Wotan - Children of Technology (1999)

After 1996's long overdue debut Tranquility, and due to an ailing 90s thrash scene, I was not expecting to hear anything further from Wotan, being an immeasurably obscure act to begin with. Thus it is impressive that the band was able to grind forwards and surpass itself with a sophomore album. Children of Technology doesn't break the formula of the previous album, and to be honest the riffs are not that much more memorable, but it's certainly better produced, more aggressive and tighter, almost to the point of infectious late 80s German tech-thrash, with brutal vocals that sound reminiscent of King Fowley of Deceased.

It opens with a caustic maneuver, "W.O.T.A.N.", the band's acronym namesake ("World of Terror and Nausea"), and this immediately raises expectations beyond the debut with its onslaught of jerking, technical guitars, aggressive to the point that it verges on what some tech/death bands were pushing at the time. Most of the other tracks follow this formula, with "Survive" and "Insanity" serving as highlights of explosive dynamics even if they lack durable, ear-catching notations. However, things get pretty interesting with the band's Sisters of Mercy cover, "Temple of Love" which serves as a strange centerpiece. The song is played fairly straight to the original, the primary difference found in Pusche's vocals and the increased palm muting, but it's not all that bad, even when the ethereal female vocals kick in. Another German band, Crematory, would later do a more steady, distinct rendition of the track, but this is sort of curious for a thrash album, and I enjoyed it.

Otherwise, the album continues along with a few forgettable pieces like the instrumental "Magnum-Song", which ironically features a sprinkling of the better riffs on the album and would have greatly benefited from vocals. "Squash Your Jerry" is brief, spastic thrash/grinding and nothing more than a footnote to the more structured compositions on the first half of the disc. Children of Technology sounds pretty good, with thick guitar tones and better vocals than they were able to muster on their debut. It doesn't sound like a band even remotely aware of the abyssal corner into which they were writing themselves. That's a compliment. Solid, enthusiastic and violent thrash metal here, authentic and reasonably well written, but just not enough to get the band any attention, or stand out long in the listener's thoughts. It's the band's last album, before being resigned to infinite obscurity, but if you're a fan of German thrash or perhaps even Deceased albums like Fearless Undead Machines or The Blueprints for Madness, you might want to at least check this out.

Verdict: Indifference [6.75/10]

Wotan - Tranquility (1996)

Wotan's 1996 debut definitely has a few things going for it, even if it feels out of time and place so deep in the decade. I enjoy the bleak cover art, the cheesy sci-fi synth intros to several of the songs, and the band's honest attempt at mixing the brutality of Sodom and Kreator with the more technical aspects of Vendetta and later era Deathrow. Perhaps it's not such a surprise, as this band was formed in the middle of the previous decade, recorded an album that was never released (1992), and thus mulled around with only demos for a decade, until they got a shot for an album through the obscure D&S Records.

Unfortunately, for every good riff tucked into one of these songs, there are 5-6 that are merely average. Vocalist Carsten Piszczan has a harsh, biting vocal style reminiscent of Mille, but blunter in delivery, and it doesn't have a lot of character in the end. I mentioned the synths that herald "Assassinator", "Burnt to Death" and "Incarnation", casting the obscure glow of 70s or 80s b-movie nostalgia, but all hopes that they're going to shift into premium riff territory are all too quickly dashed. Wotan are a competent lot, they play with a tight and forceful precision that celebrates that ribald German energy of the 80s, but they don't seem capable of assembling notes in the most memorable patterns, and thus the chops feel largely by the numbers here, no matter how brutal and direct the band's intent.

"Assassinator" has a couple choice Kreator-styled riffs, and the chords played in "Incarnation" recall the sort that Pestilence would have used in the late 80s, but aside from the dopey bass pep in "Bring it to an End", there is too little variation here. The band's not hostile enough to get by on sheer speed and blistering violence like a Dark Angel, nor charismatic enough to compare with the Big Three or Tankard. Ultimately I came off from Tranquility feeling like, here were a group of guys who 'got it', but then failed to translate this good taste in quality thrash to a worthy statement of their own design. What might have been a freakish scenario of psycho holocaust sci-fi/socially aware thrashing is nothing more than a 45 minute tour of untapped potential.

Verdict: Indifference [6/10]