Der Weg Einer Freiheit – Innern

Vicky

I feel that, in a world where every rocker has at least one favorite “trve” Norwegian Black Metal band, the German extreme Metal scene has become undoubtedly underrated. However, it is not necessarily something bad – us, fans of Central European Dark Metal may see it as more of a treasure hidden in plain sight. You might expect the remainder of this article to be about a (new) release of a German band. And you are certainly not wrong. Here I am to give you more details about Der Weg Einer Freiheit (“The Way of a Freedom”)’s new album, Innern (“Inward”). Is this truly The Way to an Inner Freedom? From certain points of view, no.

I’ve been a fan of these talented Germans for a few years now (I first discovered them a short while after the release of their 2021 Noktvrn album, through a Spotify playlist made by the Doom Metal band Dominia). However, even though I was really looking forward to listening to Innern, I must confess that I am a little bit disappointed.  Innern is, without a doubt, a transition to a more Doom approach to the (Atmospheric) Black Metal sound that has made Der Weg einer Freiheit so popular in the past. It has certainly evolved, and it was probably in search of a new sound, now that it has a new bassist (Alan Noruspur, that is).

On most tracks, I couldn’t even recognise the old Der Weg einer Freiheit sound that I knew so well (and loved, for that matter). It seems as if the members of the band are, indeed, moving even deeper in the abyss, as they themselves have stated, however they are pretty much swimming against the stream. If you have ever listened to Der Weg until now, I think you should start checking Innern out starting with the fourth song here, “Fragment”. That is my personal favorite, and, to be completely fair, the first song on this album that made me think: “Ah, yes, I am actually still listening to a Der Weg einer Freiheit album.”

The tracklist of this album is, at least in my opinion, not well balanced at all. The first three tracks (out of six) don’t hold the same power over the listener the same way that the last three do. Thus, “Marter”, “Xibalba”, and “Eos” are, at times, either too gloomy, or too raw, or even too Black Metal-esque for the taste of someone who just wanted to listen to Der Weg einer Freiheit. The final three songs, however, (“Fragment”, “Finisterre III” – hopefully, the last of the “Finisterre” songs –, and “Forlorn”) are brilliant. Listening to “Finisterre III” will make you want to revisit the first two parts of the trilogy. I guess we can call it a great finish to a series that has marked the face of Black Metal. Now, the finishing track, the epilogue, the grande finale – “Forlorn” – is the only song with lyrics in English on Innern. I must say, it’s a work of art. It has made me forgive Der Weg einer Freiheit for the first three tracks on the album.

No matter what the future brings for these gifted Germans, I am sure that they will make us proud. Enjoy Innern and I truly wish that, in the future, Der Weg einer Freiheit finds its own sound again.

Label: Season of Mist

Release date: September 12, 2025

(a very well put together, if you ask me) Website: https://derwegeinerfreiheit.de/

Country: Germany

Score: 3.5/5.0