Review of the Album "The Meaning of Life" by German Thrash Metal Band Tankard

"The Meaning of Life" is the 4^th studio album by German thrash metal band Tankard and the album title is very symbolic. Why should music fans pay attention to this album? It is because the album tries to bring awareness to the preciousness of life and the fact that Planet Earth is in danger. Life is so fleeting and because of this, we have to make sure to live it well. It is so symbolic that I remember asking myself the question: what is the meaning of life? Why are we even here on this planet? These philosophical questions are two of the main factors why I decided to give this album a review. My first thought of the meaning of life as we are in 2018 is this: the meaning of life is to lead a meaningful existence doing the things that you enjoy doing. Who knows what can happen?

The environment is facing many challenges including environmental pollution, acid rain, and the use of atomic power. Can this planet survive at this rate? These are some of the questions raised by the song called Dancing on Our Grave. The song “The Meaning of Life” asks the question: why do we live and die? The desperation and mystery to this question can drive us crazy but for me, this is a fundamental question that I seek the answer to so that I can live a fulfilled life. A weekend escape to a nearby location is only temporary and then it is back to same cycle of working to make a living.

By 1990, Tankard has gotten away from their thrash and punk roots of 1986 and 1987 and we begin to hear a more thrash metal sound in the first two songs. The album starts off in a rather interesting fashion. Or is it really that interesting? The song Open All Night is a song about a group of men who cannot get enough of drinking and late night partying but the clubs and bars close down at 1 or 2 AM. The subway does not function past 1AM so how are these men supposed to get back home? They have that feeling of needing to consume more whiskey and beer into the late night hours. We Are Us is a song about trying to really be who you really are, being someone that people can trust. If you are not trustworthy and honest, only the dishonest people will want to be around you. We have to be ourselves and not to just try to be ourselves but to actually be a person that other people can trust. Deception is one of the qualities that I certainly don’t like to see in anyone. Mechanical Man is a song about an employee that comes into work not being in control of their destiny. They are like a chess piece or pawn in another person’s game. This is something that describes what Corporate America is like as the employee is considered to be expendable. They are laid off when the employer claims to not be able to afford to keep them anymore. This is just the nature of the work environment especially in the United States as job security is long gone.

The fast and heavy song called Beermuda is a song about a person that feels frustrated and he wants to go away on a vacation to an island that has warm weather, sandy beaches, and some place where he can get his beer. He wants to be able to see all the beautiful women that will be waiting for him and in this place, no one works but such a place can only be seen in our imaginations. Even in warm weather locations, people still have to work to make a living.

Will we ever find happiness in our lives before our death? Happiness is not something to find but to cultivate in ourselves. The next song called Space Beer is a song that combines lyrics about having fun while in space as well as drinking this special kind of beer that is said to cure hangovers. Of course, such a scenario is only a fantasy but the band looks at having fun in a humorous way. As usual, when having fun it is important to have fun in a safe and responsible kind of way. By this point in the album, there are several solid or standout songs. These are Open All Night, We Are Us, Dancing On Our Grave, and Beermuda. Always Them is a sort of anti-racist kind of song. Pretty much every country has people that came from somewhere else and there are two ways to provide a win-win situation for these people. They are friendship and tolerance as the song points out. The song called Wheel of Rebirth is a song about the ability of technology to create human brains so advanced that the fear of senility and death will no longer be an issue for mankind as immortality talks over. The song’s riffing style is more modern so it does not feel like a song that was written in 1990. The Meaning of Life is one of the finest albums of 1990 beating such albums as Pantera’s Cowboys From Hell (yes it is that good). The Meaning of Life is one of those albums that is important to listen to in order to get perspective on how to really live.