Marduk's stage performance is good. Not outstanding, not inspiring … just good. And the DVD of their performance is about as good as any low budget metal act filmed in a smoky club. What's interesting to note, though, is that the DVD contains two filmed shows – Paris, France; and Krakow, Poland. The Paris show comes on first, yet it is the Krakow show that will be more rewarding to Marduk fans. There's a bigger crowd, better lighting and clearer sound.
You'd better be up for some heavy death metal, 'cause Funeral Marches And Warsongs is above average but standard-fare extreme metal – including the rather typical chord progressions, the grunting that isn't as evil as most, and the heavy double-bass-driven bottom end.
Besides the two concerts and some bonus tracks with terrible sound quality recorded at a show in Germany, there isn't much in the way of extra DVD material. No interviews, background, tour footage, studio scenes … only a few still pictures, a short written bio and a discography. The DVD's insert booklet is pretty meager as well, containing few dozen photos spread across 6 pages.
Marduk's music is pure death / black metal. The DVD rarely zooms in on the musicians – most footage is reserved for the out-of-shape and shirtless vocalist and his excessive antics – but when you do see close-ups of the guitarist's fretboard your impression of the music is reconfirmed. This is essentially really simple stuff. Some songs have slightly complicated riffs, and thankfully there isn't as much low-end distortion as most of Marduk's contemporaries. But it's still pure black metal and there isn't a melodic line, a progressive passage, or a clean-sung verse on the entire DVD. The extreme negativity of the genre is evident in the band's stage presence, the lyrics, the style of the music, and the lyrics – presented in almost accent-free English – not that you can make out more than a dozen of the growled words.
With song titles like "Fistfucking Gods Planet", "World Funeral", "With Satan And Victorious Weapons" and "Jesus Christ Sodomized" – this is not what you'll be playing in the background the next time you're hosting your bible-study group!
Recommended for Marduk fans.
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