Band:	Japanische Kampfhörspiele
Album:	Blaskapelle Bürgermeister Bratwurst Bier Geschenkekorb Bibelstelle Bumskabine Bienensterben Völkermord
Style:	Grindcore
Release date:	May 2023

01. Eaten By Ehrgeiz
02. Krank
03. Der Sieg Der Weissen Impotenz
04. Mathematik
05. Saunaclub Neuschwabenland
06. Alles Ist Zerrechnet
07. Gated Community Für Arme
08. Praktikum Bei Tönnies
09. Workflow
10. Poweryoga Für Abgehängte
11. Zu Asozial
12. Opfermove
13. Brazilian Butt Lift
14. Masterplan
15. Confirmation Bias

The title of Japanische Kampfhörspiele's 11th album sure is a mouthful, but does it actually have a lot to say?

After stumbling upon German band Japanische Kampfhörspiele (or JaKa for short), I've found myself addicted to their self-proclaimed "grindpunk" style, containing wild aggression, technical musicianship, and brutal lyrics. Now, I don't mean "brutal" as in the way Cannibal Corpse would use the word. Rather than gore, JaKa provide quite damning criticism of modern society. With harsh yet apt descriptions of first world consumerism, the German lyrics condemn hypocrisy, wastefulness, and the sloth-like attitude that increasingly pervades our civilization. As the title of one of their career highlights, Kaputte Nackte Affen, suggests, modern mankind is simply a group of broken, naked apes.

Blaskapelle Bürgermeister Bratwurst Bier Geschenkekorb Bibelstelle Bumskabine Bienensterben Völkermord: the title of their 11th studio album looks like a lot of gobbledygook. But don't worry! As a German native speaker, I will act as your tour guide into the wild world of JaKa! The way I see it, the album title is representative of modern society's scheinheiligkeit (which translates to something like "feigned innocence"). The first words in the title, like Bratwurst, Bier, Geschenkekorb (hot dog, beer, gift basket), are positive things that blind the people to the ugly problems, which plague our world, and which so many ignore: Bienensterben, Völkermord (bee extinction, genocide).

JaKa are brutally honest about current politics yet it's never apparent which "side" they're on. In fact, the song "Zu Asozial" addresses the uselessness of picking political sides, as "Neoliberale und Neonazis fressen aus demselben Trog" ("neo-liberals and neo-Nazis eat from the same [pig] trough"). Their unapologetic imagery and ironic statements like "Klimaschutz gefährdet Wohlstand / Wohlstand gefährdet Klimaschutz" ("climate protection endangers prosperity / prosperity endangers climate protection") are hilarious and always hit the nail on the head. They don't even shy away from throwing in a dig at their German competitors Rammstein in "Der Sieg Der Weissen Impotenz". In general, JaKa's lyrics hate practically every aspect of today's system and they advocate: "Lasst uns Schule und Krieg und Arbeit schwänzen!" ("Let's skip school, war, and work!")

JaKa have always had immensely entertaining lyrics, and I could spend an entire article just gushing about that. But the equally important aspect to their grindpunk style is, of course, their music. JaKa have stayed very consistent with their vocal style, and this album is no exception with their signature mix of rough hardcore shouts, ghoulish rasps, and demonic growls. The guitar-work isn't as amazing on this album as it has been on past releases, but it's still fairly enjoyable. Besides the tight, razor-sharp, rhythm guitar riffs throughout, there are melodic guitar tunes like on "Alles Ist Zerrechnet" and majestic soloing such as on the instrumental "Workflow". There is a whopping total of six instrumental tracks, which vary greatly in approach. For instance, "Brazilian Butt Lift" offers a blend of distorted guitar and Brazilian funk beats, while "Opfermove'' delivers a rather eerie display of slow, droning doom riffs. Electronic beats also make an appearance as in the intro of "Alles Ist Zerrechnet". Now add some audio samples of German commercials and news programs on top, and you get an idea of JaKa's insane patchwork of music.

Next, I'll attempt to give an overview of the musicians, although it is honestly hard to keep track of how many people are part of this band. (And even the band themselves let ChatGPT invent the band members for them on their official website!) Besides founding members Kather (drums and samples), Nowak (guitar), and Bachmann (bass), there are vocalists Freund and the new member Brümmer-Aschenbeck (replacing Markwald), who provide a satisfying mix of blackened rasps, death growls, and clean singing. In additional, there are several guest appearances providing crew shouts and additional screams. On the concluding song, former JaKa member René Hauffe even returns to deliver an elegant guitar solo at the end of the album's final track.

Now, despite the long album title, the album feels very short with many interludes and a total runtime of only 30 minutes. The grindcore genre is known for its short and snappy song-structure, but, while JaKa's album Welt Ohne Werbung was chock-full with diverse and nuanced riffs in every song, this newest album feels almost like a bare-bones approach with mainly only one riff per song. An additional problem I have with short songs is that they sometimes end right when things start getting interesting, such as when that heavy riff kicks in right at the end of "Masterplan". Sure, it makes the listener eager to give the album another spin, but the lack of substance is rather frustrating. That said, there are some truly fun moments on this album. And if you're new to JaKa, I definitely recommend giving the songs "Zu Asozial" and "Confirmation Bias" a shot. I'm sure you'll have a blast.

In conclusion, compared to their previous works, this album is a solid yet somewhat lacking release. The avant-garde styles have been present since the beginning, and, if we're only considering recent years, one could definitely argue that their 2021 LP Neues Aus Dem Halluzinogenozinozän is a similar yet overall stronger album. The current problem with JaKa is perhaps a result of their previous obliteration of all genre boundaries. It becomes increasingly more difficult to innovate what was already innovative. Thus, JaKa end up doing much of the same. Sadly, this lack of inspiration becomes evident in the final product, as they manage to provide a release that is unnecessarily padded with too many interludes and, in the end, contains only little actual content. JaKa still have that wild, enjoyable energy about them, yet the effectiveness of their musical execution has seemingly lessened in these last few years. In future, I hope for a more streamlined approach with songs that manage to combine several creative ideas, instead of relying on short, single-riff interludes to act as one-trick ponies.