UMUR
"Lying in Wait" is the 2nd full-length studio album by German thrash metal act Depressive Age. The album was released through GUN Records in 1993. It´s the successor to "First Depression" from 1992 and it features the exact same quintet lineup who recorded the predecessor. Depressive Age formed in East-Berlin in 1984 under the Blackout monicker but changed their name to Depressive Age in 1988. Most of the band fled to West-Berlin during the last years of the cold war, but lead vocalist Jan Lubitzki was caught during his escape and was sentenced to spend a year in jail for the failed escape attempt.
The material on "Lying in Wait" continue the semi-progressive thrash/heavy metal style of "First Depression (1992)" and the two albums are in many ways sibling releases. They feature a similar musical style and also a sound production which is pretty similar on both releases (featuring the same thin sounding drum production and guitar tone). "Lying in Wait" is maybe slightly more sophisticated in the songwriting department but to my ears it´s details. Lubitzki´s distinct sounding voice and singing style (and the strong melancholy in his delivery) is defining for the sound of Depressive Age (as is his strong German accent) and although they are often labelled thrash metal and they arguably share some traits with that genre, "Lying in Wait" (just like its predecessor) isn´t really what most people would perceive as a thrash metal release.
Depressive Age are a far more eclectic act and they include elements from both thrash metal (of the more technical kind), traditional heavy metal, and progressive metal. They even include death metal vocals on the closing track "Eternal Twins", although that is a one of. "Eternal Twins" is one of the highlights of the album, featuring lyrics about a good and an evil twin. Lubitzki performs the role of the good twin singing clean vocals while guest vocalist Peter Habermann plays the role of the evil twin and performs the aggressive growling vocals. A music video was made for the track which aired on MTV´s Headbangers´s Ball, and gave Depressive Age quite a bit of exposure.
Other highlights include "Berlin", "Way Out", and "Where", but "Lying in Wait" is a strong and very unique listen throughout. It´s an album for the more adventure seeking thrash/heavy metal listener, and it´s definitely recommeded to that type of audience. If you solely crave more traditional sounding thrash metal this is probably not for you. A 3.5 - 4 star (75%) rating is deserved.