The Other is a German band that plays Horror Punk, a brilliant combination of happy Punk, Rock, and Metal music and horror-movie lyrics, and Fear Itself (Steamhammer/SPV) is their sixth studio album. With a line-up change that saw two new band members join the ranks of The Other, the musical styles are more diverse, ranging from Goth Rock and Power Metal to the regular Punk sound. Rod Usher’s vocals, while having a very different tone of voice, as often sung in a style similar to Volbeat.

After the mysterious intro ‘Fear Itself’, the album proper opens with ‘Nie Mehr’, a German-sung Hard Rock and Metal extravaganza, with enough melodiousness that it would make a great sing-along at a concert. ‘Black Sails Against A Midnight Sky’ also has a great shout-along chorus. The vocals, and especially backing vocals, in both ‘Dreaming of the Devil’ and ‘Doll Island’ are slightly on the edge, but this turns out to have rather a good stylistic effect for the genre.

One of my favourite songs on this album is ‘The Price You Play’, which combines Power Metal and Punk to create a cheerful but full sound; the chorus is especially fun with staccato guitars and sweeping vocals, and the bridge has the same kind of creepy vibe that Oomph! is especially good at. Another highlight is ‘Funeral March’, while a lot of the songs of this album can be construed as relatively normal songs, ‘Funeral March’ is really out and out in its lyrics and vocal style.

Throughout much of album the drumming is punk and the guitars metal, but ‘Animal Instinct’ is pure punk with horror lyrics, reminiscent of The Living End in its boundless energy and bass lines. If you like your music loud and energetic and your horror movies cheesy, then you’ll probably enjoy the living daylights out of this album.

7.5/10

LORRAINE LYSEN