DEBAUCHERY

Move over TORTURE KILLER, Germany's DEBAUCHERY is the ultimate SIX FEET UNDER tribute band. Actually, TORTURE KILLER is a better band and at least got it over with and enlisted Chris Barnes for 2006's "Swarm!" So OK, there is more of a pronounced "death 'n roll" delivery in the case of DEBAUCHERY, but the foundation of the style and the very Barnes-sounding vocals of Thomas Gurrath are quite SFU-istic. Whatever the case, "Germany's Next Death Metal" — the act's seventh full-length — has its moments of satisfying death groove, as well as some eye-catching artwork and, uh, photography, but it gets old quick.

After the light picking that begins the album has you thinking that DEBAUCHERY might bust out a cover of SAXON's "Crusader", the marching cadence of "The Unbroken" get things off to a good start and it's darn difficult to banish that chorus from the brain. It's pretty much hit-and-miss from thereon and the "hits" aren't of the solid gold variety. The first exercise in annoyance arrives way too soon in the form of "Zombie Blitzkrieg", its repeating chorus just plain grating. Mostly mid-tempo and grooving ("Warmachines at War" one of the better examples) with occasional bursts of speed ("Bloodslaughter Onslaught" and "Animal Holocaust"),"Germany's Next Death Metal" does provide a handful of moderately enjoyable tunes.

Stopping right there and cutting the full-length down to EP size would have made the entirety of the experience much more satisfying. Weak tracks such as "Death Will Entertain" and "Killing Is Our Culture" would not have been missed. Speaking of which, is that high register vocal part in "Killing Is Our Culture" really supposed to sound like AC/DC's Brian Johnson? Well then. As for the bonus cover of ALICE COOPER's "School's Out", avoid at all costs; not a good decision and the school kid banter is far too irksome to be funny.

Nothing at all wrong with some stripped down death-groove, assuming the album is good enough to hold one's attention for longer than a few songs. "Germany's Next Death Metal" is not good enough. Not awful (you've heard much worse) and inclusive of some halfway respectable material, but just about any SIX FEET UNDER album would be a better choice.