Panzerfaust - The Suns of Perdition - Chapter III: The Astral Drain

The waters of life drain to the Underworld.

(Originally submitted to the Metal Archives on November 14th, 2022) 

Panzerfaust is one of the more interesting black metal bands to have come out of the past decade. Their ability to write music that at times veers into jangleblack territory while also putting together crushing riffs has made the first two chapters of the The Suns of Perdition series some of the strongest albums to come out of the genre in the past few years. Not only that, but both releases had a distinct identity of their own, despite inherent similarities between them. Now, 3 years after Render Unto Eden’s release we’re graced with the third chapter of this series, The Astral Drain. I’ve been looking forward to it ever since it was announced, and obviously I listened to it as soon as I could when it came out. 3 months later though, and I’m still not quite sure how to feel about it, for a variety of reasons.

For one, The Astral Drain takes a more drum-driven approach compared to its predecessors. Mind you, that’s not something I’m inherently against, seeing as not only do I love Kriegsmaschine, Panzerfaust themselves have always had rather intricate drumming. The problem here though is what surrounds them. While Alexander Kartashov plays some very intricate patterns throughout the album, making excellent use of his cymbals on tracks like “Bonfire of the Insanities”, there just isn’t much to back them up. The guitars for the most part play dissonant and sparse chords in the background, while the bass for the most part adds texture, barring a very nice melodic bassline near the end of “Death-Drive Projections”. The whole thing just feels like it’s building up to something constantly and it just never quite reaches that crescendo, always leaving you wanting more. Even when it does, like on “Bonfire of the Insanities”, it just doesn’t last that long. Most tracks here suffer from simply not taking it far enough, which is disappointing when taking into consideration just how strong the riffing was on previous releases.

That being said, there are tracks here that actually do pack a punch, and they’re relegated to the final third of the album, ending things on a high note. Both “The Far Bank at the River Styx” and “Tabula Rasa” are explosive, all while maintaining the winding and atmospheric characteristics of the previous songs, with the added bonus of actually going somewhere. The former blends frantic tremolo riffing with tenser atmospheric segments, whereas the latter slowly escalates, its climax being high-speed percussive chaos, providing a good end to this release.

Another strong point of The Astral Drain is the vocal performances on display, with Goliath’s deep bellow and Brock Van Dijk’s raspier growls being arguably as important here as the aforementioned drumming. The way they play off one another’s lines on tracks like “B22: The Hive and the Hole” and “Tabula Rasa” is part of the reason why these tracks are as good as they are, and their performances are one of the album’s strongest points. Special mention goes out to the end of “Tabula Rasa”, where Brock’s ravings are punctuated by Goliath’s short grunts, giving the verse a percussive edge. I’ve always enjoyed Panzerfaust’s vocal antics, and they’re the best they’ve ever been, with their application here being some of the most interesting the band’s ever done.

There’s also the matter of the interludes, which is just the issue I have with these types of pieces turned up to 11. What we have here is 4 tracks that follow the actual compositions, and 3 of them are just bland ambient and industrial noises. The only one that does anything remotely interesting is “Enantiodromia”, its tribal drumming adding something to the aforementioned ambience, which actually has room to develop thanks to the song’s longer duration. I honestly wouldn’t have minded them as much had they actually been well incorporated within the context of the album. As it stands they just feel like snippets of something bigger, and they neither add anything to the music, nor do they help things flow better. If anything, they just kill what little momentum the tracks build with how abruptly they come and go.
The production is also well-handled, and fits the compositions like a glove. The sound is dark and claustrophobic, with the guitars having a healthy dose of reverb that’s being supported by a robust and always-present bass, and the drums are front and centre, with their crisp yet powerful sound pushing the music forward. Couple that with a great mix where you can tell everything apart at all times and you’ve got a stew going. Damn shame the compositions weren’t up to snuff.

I really wanted to like The Astral Drain, I really did. But at the end of the day it’s an album I can’t help but feel like it could’ve been so much more than what it currently is. If this is the finale to the The Suns of Perdition, the series has definitely ended on a low(er) note than what I expected based on the first two chapters. It’s disappointing, because I really enjoyed seeing the band’s evolution from War, Horrid War, and had this third chapter spent a little more time in the oven it could’ve been a great addition to their canon. As it stands, The Astral Drain isn’t greater than the sum of its parts, its moments of brilliance lost in a sea of drab atmospherics, and they sadly cannot elevate it to the level of their previous works.

Highlights: The Far Bank at the River Styx, Tabula Rasa

Rating: 71%