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Grenzenlos – AntiXtrem

Florian Buechting Media Review No Comments

Grenzenlos - AntiXTrem

Grenzenlos - AntiXTrem
3.9

Rating

 3.9/5

Flyctory.com Pros

  • Very good songwriting
  • Powerful and catching tracks

Flyctory.com Cons

  • Some songs don't work out well

Some harder rock from Southern Germany: Grenzenlos have been growing their fan base during the last years significantly. The have been a support act for major German bands as well as doing well-selling headline shows. On 26th May 2023, they release their new album AntiXtrem. I had a listen.

 

Grenzenlos – About The Artists

Grenzenlos is a German (and German lyrics) rock band. They have been founded in 2013 in Kempten in the Allgäu region. Especially in recent years, the band was very active and released four albums since 2015. Their latest one, the 2022 Mittendrin statt Aussen dabei, made it to the Top 20 of the German charts, just as its predecessor Keine Einigkeit um Recht & Freiheit (2020). According to my information, the band members are Martin Kaun (vocals, guitar), Marco Oppeld (guitar), Martin Thannheimer (bass) and Johannes Oswald (drums).

 

Grenzenlos – AntiXtrem – Track by Track

The twelve track album lasts 38 minutes.

1. AntiXtrem

Regardless what you feel about the music of Grenzenlos, you just cannot say that they are not straight. There is a clear message in their songs, you won’t find too picturesque comparisons or unnecessary metaphors. Thus, starting with the “anti-extreme” title track just feels to be the only option. AntiXtrem, wir sind antiXtrem, wir kämpfen für die Freiheit – “Anti-extreme, we are anti-extreme, we are fighting for freedom”. That’s about the core message of the whole album.

2. Grüße gehen raus

Roughly twenty seconds of a guitar intro – that’s just the maximum the Southern Germans dare to give you before they increase the rock force. The song is a bit of pathetic, but is a great sing-a-long. Some sort of a band mantra:

Das Spiel beginnt
Wir sind bereit
Garantiert nicht ohne Sünde
Doch ehrlich jederzeit
Wir zeigen Euch
Was in uns steckt
Die Band, die Euer Ego fickt
Und in die Hölle schickt.

(“The game begins
We are ready
Definitely not without sins
But honest all the time
Wir sho you
What’s inside us
The band which fucks your ego
And sends you to hell”)

3. Libertas

The album is full of short, precise and rather concise messages. This also leads to a strong focus on the lyrics and singer Martin Kaun. Nonetheless, songs like Libertas also come with some instrumental parts, which illustrate the instrumental skills of Grenzenlos as well.

4. Ich gebe nicht auf

With a strong support from the drumming section, the band states “I don’t give up” in the chorus. The chorus is also the most catching part of the song. The stanzas feel a bit of arbitrary compared to it.

5. 1000 Gründe für ein Ja

After this four song rock firework, the die-hard ballad feels a bit of surprising. The song as such is not bad at all. I feel the band should have rather passed it to other performers. It feels too soupy, too kitschy in their band setup.

6. Allgäuer Jungs

While I struggled with the predecessor, the sixth song made me smile from the very beginning. Allgäuer Jungs, an ode to life and values in the Allgäu region, opens with some accordion sounds. A touch of Weird Al on the Grenzenlos album? At least it sounds authentic – and it works out nicely.

7. Geteilt, vereint

Geteilt, vereint is one of the core tracks of the album. It deals with the still somehow mentally existing split between “West Germans” and “East Germans”, more than 30 years after the German Reunion. Es ist Zeit für ein neues Land ohne Ost und West, sondern Hand in Hand – “It is time for a new country without East and West, but hand in hand”. Definitely hard to argue against that.

8. 20zehn

The eighth song (meaning 2010) is a slightly melancholic looking back to being young, having fun with your friends from school. Many of you may be able to relate to this song – even though the exact year might be earlier – or later – for you. Nice listen.

9. Totaler Amoklauf

The title of this track translates to “Total rampage”. The song accuses politicians to be Kriegstreiber – warmongers. Impressive listen, but I again feel that the song is not reaching its full potential.

10. Contenance

The song comes with a rather hard sound and a lot of repetitions. Not the most complex write of the album – but I am sure this is a great one to party towards the end of a Grenzenlos show.

11. Alles wird gut

Even though the second last track of the album is very rocking and dark and thus comes with a completely different atmosphere, it reminds me of 1000 Gründe für ein Ja. The song as such is a good write. A song which is cheery and uplifting if you suffer from a bad situation. The band just does not find a really good way to turn the idea into a great song.

12. Deutschrock stirbt nie

No need to struggle for too long – the chucker-out is a blast. Grenzenlos states Deutschrock stirbt nie – “German rock never dies”. An anthem for the whole rock scene in Germany. Love it!

 

Grenzenlos – AntiXtrem – Spotify

Here is AntiXTrem on Spotify:

 

Grenzenlos – AntiXtrem – My View

Overall, AntiXTrem is a cool German rock album. Unfortunately, there are some weak spots, in which good song material does not reach its full potential. Nonetheless, Grenzenlos released a very nice soundtrack for 2023 summer rock parties in German speaking countries.

 

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