Perchta – D’Muata | soundsfromthedarkside

Perchta - DMuata Austrian folk black metallers Perchta are back with their sophomore effort and I’ll be damned if it’s not the craziest shit you’ll hear all year. Let’s investigate.

Hailing from Tyrol, Austria, Perchta was formed in 2017, with their debut offering Ufång being unleashed upon the world in 2020. It was a remarkable album with heavy folk leanings mixed with a healthy dollop of black and death metal. Thematically it was all about the four elements and the four seasons and sounded like Heilung and Ne Obliviscaris had a musical child together. Then of course the pandemic happened, robbing Perchta of their momentum. D’Muata, basically a feminist manifesto set to folk and black metal, translates to The Mother in English and is the band’s second album. And my goodness me, is it something else.

The album starts with Vom Verlånga, which lyrically is all about the female sexuality. We’ll refrain from linking to the uncensored video, but know that it is so explicit that it can only be found on various adult video sites. In just over seven minutes, Vom Verlånga is the perfect showcase for what you’ll find on D’Muata: furious tremolo riffing, rolling blast beats, hammered Dulcimer and the most unhinged, insane vocals you’ve heard in a long while. Frau Percht alternates clean vocals with almost feral screams, soft whispers and tribal chanting. To say she is the star that makes this stuff work would be an understatement. If you thought Vom Verlånga was impressive, Ois wås man san doubles down on both the insanity and the black metal, with an enchanting, calming ocean of folk in the middle section to change things up and keep you on your toes.

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After the creepy spoken word interlude Heiliges Bluat we are treated to the next highlight, Hebamm, which translates to Midwife (vocalist Frau Percht is a midwife in real life). It’s an enchanting, mostly mid tempo piece with a lot of tribal chanting and percussion and a wonderful melodic guitar solo in the middle. The title track is probably my favourite song on the album right now. Alternating once more between soft whispers, clean vocals and frightening shrieks, the song is driven by the hammered Dulcimer and machine gun drumming. It’s awesome.

The sombre Wehenkanon (contraction cannon) is as creepy as it is enchanting, followed by Ausbruch, which is a short piece with just drums, wailing and screaming. Långtuttin & Stampa is by far the craziest song on D’Muata. It starts out with the raspy, whispering, almost witch-like vocals of Frau Percht before all hell breaks loose. The screams are completely off the wall, utterly bizarre and captivating as the drums and guitars kick in before it gets quiet again. This cycle keeps on going throughout the song, with the hammered Dulcimer helping in creating an uneasy feeling. Mei Dianä Mei Bua closes the album out in a mostly mid tempo manner, with the song dying off to the sound of a crying baby.

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D’Muata is not only a captivating folk metal album, it’s a journey. In exactly forty-seven minutes and forty-seven seconds, Perchta creates an otherworldly atmosphere that will keep you glued to your audio system. What helps in creating that sense of mysticism is that all the vocals on the album are in the Tyrolean vernacular. If you understand German, you will catch some words here and there, but the full meaning will undoubtedly elude you. It makes for an absolutely enthralling adventure. Perchta is not for everyone, but If you like your folk metal blackened or your black metal folky, D’Muata might just do the trick for you.

Label: Prophecy Productions

Buy it here: https://perchta-official.bandcamp.com/

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