Review by Anna on September 7, 2011.

I don’t know dude, I think this stuff is pretty fucking… Awesome. There’s an English and Czech version of this release which are supposed to be quite different. I’m happy to have the Czech one. Drakar is described as one of the more obscure bands in metal history. Birthed in 1990, its essence was incubated within the confines of the Iron Curtain. This was the first of their two releases, and their sound is “filed under” the “Heavy/Speed/Thrash” category.

There is much character to this album. The sound is kind of shitty yet everything is well played and put together. The drums sound like a loop from an old Casio, maybe it is, and there are plenty of very interesting and cute (I think it’s cute) guitar-work, vocals, and totally unexpected, mildly alien sounds, samples, and techniques- all without going overboard. Like when the clean vocals came on for the track 'Crazy Boy', I started laughing with delight. Where do they come up with this stuff, one wonders? Oh, that’s right.

Yes, I’m an outsider and I find this a bit amusing, but also quite special. Of course, the music itself is good, but it really can’t be argued that Drakar’s unique origins and its contribution to their sound, concept, and aesthetic, is really their most appealing, dominating trait.

Categorical Rating Breakdown

Musicianship: 8.5
Atmosphere: 9
Production: 8.5
Originality: 10
Overall: 9

Rating: 9 out of 10