Review by Felix on June 18, 2023.

Once Impaled Nazarene came out of the blue and out of the zoo (remember their formidable intermezzos on their debut). They did not need much time to release an all-time classic, at least from my point of view. “Ugra Karma” was, still is and will ever be a true milestone. Nine reviews with an average of 91% speak a clear language. Too bad that the gang did never reach this form again. Only every now and then, they served up a song that could compete with the material of their discography’s highlight. “Rapture” houses one of these songs. I am speaking of “6th Degree Mindf**k”.

Its lyrics are lovely as always (“First degree, one simple step, just burn your skin with a cigarette“ – the following degrees are very pleasant as well) and honestly speaking, the general song structure does not differ from the other songs. However, here they use their formula truly masterly. Despite its almost pathological insanity, this mindf**k is catchy, furious and intoxicating. There are more songs that leave their aroma, „Iron Fist with an Iron Will“ or „Healers of the Red Plague“. All of them are based on brute, punk-drenched rawness and those who expect a certain atmosphere will be disappointed. Impaled Nazarene just hammer on the head of everyone who stands in their way. They are successful in doing so, but this monotonous way of proceeding is not the most interesting spectacle.

Lyric-wise, the band borders on self-parody. We learn new things about rectums, a certain phallus and, naturally, goatvomit and gasmasks. How exciting! Some may find it funny, I think it’s a bit stupid. And this word also comes to my mind when I have to say something about the musical approach. „Rapture“ does not suffer from a lack of energy and the uncompromising attitude deserves respect, but this is no excuse for a completely one-dimensional celebration of murderous velocity. Okay, I would not call the album stupid in its entirety, because the single songs usually reach a solid (sometimes good) level. Nevertheless, I ask myself whether minimalist riffing and robotic drumming are really the last word on the subject. Especially the lack of atmosphere is regrettable. “Ugra Karma” demonstrated that total violence and a creepy mood are not mutually exclusive (“Cyber Christ”).

And what about Mika Luttinen? Well, he screams and screams and screams. Furthermore, he screams. Does his one-pitch-approach reflect his limitation or his dedication? I don’t know. At the end of the day, the material does not profit from his performance, but he also does not ruin the songs. By the way, there is exactly one song that breaks out of the high-velocity-and-nothing-else motto. Significantly, it’s the closer. Too bad that its riffs are rather boring. Anyway, despite its somewhat flat and emotionless production and the aforementioned deficiencies, “Rapture” does not fall through the net. It’s no masterpiece, but some songs are well done and spread a beastly vitality – even 25 years after its release. (And I am sure the band loves the score of my rating.)

rating: 6.9 out of 10