The German contemporary black metal band SCHWERMUT recently released "Gestalt Im Wandel," their debut album. With this one, nobody is trying to reinvent the wheel. The album is pure black metal from start to finish. If you're a fan of AKHLYS, ELLENDE, or GAEREA, then you know what to expect. This album has a high production value and isn't fast tremolos all of the time. There are plenty of "full-on black metal" moments on "Gestalt Im Wandel," and there are also slower, more emotional passages that make the music dynamic.

There are ambient tracks on this album. They consist of the sound of footsteps in the snow combined with a buzzing noise. They are titled "Auf Irrwegen I-IV," which loosely translates to the English phrase "wrong way." Part of me wants to dismiss these tracks as filler, but another part recognizes the trend of ambient passages in black metal and conjures up all kinds of different scenarios for the progression of these four tracks.

Ambient passages aside, the first track I'd like to explore is "Erfüllung." This track has a bombastic intro that ushers in a scream and lots of tremolos. After a pause, Mario Dahmen's raspy vocals begin with a commanding fury. The track goes through several changes and keeps things interesting from start to finish; the intensity ebbs and flows, never staying in one place for too long.

My favorite track on this album is "Erscheinung. There are spoken parts interspersed with rasps and growls. The instrumentation frames every vocal part with expert precision. It is also a song that never lingers too long in one place. The slower, more melodic aspects masterfully complement the intense ones. The keyboard comes in at just the right time, playing out the rest of the song.

"Aufwachen" is another track that remains dynamic throughout. Every build-up has its own payoff. There are plenty of in-your-face moments and enough room for each passage to breathe. By the time the final violin notes are played, the song is in a completely different place from where it started.

"Die Tiefen Wasser Der Schwermut" starts with the ring of a bell, then abruptly hits with some full-force black metal. There are some atmospheric elements that still manage to have some bite to them. The intensity waxes and wanes but never gets too slow or boring. This track is a raucous seven-minute hell ride that had me hooked from those first bell rings.

The album's final track, "Anrufung," is rawer than previous songs. Dahmen's vocals are also more gravelly this time around. The riffs are catchy, the tremolos are brilliant, and the vocals are seething with raw emotion. There's plenty of room for each element to develop properly. There are even a few vocal parts that are sung through a megaphone. It is evident that these two men know how to put a proper album together.

Before receiving this promo, I had never heard of SCHWERMUT. They play a brand of black metal that I find exhilarating. They are one of the better German black metal bands making music today, and I hope they continue to develop their signature sound on future albums.