Greetings ladies and gents,

For those inspired by the Germanic Gods, I would highly recommend the purchase of Waldteufel's HEIMLICHES DEUTSCHLAND. The band, consisted primarily of (at the time of release) Markus Wolff and Annabel Lee, though it had many guests, most notably, Michael Moynihan, who is the man behind the inspiring Heathen "apocolyptic neo folk" act "BLOOD AXIS"...

That being said, that type of music is not what you will find here. You will hear snare drum, a bodhran, wood pipes, bass drum, cello, an accordion, trumpets, the violin and many other wonderful instruments... Lyrically, don't get Nazi-nostalgic. You will find pure continental Heathen songs here - traditional poems and songs from the late 1800s and early 1900s, no Nazi sympathies. Wolff is more of a folk-hippie artist, in the same vein as Fidus - and he makes beautiful sculptures of the Germanic Gods and Goddesses and is one hell of an artist as well. I've got some of his best works here...

His voice? Hmm, it is very hard to describe. Wolff has a very deep voice (and I mean VERY), and the lyrics are entirely in German, as he is a German. He happens to live in the States now, but he is German.

The standout track, in my opinion is "Lichtkreuzweihe", after a song by Herman Wirth, from 1926. For those who know, Wirth was quite an interesting character. He was an avid researcher of Germanic Heathenism in the pre-Nazi days - and his researches did not go un-noticed by Himmler. He was appointed as the first president of the Deutsches Ahnenerbe e.V. (the German Ancestral Society) in July of 1935 - however, Wirth was a bit too 'out-there' for the Society (?) and was replaced by Walter Wüst in 1937. Rumour has it Wirth was a bit too much into Atlantis...and obviously not Nazi at heart! At any rate, the song is a standout! It is about Questenfest - a German custom from the Harz region, with obvious Heathen connections, no matter how it is cloaked.

Others include "Irminsul" and "Wodans Wilde Jagd". This is pure bliss for Heathens, and even for those who are Germanophiles - and for those who speak no German, Markus or Ultra! will be glad to send you a sheet (or email) with English translations of the tracks...

I have owned the disk since it came out - I listen to it daily. Why? It is inspiring. No bullshit about it. Nothing pretentious, as with so many so-called Heathen groups. It is real - Markus is real.

See the band on MySpace at www.myspace.com/waldteufel

All the best, Brothers and Sisters!

Tschüß!
Larry

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