The Samans - Weltreich (2009) (6,5/10)

THE SAMANS is a quite diversified band from Changchun in the province of Jilin in the north-east of the People’s Republic of China. The band has released three records and has recently gone into a Folk and Melodic Death Metal direction reminding us of ELUVEITIE. The first strike of the band was though a quite different thing.

“Weltreich” is German for “World Empire” and this record has indeed a few German influences. It even includes a KRAFTWERK cover with “Showroom Dummies”. The band is clearly influenced by Neue Deutsche Härte bands like RAMMSTEIN but also by international Industrial and Gothic Rock outfits like GOTHMINISTER, MINISTRY or electronically driven MORBID ANGEL. A few tracks even include slightly depressive Grunge tones that could come from early PUDDLE OF MUDD. Metal purists should skip this release immediately.

Those who have an open mind for Industrial Metal might though appreciate this album. It shows enough variation to convince. “Ride Of The Valkyries” has a great Grunge atmosphere, “Death March” features Mongolian Folk music as well as some throat singing and the mixture of Folk and Electro Rock in “Moths To The Flames We Are” shows us what direction this band would take later on.

As soon as the band starts to experiment and expand its horizons, the songs get more vivid and offer a lot to discover. The vocals are a little bit exchangeable and some riffs feel worn out but the record manages to never get boring in the end. The production is not very good but doesn’t flaw the listening experience. On the other side, the keyboards and folk instruments or samples already have their shining moments on here. The song writing has some potential for original transitions and catchy hooks. Fans of the aforementioned bands should definitely get some good entertainment by giving this release a few tries. This first release is no masterpiece but very enjoyable to those who like Industrial Metal with influences from genres such as Folk, Gothic and Symphonic Metal.

(Online April 15, 2013)