Line Up :
Gerre - Vocals
Andi Gutjahr - Guitars
Frank Thorwarth - Bass
Olaf Zissel – Drums
Tankard release a solid old-school trash metal album
album review Tankard no surprises here. Tankard are back adding another album of old-school German trash metal to their long back catalogue. Since their first release ‘Zombie Attack’ in 1986 Tankard have to battle critics who deny them any originality or creativeness. Sure, their last three releases were not the strongest in the long history of this band, and of course their repetitive references to German beer are getting a bit old but what do you do when your band name is Tankard. With ‘R.I.B. (Rest In Beer)’ Tankard still rely on this reference in the album title but they have a lot more to offer than this.
‘R.I.B. (Rest In Beer)’ is Tankard’s 16th longplayer and the band around singer, mastermind and band leader Gerre has come back with full force. ‘R.I.B. (Rest In Beer)’ is again a lot heavier than the last couple of releases. It offers 10 hard-rocking trash metal tracks that deliver what you expect. Tankard is not about over-analysing, designing complex song structures with mathematical precision or innovating into a new sub-genre of metal. Tankard is about good old heavy metal fun: going to a show with your mates, banging your head and – yes, I have to say it – have a few drinks. ‘Gerre’ and his crew deliver exactly on that. They have released an album that is worth being played at any decent metal party.
Highlights of the album are tracks like the thrashing opener ‘War Cry’ and the title track ‘R.I.B’. Other songs that are very compatible to Tankards live performances are ‘Fooled By Your Guts’ and ‘The Party Ain’t Over ‘Til We Say So’. It is also good to see that Tankard haven’t lost their anger. Songs like ‘Enemy Of Order’ and ‘Riders Of The Doom’ have more serious lyrics and are full of the f***-you attitude thrash metal should have.
‘R.I.B.’ is a strong performance of Tankard. If you are after straight forward fun thrash metal this is the album for you.
Tracks :
1 : War Cry
2 : Fooled by your Guts
3 : R.I.B. (Rest In Beer)
4 : Riders of the Doom
5 : Hope Can’t Die
6 : No One hit Wonder
7 : Breakfast For Champions
8 : Enemy of Order
9 : Clockwise to Deadline
10 : The Party Ain’t Over ‘Til We Say So