Review by UnhinderedbyTalent for Marduk - Panzer Division Marduk (1999)

Marduk were guilty of falling more than a little short in the imagination stakes when it came to writing PDM.  I enjoy a frenzied BM assault as much as the next church burner but despite being only thirty minutes long full length number six from the Swedes does end up feeling like a bit of a slog to wade through.  Whilst I can't fault the intent behind the relentless delivery and fuck-it-all approach to songwriting, at the same time there needs to be something tangible to get hold of amidst all the chaotic fury of the Marduk maelstrom.  Often when listening to this I just feel starved of atmosphere, despite the cold and sterile sound they deployed it adds nothing to the overall feel of the record and actually often gets mistakenly billed as a poor mix or production job if you believe some internet reviews.

I own most of what came before PDM already and it is a dramatic change in direction but also an obvious change in quality also.  Although not exactly full in sound, the predecessor to this album, 'Nightwing' delivers more of a punch in the riff stakes and blends the instrumentation well by comparison.  I feel like PDM is something that Marduk almost forcibly does to the listener as opposed to any scope being considered for variety or even the occasional change of pace to make the experience just a little more palatable.

Listening back to PDM tonight before I sat down to type this review I was oddly focused on the bass as if I hadn't recalled that Bogge was even there with his four string previously.  It has that engine like feel to it when you listen through and is surprisingly audible in the overall sound.  Due to the absolute unrelenting ferocity of the experience I find myself under the impression that the record in some way (bizarrely) ends up lacking authenticity at the end of the day, which seems on odd conclusion given its almost pure BM approach.