will have noted and absorbed the four track EP “All Witches Shall Burn” which I reviewed for this very publication earlier this year. Now “Maleficium Part I” is upon us, the follow up to 2023’s powerhouse “Last Of A Kind”, and the second album in a year after a period of ten years since the “7th Offensive”. In that time the line-up has changed, with the current line up now bolstered by the arrival of new drummer Ove Lungskov who makes his recording debut with the band.

His performance is something else – a real powerhouse behind the kit, Lungskov’s military precision is the equivalent of a missile strike, such is his accuracy and focus. Behind this album, as ever, sits founder member, bassist and keyboardist Michael ‘Panzergeneral’ Enevoldsen and guitarist Frederik O’Carroll, the bedrock of the band. Vocalist Sonja Rosenlund Ahl makes her third recording with the band, whilst guitarist Danny Bo Pedersen is on board for the second time after his debut on “All Witches Shall Burn”.

Having arrived after “Last Of A Kind” was written, Rosenlund Ahl had time to add to the lyrical content and now provides more input into an album that remains as savagely delivered as the previous releases. The band have shifted their style and sound slightly here, retaining every inch of the extreme but moving into a death metal direction which provides eight powerful songs over a 42-minute run. It’s an intense listening experience, with no foot off the pedal, and Rosenlund Ahl’s delivery a frighteningly aggressive and intimidating one.

Unsettling noises introduce you to the album’s opener, “Blood Leeches”. These eerie sounds are soon blown into next week as the band rage into the track, with Rosenlund Ahl’s venomous roar and the brutal double kicking of Lungskov instantly standing out. Whilst the track is a blisteringly heavy and fast one, Enevoldsen has managed to install some layers of synths that add to the overall sound. It’s an explosive opening, and one that doesn’t relent for the next 40 or so minutes.

“Weak Is The Flesh” follows. Another pulverising aural assault, it benefits from some filthy groove that underpins the track. Intense and punishing, it also is one to get your head nodding along with. The change of tempo and direction midway through the song, with the haunting keyboards dipping in and out, is enough to send the shivers down the spine. A huge song that crushes from start to finish.

Although the tempo appears slightly slower on the doom filled “Mist On The Moat”, the underlying power of Lungskov’s drumming is impossible to ignore. It’s simply massive work on a huge album. The appearance of Vincent Price’s narrative from his role in the film “Witchfinder General” reminds you of the way that women assumed to be witches were treated hundreds of years ago and adds to the overall atmosphere of the track.

You may have worked out that the underlying themes through this album are drafted by Rosenlund Ahl’s lyrical content. We get medieval tales of witches, witchcraft, and all things evil as the album progresses, with some of the most visceral music adding to the soundtrack. In parts, this is as brutal as you will hear all year, with the dual guitars swirling across the relentless drum battery and the pounding of Enevoldsen’s hammering bass lines.

Whilst several of the songs here are longer than you may expect from a death metal outfit, there are also a couple of shorter tracks that balance out the pace. “Sister Death” is one such track, whilst the brutality of the sub-three-minute “Savage Daughter” is likely to cause some impact on those with a less than robust cranium.

PANZERCHRIST have existed for over 30 years in various shapes and forms. “Maleficium Part I” is a demonstration of defiance. A reminder that Enevoldsen and his band are not walking gently into the night, but instead are as relevant and impressive now as they ever have been. This is an album that simply must be heard.

Paul Hutchings