The German Dark Age was founded in the spring of 1995 and previously released two full-length albums on the Remedy Records label, The Fall and Insurrection. Now the band is back with a new album which is their most mature attempt up-to-date entitled: The Silent Republic.

Dark Age is not your typical German heavy or power metal band but instead they play “straight-in-your-face” metal that is reminiscent of a band like Gardenian. The music is a mixture of Gothenburg death thrash and black metal, pounding and smashing with unlimited energy. The guitar riffs in general are quite predictable but they somehow compel you to bang your head. The songs thrive on singer Eike Freese’s extremely aggressive vocals yet the band works its way through the eleven tracks without being able to surprise for one single second. But then again the band doesn’t really disappoint either.

The Silent Republic is an album that is clearly influenced by bands like Gardenian, Dark Tranquillity and In Flames but there are also slightly more poppy influences. Listen for instance to “Know Me Strong” and “Return” and you will know what I mean. The CD ends with the excellent AC/DC cover “Hell’s Bells”, which is played with the same energy as all the other tracks. Additional highlights are the title track, “Daily Combat” and Now Or Never”.

Dark Age basically don’t have much novelties to offer, nevertheless The Silent Republic is a very solid album that could very well interest anyone into aggressive Gothenburg death thrash. The poppy influences, however, are not my cup of tea and the fact that these cause some of the songs sound like hit chart classics slightly affects this band’s credibility.