MOURNIN'

While it's tempting to think that most of the German rock bands of the early 70s were cranking out the kosmische sounds of Krautrock in the vein of Amon Duul II or Can, there existed in fact a few bands that weren't seeking escapism but rather searching for speed and volume excesses. While some Kraut bands like Embryo favored jazz and others like Tangerine Dream dropped the rock altogether to craft the freakiest electronic sounds ever heard, others like Birth Control, Lucifer's Friend and NIGHT SUN were going for the early heavy metal gusto, more infatuated by Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath than anything coming from the homeland. NIGHT SUN was formed in Mannheim in 1970 and only existed for three years as well as releasing only a single album yet the band's lone offering MOURNIN' is considered one of the heaviest rock albums to have emerged just after the world of proto-metal had been born.

While the Scorpions would become Germany's biggest heavy metal band, in 1972 that band's debut "Lonesome Crow" had one foot in the world of Krautrock and the other in heavier rock but NIGHT SUN on the other hand delivered one scorcher of an album that has gone down in history as one of metal's most essential early contributors to inspiring the future sounds of thrash metal, power metal and even progressive metal for that matter. Like many bands of the day before the term metal had really become a true genre and the spirit of experimentation was en vogue, MOURNIN' was more than an early precursor to the world of metal but also delivered an intriguing mix of 60s heavy psych, excursions of psychedelia and most of all labyrinthine progressive rock elements that made this band one of the earliest heavy prog bands that true embraced the wild complexities that the early 70s prog albums cranked out.

Despite delivering a scorching heavy rock album, the band was lucky enough to find Conny Planck in the producer's seat who had famously worked with Faust, Kraftwerk, David Bowie and a gazillion other prominent acts of the era but despite that good fortune was utterly ignored suffering the same indignity that many a band experienced with lackluster record labels that had no clue how to market their products. Somewhat of a mix of Uriah Heep, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and Lucifer's Friend, NIGHT SUN sounded like no other although it embraced the same organ driven heaviness that many heavier bands were embracing during the day. The band knew no limits though and through the nine tracks that mostly cranked out heavy guitar riffs still found a way to incorporate the bassoon and saxophone into the mix. The album starts out with the blitzkrieg delivery of "Plastic Shotgun" which features some of the fastest riffing and accompanying bass and drum action that the 70s had to offer.

The album meanders in the world of psychedelia with the near 8-minute "Got A Bone Of My Own" which despite offering a heady excursion into trippiness didn't really fit in with the world of Krautrock as even during these more chilled moments the band was still based in bluesy rock that had moments of heavy guitar distortion, trippy echo effects and a heavy psych sound more in the vein of Jimi Hendrix than fellow countrymen Birth Control. One of the most prominent features of NIGHT SUN's proggy heavy rock was the idiosyncratic vocal style of Bruno Schaab who sounded like a more ambitious Robert Plant with his brash bravado and nasal tone structures. The composiitons were heavily laced with many hairpin rhythmic shifts with extra tight guitar and organ interplay. The riffs are particularly bombastic and tracks like "Nightmare" offer a frenzied adrenalized speedfest which prognosticates the worlds of thrash and power metal styles that would emerge in the next decade.

NIGHT SUN's sole contribution to the world of heavy 70s prog is a must for anyone seeking out the origins of metal and despite having a somewhat dated sound that perfectly exemplifies the zeitgeist of the era is a feast to the ears for those who love the early proto-metal sounds of blues rocks blasting in high decibels accompanied by rampaging tempos and touches of downtime with psychedelic time period freakiness. NIGHT SUN had its origins in the 60s band jazz band Take Five which never released any material but was popular on the Mannheim circuit. The last track on MOURNIN' titled "Don't Start Flying" offers a tribute to that band with clever saxophone and bassoon extras. While the band didn't really craft a new sound per se as it exemplified the standard bluesy rock with distortion and speed turned up a few notches, NIGHT SUN nevertheless offered an excellent adventurous album within that framework and is now considered one of those lost gems of the 70s.