When one looks beyond Tankard’s reputation as that punky thrash metal band with all the drinking anthems, a wealth of interesting material can be found. The band has always tried to strike a balance between alcohol-related content and socially aware lyrics. ‘One Foot In The Grave’ has a strong focus on the latter. And while the lyrics here are hardly the most nuanced or cleverly written observations of social wrongdoings, the atmosphere is more serious than one might expect from Tankard. And more importantly: the subject matter has apparently inspired one of their most consistent sets of songs to date.

Overall, ‘One Foot In The Grave’ has a somewhat melancholic atmosphere that really makes the album stand out in Tankard’s discography. Even the lone beer song (‘Secret Order 1516’) is a rather ambitious epic rather than the party vibe that the band is known for. The presence of guitarist Andreas Gutjahr makes such an approach possible, as his more melodic background has enriched Tankard’s traditional teutonic thrash sound with an almost melodeath feel in the riffing department, but the band as a whole never sounded as confidently melodic as on ‘One Foot In The Grave’, all the while retaining their aggressvie intensity.

The first thing that stands out about ‘One Foot In The Grave’ is how memorable the songs are. Tankard always had a handful of tracks with replay value on their records, but the ones that were not often had a tendency to blend together. This time, every track has a recognizable hook or – more often – a riff that will refuse to leave your head. There are some cool traditional thrashers, such as ‘Don’t Bullshit Us!’ and closing track ‘Sole Grinder’, but overall, the greater degree of dynamics really does wonders for the flow ‘One Foot In The Grave’ has.

Among the other tracks, ‘Syrian Nightmare’ is a highlight. The lyrics, written from the perspective of a Syrian boy, are actually surprisingly sensitive, but what is more important is that the music is really good. More intense than the lyrical idea might suggest, the triplet rhythms keep pushing the song forward, while Gutjahr adds some tasteful lead guitar parts here and there. The preceding title track is the best example of the album’s melodic sadness and has a bunch of fantastic guitar harmonies. ‘Northern Crown (Lament Of The Undead King)’ is a true gem as well, finding middle ground between Tankard thrash and epic heavy metal quite marvellously.

For those who would like to hear more of the melodic thrash that Tankard occasionally impressed with on albums like ‘The Beauty And The Beer’ or ‘A Girl Named Cerveza’, ‘One Foot In The Grave’ is likely the ultimate Tankard album thus far. Don’t get me wrong, the elements that make Tankard the band they are can be found all over the album, right down to Andreas ‘Gerre’ Geremia’s aggressive vocals, which have been left almost untouched by time. There are just more of those melodic touches that make latter day Tankard superior to their classic material for me on ‘One Foot in The Grave’. I hope they will continue this approach on the next album.

Recommended tracks: ‘Northern Crown (Lament Of The Undead King)’, ‘Syrian Nightmare’, ‘Secret Order 1516’, ‘One Foot In The Grave’