You might stumble upon this review and think “why would a band such as Wiegedood be featured on a hardcore/punk blog?”. This is of course a legitimate question, so let me tell you why: Apart from the fact Wiegedood shares members with some LA favorites, your reviewer is an avid black metal fan and considers De Doden Hebben Het Goed as one of the better albums in this genre this year. Also, the cover is great. Open-minded punk fan or not, give this record a spin, because it deserves one!

De Doden Hebben Het Goed is the debut album by Belgium’s Wiegedood, a band consisting of members from Rise And Fall, Oathbreaker, Amenra and Hessian. Three of those bands are affiliated with the Church of Ra (started by Amenra), and this project is a nice addition to the roster. Although stylistically quite different from the bands mentioned above, Wiegedood’s furious post/black metal hybrid still manages to capture the same vibe.

It has al the elements a good black metal record should have: tremolo picked riffs, very fast drumming (with a lot of heavy, slower parts too), high pitched screams and an overal bleak atmosphere. The closest comparison you can make is probably Wolves In The Throne Room, but Wiegedood uses lesser ambient parts and especially opener ‘Svanesang’ reminds of early Marduk. ‘Kwaad Bloed’ is the most experimental track, with its solo and a acoustic guitar outro that ends in noise.

The second half of the album features the title track, which opens with a very groove and hypnotizing riff. ‘Onder Gaan’ is the definitive highlight featuring mostly mid-tempo parts and a Russian speech as outro that leaves you craving for more music.

Wiegedood plays a very emotional take on black metal, which hopefully comes to full bloom on stage. I definetly can’t wait to see these guys live, because De Doden Hebben Het Goed gets better every time you play it.

De Doden Hebben Het Goed – Track list:

1. Svanesang
2. Kwaad Bloed
3. De Doden Hebben Het Goed
4. Onder Gaan

Wiegedood: Facebook / Bandcamp / Order Album & Merch

Written by Niels Koster