Album Review: Kanonenfieber – Soldatenschicksale (Century Media)

German blackened death metal project Kanonenfieber return with their new album, Soldatenschicksale, set for release on January 30th via Century Media.

Kanonenfieber first emerged in 2020 as the brainchild of Noise, releasing their debut album Menschenmühle in 2021 and quickly establishing themselves as one of the most striking new names in extreme metal. Built around a core of blackened death metal, the project pairs ferocity with purpose, something that has translated powerfully to the live stage. Since that debut, Kanonenfieber have toured extensively, delivering intense and theatrical performances at major European festivals such as Summer Breeze, Rockharz, Full Force, Party.San, and Dong Open Air, where their dramatic presentation and sheer emotional weight have left a lasting impression.

At the heart of Kanonenfieber is a deeply personal and historically grounded concept. Noise writes and records all of the music, remaining the sole creative force in the studio, while a live band supports him on stage so he can focus on vocals and performance. The project was inspired by the diary of Noise’s great-grandfather, written while serving on the front lines during the Second World War. Reading these first-hand accounts proved harrowing, and sparked the desire to create music that commemorates the victims of war rather than glorifying it. That commitment to authenticity runs through Kanonenfieber’s work, with lyrics drawn directly from letters, reports, and historical documents. The anonymity of the band members reinforces this idea, serving as a reference to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and underlining the universality of war’s horrors.

That concept is taken further on the new album, Soldatenschicksale, which is essentially a compilation delivering a few new songs, reimagining of previous singles and more. Whether through the new songs, or the reworked ones, Soldatenschicksale reinforces Kanonenfieber’s mission: extreme metal used not just to overwhelm, but to educate, memorialise, and warn.

Soldatenschicksale gets underway with Z-Vor!, where a marching beat and spoken words quickly set the scene and draw you in atmospherically. As the song explodes into blackened life, it’s very easy to get into. It’s heavy, with ripping vocals delivered at pace over a bed of blackened beats and riffs. Vocal variations and death metal gang vocals add to the power and emphasis. Amongst the darkness, a lead guitar melody brings extra depth before really shining through as it takes the lead in a superbly catchy rhythmic section. It’s a powerful and impactful start that flows straight into Heizer Tenner.

Here, the tone drops as atmospheric sounds lead the way before the extremely dark and heavy music takes control. The drums are fast and intense, the riffs dark and crunchy. Lead guitars add layers of threatening melody, while the vocals hit on another level entirely, constantly shifting between gutturals, roars, and growls. Despite this crushing weight, there’s a clear and memorable chorus, and the driving drum patterns in the verses are guaranteed to have heads banging.

Ubootsperre acts as a short narrative interlude, using submarine radar sounds before Kampf und Sturm takes up the mantle and unleashes a fast, aggressive assault of blackened death metal. There’s a standout section where the song drops into a beat-driven groove, intertwined with the pulsing radar beeps, and it sounds phenomenal. It’s a clever idea, executed with equally clever writing. Die Havarie follows with a dark, moody melody that slowly grows as guitars, bass, and drums add layers. While it eventually erupts into another fast and fiery track, the overall tone feels even more sinister this time around.

These variations in tone, alongside the layered atmospheric effects, give each song a real sense of identity. Even with such a consistently heavy core, the tracks and their stories flow naturally while still managing to stand out in their own right.

We head into two-parter territory next with Der Füsilier I and II. Part I is the longest track on the album at nearly six and a half minutes, and it keeps the brutality firmly at the forefront with an intense drum performance and fiery riffs. There’s a really nasty, gloomy blackened doom section that lands with real impact, yet it still somehow delivers a chorus that’s surprisingly catchy. Spoken-word passages (presumably in German) and a weaving melodic thread help keep the atmosphere fully formed before the heaviness returns, eventually fading out and carrying us into Part II.

A melancholic melody guides us through the intro of Part II and into one of my favourite tracks on Soldatenschicksale. I love the pace of the verses, the menace in the vocals, and the prominence of the lead guitars. Its slower, thumping groove is made for headbanging, while the chorus is phenomenal, with harmonised clean vocals intertwined with harsh deliveries sounding genuinely impressive. Kanonenfieber deliver something deeply emotional here, demonstrating real skill in conveying feeling through music alone, even without understanding the language. You feel it completely.

We then move on to the penultimate track, The Yankee Division March, where a brief melodic build-up gives way to an explosive burst of heaviness. The drums are on fire, the riffs hit hard, the vocals are powerful, and the lead guitars add welcome depth. Extra emphasis on the bookending drum thump might seem like a small detail, but it has a huge impact on the flow and punch of the track. It’s another standout moment.

Soldatenschicksale closes with Die Fastnacht der Hölle, and by this point it comes as no surprise that it’s yet another stunning track. The atmospheric intro and marching commands draw you in, the lead guitars that carry the melody are glorious, and when the heaviness drops, it crushes with a grooving momentum driven by pounding drums, thick riffs, and commanding vocals. You’re effortlessly transported into the horrors at the heart of the band’s concept, fully engaged almost instantly. It’s a memorable closer and a fitting end to a very special album.

Kanonenfieber are clearly a hugely talented outfit, and Soldatenschicksale showcases that perfectly. Whether in new songs, or older ones, it feels fresh and exciting. It’s consistently aggressive and intense, bordering on brutal at times, yet remains engaging throughout, delivering levels of catchiness it has no right to in music this heavy. The World War concept is clear and powerfully realised, not just through samples and spoken sections, but through the overall tone and atmosphere. It’s an exceptional album, and already shaping up to be one of my very favourite releases of 2026.

Track List:

1 – Z-Vor!
2 – Heizer Tenner
3 – Ubootsperre
4 – Kampf und Sturm
5 – Die Havarie
6 – Der Füsilier 1
7 – Der Füsilier 2
8 – The Yankee Division March
9 – Die Fastnacht der Hölle

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