The Grave Digger

Now properly recognized as a German institution, continues to carry the torch for the genre the band helped spawn (alongside the likes of and ) back in the '80s. In fact, after the group's brief dissolution and inexplicable name change to at the end of that decade, the band (now inextricably linked to charismatic frontman ) made an unexpected return to form in the '90s and has continued to deliver impressively consistent efforts ever since. The band's ninth studio album, the lavishly packaged but plainly titled , doesn't buck this trend, offering a batch of tightly woven anthems representing the best elements of . 's alternately clean and dirty vocals combine with a rough and raw guitar attack to offset the album's more refined sonic accoutrements, such as chorused vocals, keyboards, and synths. Used sparingly and effectively, these provide the necessary colorings and support without interfering with the "meat" of the matter here: . Thus, highlights like are propelled by a furious barrage of double kick drums and lightning staccato riffing in the best tradition, and while it's easy to attack 's more cliche-laden transgressions (culminating as expected in the overblown orchestration of the ), the truth is that mid-paced numbers like and the absolutely awesome -inspired (note its stunning clean-riffing outro) are pure delights. All these are hardly reinventing the wheel, but they're performed with such conviction and disarming honesty that questioning their intentions is really just nasty and petty. In short, for a band that's never gotten much respect over the years 's influence on the genre is undeniable and, with its unassuming excellence, is a perfect example why. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia