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TANKARD
Pavlov’s Dawgs

Reaper Entertainment (2022)
Rating: 8/10

It’s often been debated as to whether this German posse of beer-drinkers should have been part of the Teutonic Big Four alongside Destruction, Sodom and Kreator, but I just don’t think Tankard cares. Instead, they belong in their own field… or should I say, drinking establishment when it comes to goofy thrash. I’ll be brutally honest when it comes to Tankard, I love the 80s stuff but then lost track, only every now and then dipping back into their alehouse for a good time.

Pavlov’s Dawgs is the 18th full-length studio album proper from these veterans, which is a crazy statistic when you consider how harsh the 90s were to metal with many bands either pandering to record label pressure and changing style or just bailing out. Tankard marched on like a horde of drunken zombies, eager to carry their comedic beer-obsessed thrash onwards and upwards, and now we are here, ready to be trounced by another batch of alcohol-infused anthems such as ‘Beerbarians’ and ‘Lockdown Forever’.

Yes, Tankard has somewhat become the German version of Anvil, whereby songs tend to become monotonous and the joke wears off quickly, but if you do want a metal party soundtrack then Tankard should be your go-to band. Yes, the comedy element is strong, but it always has been. However, while vocalist Gerre rants away, it’s worth taking into consideration the steely thrash the rest of the gang constructs.

The likes of the title track, ‘Diary Of A Nihilist’ and ‘Lockdown Forever’, for all of its dodgy lyrics, remain quite brooding in their music and to an extent there is a lot of dark sarcasm on offer here too. What Pavlov’s Dawgs does do is remind me just how criminally underrated Tankard remains in spite of being heralded as a German Big Four member. With countless contemporary bands attempting to ape this style, Tankard remains true to its heart and provides a sneering, hard-hitting album that, although overlong, is in fact more than just drunken rambling.

As ‘On The Day I Die’ rounds off this opus I’m left feeling somewhat apologetic for once perceiving them as a one-trick pony and instead raise a toast to Tankard and it’s ever-lasting appeal. I may not have been a hardened follower after the 1990 opus The Meaning Of Life but I’m sure as hell glad I came back for another brew.

Neil Arnold

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