Band: Marienbad
Title: Nachtfall
Label: Massacre Records
Distribution: Massacre Records – Suburban - Bertus
Release date: May 27th 2011
Review: CD

One of the side-projects by Eisregen, with assistance of The Vision Bleak- and Panzerkreutz-members (the latter consists of the very same members)…
Named after the Czech town of Marienbad, an unhappy holiday resort, one-way-ticket (no return) during WWII…

A remarkable fact is releasing the same album in two versions: a German and an English sung one. Nachtfall indeed will be released in these two versions. Musically, both albums are the same (recorded only once), yet the vocals have been done twice, in both languages. So you can choose which edition you buy. Or copy. Or steal.
[as a social personality: option 1 for not ripping off the scene / as critic on community and capitalism: option 2, maybe 3 / as misanthropist: option whatever, what do I care?]
Opening song Come To Marienbad opens with a piano-intro and soon evolves into an emotive form of Goth-laden Doom with a rather traditional approach when it comes to the instrumental guidance. The riffs on this song, and several others, vary from epic to aggressive, the rhythm is slow, the vocals clean yet not of the Power / Heavy-kind… Yes, very varying stuff. What about the injection of Black and Dark Metal, as well as the acoustic parts? The huge variation on vocals? The beautiful synths?
The enormous differentiation in all aspects (except for the atmosphere, which remains oppressive and sinister) might be a mostly positive element, the compositions an sich and the clearly very experienced performance too.
Elements from the four members’ main and side-projects (Eisregen, Ewigheim, The Vision Bleak, Bethlehem, Nox Mortis etc.) are legio…

Very unusual, very defying, this Marienbad-project, with their Werk 1 – yet after several listen sessions I start to see, and feel, the complex yet smart totality.
I am curious for Werk 2…

88/100

Ivan Tibos.