Review BLACK SPACE RIDERS ‘We Have Been Here Before’

Black Space Riders from Münster started an exciting journey through the worlds of hard music in 2008. The self-titled debut album was just the beginning and six more longplayers followed. After the band released with ‘Amoretum Vol. 1 & 2 ‘ two records within a year in 2018, it took a little longer for fans to be able to hold a new album in their hands.

The wait has now come to an end as JE, SEB, SLJ, CRIP and MEI have finalized a new longplayer with ‘We Have Been Here Before’. With this album Black Space Riders focus on quality and quantity. 15 songs provide almost 1.5 hours of pure enjoyment and since the band doesn’t cut back on quality, the latest opus of the Münster-based outfit is a lot of fun to listen to.

The quintet is renewed on a mix of metal, psychedelic and rock, all infused by progressive elements. This results in a very varied album. However, since the band works with great soundscapes and catchy hooks, there is a common thread that runs through the entire album and connects the 15 songs with each other.
The five guys kick things off with the furiously thumping ‘Crawling (Down With Everything)’, which follows an intro. The entry into the album could not have been chosen better, as the song gives a good sense of what is to come. The following ‘Trapped in An Endless Loop’ is no less powerful and it’s the grooving bass parts that define the song.

With ‘Almost the Lost’ Black Space Riders show that they can also write very atmospheric songs. It is a beautiful song, which creates a comforting organic warmth.

With ‘Shine’ the guys have put a darker and roaring song on record before the complex and wild ‘AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRGGGH’ provides a thrill. The title track comes out of the boxes almost spacy and especially the robot-like verse towers up.

With ‘In Dust’ the band shows that their songs always include an atmospheric component. Rather calmly held, ‘In Dust’ has an emotional heaviness without making use of powerful riffs.

In this context, it is not surprising that the quintet has put with ‘Queen of Light’ and ‘Worlds Collide Dans Ma Tete’ two epic pieces at the end of the album. ‘Queen of Light’ is an upbeat rock song that builds on a melancholic framework and yet exudes a certain lightness.

With almost eleven minutes ‘Worlds Collide Dans Ma Tete’ is by far the longest song on the album. It is a very multifaceted track, which does not leave its basic structure at any time and simultaneously Black Space Riders manage to give the closer different levels of heaviness, from quiet and fragile to loud and ferocious.

With ‘We Have Been Here Before’ Black Space Riders has succeeded in creating a kind of masterpiece. The band doesn’t follow any trends, but presents music with passion and emotion. In addition, the album manages with a certain catchiness to inspire immediately, while it is the details that reveal themselves with each new round and give the listener a lasting delight.