Maniac Butcher: Invaze (1999)

Here we have the third album I have picked up yet from Maniac Butcher, the uber-kvlt black metal band from the Czech Republic.  And of course the first thing I want to point out about this album is the ridiculous album cover.  Looking at it, one would be forgiven for thinking that this was not a serious project.  It looks like a parody cover.  But nothing could be further from the truth. 

Sounding like a mix of early Mayhem and Transilvanian Hunger-era Darkthrone, Maniac Butcher have always been clear about what they believe black metal should sound like.  And that is raw, aggressive and bestial.  The songs here are fairly simple and stripped down with no frills.  Few, if any, guitar solos, no keyboards or strings, and no clean singing.  This particular release tends to be more based around Mayhem's De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, with cold and hostile atmosphere taking center stage over the aggressive riffing.  Though there is still plenty of that in the album. 

Of particular note on this album is "Řemeslo válečné, to jest mi chlebem všedním i taktéž kratochvílí sváteční" with its driving, punky center riff.  It is one of the catchiest songs Maniac Butcher has ever released.  Of course, with a name like that, it is pretty easy to deduce that the band does not speak English in their songs.  So singing (or screaming) along is not an option. 

This may be my favorite Maniac Butcher album I have heard so far.  There is a lot more musically going on in this one than some of the others I have heard.  And they balance this improved musicality with the typical bestial rawness that has made the band so compelling in the past.  They do all of this without sacrificing their ideals of what black metal should be.  And it is all the better for it.