HERRSCHAFT came out of nowhere back in 2006 with their first, self-released EP, "Architects of Humanicide". It took the band a couple of years to conjure their debut album, "Tesla" released through Aural Music. What the French band is trying to do is daring to say the very least. Industrial music and Metal make a quite good mix, but when you start throwing in electronic music influences and structures the whole experiment becomes extremely temperamental and it is very difficult to try and keep a fine balance. Fortunately HERRSCHAFT manage very well in their sophomore record, "Les 12 Vertiges", which has been five years in the making.

The idea in HERRSCHAFT concept is quite straightforward. What they do, even if it sounds simple is quite brilliant. They basically build their song structure as if they were composing electronic music, but the instrumentation that the band is using, clearly falls within the metal territory. The industrial repetition fits in perfectly, giving "Les 12 Vestiges" a cold, menacing ambiance, while the use of synths and effects is opening up new dimensions for the band's sound.

The band kicks off things in a very high note, with the opening track, "Gates To Dream" getting you all excited. The level of energy that HERRSCHAFT are able to maintain throughout the track is astonishing while some of the melodic parts that the band is able to conjure (does not matter if those come from guitars or synths) are even awe inspiring in cases. "Kimi Ga Yo" with its explosive quality and the sharp guitar sound is taking the band's music up a notch, and the fact that it features a sample from the "Breaking Bad" TV series makes the track sound even better.

The groove is one of the most interesting aspects of the band's music. Especially on tracks such as the more mid-tempo "Disorder Mind Mechanics" in which the band is using effects and synths in a very creative manner to create a majestic, grand sound, and in one of the highlights of the album "Bloodpulse" with the overall feeling of the track being utterly destructive, it is the groove that catches your attention.

Of course the band also has its darker side. In "Rat Cage", the band is merging their industrial nature with the eerie leads to create a claustrophobic offering, while the encircling quality of "Endlessly Revolving" is total and inescapable with the melodic hooks absorbing your attention. But the highlight of their bleak nature is in "Whispering Clouds". The use of female vocals is essential in order for the music to retain a certain feeling of serenity within the core of the song. The track might lack aggression and hostility but it makes up in ambiance and feeling.

And then there is also the more aggressive side to HERRSCHAFT. In "Allmighty" they offer you their paranoid, distorted view of reality straight up, even though they still give you a melodic moment with clean vocals that is an absolute show stealer. On the other hand, the build up in "Thirty-Six" is ingenious, making the sound steadily more menacing to the point when the track explodes, laying waste to everything. "Les 12 Vertiges" closes in the most suitable manner, with the all out attack that comes in "Mephedron Trip" with the mind melting riffing annihilating all that stand in its way.

The balance between the different genres in HERRSCHAFT's music, along with the ability of the band to offer tracks showing different emotions and attitudes in each one makes "Les 12 Vertiges" a really good album. If you find yourself interested in bands that crossover between metal and other genres then you should not miss out on this one.