Non Compos Mentis: Music Discovery: Eisbrecher

Eisbrecher, Heavy Metal from Germany

So, my cousin Logan tells me the other day that I need to check out Eisbrecher. I didn't respond immediately at the time, so he broke the ice by telling me that they are like Rammstein. Okay, okay, I'm sorry. Lame pun is lame. Eisbrecher, as it turns out, is German for Ice Breaker (like the ships,) and they fall in an interesting genre of metal. Dubbed 'Neue Deutsche Härte', or 'New German Heaviness,' the genre was created in Germany when Rammstein released their first album. The genre itself is an interesting breed of heavy metal, dance metal, groove metal, and industrial metal. If you're not familiar with Rammstein or others in this genre, trust me, it's good stuff.

So the name Eisbrecher, Ice Breaker, at first sounds like one of those things they picked because 'huh, this sounds kind of metal' (Teräsbetoni, anyone?) but then you see the video for Eiszeit and it's no longer just a name:

I don't always perform metal, but when I do, I require an arctic expedition team and an ice pick.

Actually, they don't always dress so thoroughly for their theme, but they (or at least, their singer) often dress in naval or military elements with a cold weather flare. Common gimmick phrases shouted to the audience are 'Ahoi' and 'Es wird kalt', or 'Ahoy' and 'It's getting cold,' respectively. Part of me has to wonder if they don't instruct their venues to crank up the AC while they perform to enhance the experience. The other part of me wonders if the moshers bring ice picks, too.

But seriously, did you hear that? They lay down some killer tracks. So far, I've only heard the Eiszeit album--and heard it several times on loop, at that--but I would be willing to wager that the rest of their extensive discography is just as awesome. Go check out their album on youtube before it gets taken down. If it is any incentive, one of the songs (Gothkiller) features another singer and is in English. There will be a link at the bottom of this article. If you don't like the notion of experiencing the album on youtube and prefer thirty second previews, there will be a link to iTunes and amazon as well.

Now seriously, go. Check out this album, or even better, buy that sucker. Here's a picture that'll really make you want to throw your wallet at the screen: