Band: Die Saat (Germany)
Album Title: Der Schlachten Tribut
Label: Ewiges Eis Records (Germany)
Released: 2003
On their second album, Der Schlachten Tribut, Die Saat has evolved into a Viking metal band to be reckoned with. The production is still raw, and the drum machine is still pretty weak, but the album shows the band maturing in their songwriting and arranging while maintaining the energy and spirit of their debut. At just under an hour long, Der Schlachten Tribut is epic in more than one sense.
The album opens with the title track, which features two sets of clean vocals. I'm not sure if Sturm handled both sets of clean vocals, or if Tormentor is the second voice, because both are credited as vocalists on this album. At any rate, the harmonizing clean vocals sound great, and they appear often on this album as well as the third album, Wir Laden Zum Feste. The rest of the vocals are again done in a distorted shriek, though they are sometimes alternated with low, growling vocals. The vocals are one improvement over the previous album. The clean vocals are used quite frequently, sometimes at the same time as the shrieking vocals, and they sound proud and Germanic.
The keyboards have also improved, and can finally transmit the epic quality that the music requires. The keyboard arrangements are an important part of Die Saat's sound, which I'm sure will bother pagan metal fans who despise the heavy use of keyboards. I enjoy keyboards, though, especially when they're used tastefully, as they are here. The guitars are sometimes relegated to background duty, but, despite the keyboard-heavy arrangements, there is some really nice (and frequent) lead guitar playing going on.
Most important to me is that this album has the atmosphere I crave in my Viking metal. Although I have no idea what is being said in the German lyrics (one song, the slightly goofy "Black Metal," is in English), the music manages to stir the noble spirit within. With the penultimate track, Die Saat pays tribute to their home, the German state of Thuringia. I've never been to Thuringia, but it must be quite the place, because no fewer than four of my favorite pagan metal bands have emerged from that region of Germany (Die Saat, Menhir, Odroerir, and XIV Dark Centuries).
Their third album may be my favorite Die Saat release, but that's certainly no reason to write off Der Schlachten Tribut. If you can still locate a copy (it was limited to 1,000, which is twice as many as were pressed of Niedergang), I whole-heartedly recommend it. Like me, you may need to get past the production and the weak drum machine before you can truly enjoy it, but I found it to be more than worth the effort.
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