CoC : Nebel - Nebel : Review

Nebel - _Nebel_
(Oaken Shield / Adipocere, 2002)
by: Pedro Azevedo (4 out of 10)

It seems that for every Malleus Maleficarum there has to be a Nebel -- or rather a bunch of them, unfortunately. This apparently self-titled release (unless the words "Hymns of Destruction" that make up the entirety of their booklet are to be taken as the album title) suffers from a shortcoming of virtually every aspect that makes Malleus Maleficarum's _Taedium Vitae_ so damn good. The production is flat, the vocals are unimpressive, the riffs are mostly uninspired, and the drumming remains monotonous throughout. The below average production might still have resulted in a cavernous, sinister sound with some potential, but ultimately the material is too straightforward, unoriginal and repetitive. Furthermore, the ending of every song seems to have been lazily chopped off, which is quite annoying. The band apparently split up after this debut album, something that is unlikely to be noticed by too many people. Nebel's 35 minute blackened effort isn't utterly terrible, but it pales so much in comparison to albums such as their labelmates Malleus Maleficarum's _Taedium Vitae_ that it has to be discarded as just another unremarkable disc.

Contact: http://www.adipocere.fr

(article published 27/6/2003)