Rating: 9/10
Release: 24 March 2023
Label: Napalm Records

German folk rock icons Subway To Sally want to inspire hope with their 14th studio album named “Himmelfahrt” (translated “Ascension”). This album marks a turning point in the thirty-year career of the German band, which has always explored the various abysses of the human soul and celebrated its successes: the leitmotif of the album is hope, but this album also celebrates the confidence that can not exist without the bitterness in front of current events in the world. “Himmelfahrt” is the clear proof that despite 30 years of career and 13 previous albums Subway To Sally can still be fresh and innovative, without losing their relevance.

As for the music, Subway To Sally has outdone itself. The 12 tracks range from energetic moments to more reflective and “calm” moments. Among the tracks stand out “Was Ihr Wollt”, which has a medieval tavern atmosphere and pushes you to dance to the rhythm, “Gaudens in Domino” sung entirely in Latin, making it almost solemn and that almost acts as a prologue to the next “Gott spricht”where you hear organ and bells. Honorable mention for “Ihr Kriegt Uns Nie”, which is the one that gives a little more hope, “Halt”, that makes you want to dance and with a beautiful sound of flutes in the final minutes and “Lasst Die Himmel Fall’n”, acoustic song with a base of strings and other string instruments.

The songs on this album speak of departures and journeys, of reaching out to others to lead them to hope from their darkest depths, while knowing that the problems of the world at this time in a severe test. As the band states: ”The songwriting for Himmelfahrt began long before the Covid-19 pandemic hit, just shortly after the release of our last album Hey! (2019), which in retrospect seems prophetic and depressing in the face of international pandemics and wars.“ For the first time, in the face of all of this bleakness, the band had to face the hard truth of asking themselves, “Is this not an appropriate time to celebrate hope?” So, sadly, the initial new album material was disposed of, as the band took the stance of, “Hope is fuel for the future.”[…] “Many songs on the new album are about departure and journey; about reaching out to others to lead them from their darkest depths in hopes of rising above – all the while knowing that current world events, however, put this hope to the most severe test. Thus details the downtrodden bitterness that clouds hope. Even God has to have his say on the album, to vent his disappointment with his own work.”

In conclusion this album is presented to the public with stellar arrangements, very deep lyrics and melodies sometimes overwhelming, but sometimes restrained. The songs of Subway To Sally are sometimes loud and sometimes quieter, but always seasoned with the trademark that has distinguished them in recent decades, churning out a really nice album and full of hope despite the bad period.

Tracklist

1. Was ihr wollt
2. Leinen los
3. Gaudens in domino
4. Gott spricht
5. Auf dem Hügel
6. So tief
7. Weit ist das Meer
8. Autum
9. Eisbrecher
10. Halt
11. Ihr kriegt uns nie
12. Lasst die Himmel fall’n