Apewards – Liminal Choices

by Mark 'Yeti' Richard · Published June 18, 2025 · Updated June 18, 2025

Apewards is a stoner/blues rock three-piece based in Marburg, Germany. They have a slew of recordings including five EPs: 2013’s Carpenter of Tripolis, 2015’s Humanzee, 2017’s High & Dry, 2020’s PEAKS Vol. I, and 2022’s PEAKS Vol. II. They released a live album in 2018 called Live in Cloud Forest, and have three full length albums including: 2016’s Tales of Cloud Forest, 2019’s We The Living, 2023’s Akrasia, and their latest 2025’s Liminal Choices. The band started as a four-piece and transitioned into a power trio in 2019 when founding member Vincent Krause left. The current lineup consists of Nico Gehle on guitars and vocals, Lukas Plümpe on bass, and Frank Eckerle on drums and synths. Liminal Choices was released on May 23rd 2025 on Tonzonen Records and contains twelve tracks at forty one minutes long.

The opening song entitled “The Call” is a short bluesy instrumental that warms you up for the excellent hard rock that proceeds it. Ripping right into “Hesitation”, Apewards deliver a fuzz-driven ensemble of catchy and energetic stoner rock. The first thing that really strikes me is the absolute stellar sound quality of these songs. The band recorded everything directly onto tape, all analog. It gives these tracks a clear and full warm sound that can’t be beat. “Thorns Of Passage” is a rager! It has a great vintage vibe, as the music pummels down the classic rock highway. The vocal melodies and progressive rock blending is absolutely stunning. The band has great depth and tones throughout these songs that make them sound so vibrant and powerful. “Toxic Trait” begins with a guitar riff that punches right into a hard rocking rhythm. The guitars have a retro-type of sound that adds a fiery overdriven tone to the music, but not overly distorted. It works out fantastically with Nico Gehle’s strong and dynamic vocal range. “Ashes” incorporates the soaring vocals along with a heavy dose of blues driven rock that has such a massive groove going on.

Apewards can dish out the hard rock as good as anyone but can also revel in the softer textures of the blues, like the fifth track “A Standing Apart”. The song has a nice simple drum beat enticed with some beautiful clean guitars. The bluesy leads are sprinkled in and the vocals are great at keeping the sound so fresh and inviting. Liminal Choices is filled with spirited and zestful songs and heavenly melodies like the very short, acoustically driven “Splendour Of Waves” interlude. “Machines In” is a captivating piece of alluring audio enchantment. The pounding drums and subtle guitar melodies are met with psychedelic twists and raging riffs. The musical transitions are graceful and smashing, as the divine vocals lead the way.

“Becoming” is another hot rocker in all of its effervescent execution. The Chris Cornell style singing is backed up with a magnificent performance of bluesy rhythms and prog mounted grunge riffs. The guitar leads throughout Liminal Choices are dazzling and electrifying. “Homeward Bound” is another great example of Apeward’s progressive slants coalesced perfectly with fuzzy tones and blues rock fusion. The band are very talented musicians that derive a lot of power and sound for only having three members. The second to last track, “Red Mountains” is a leisurely blues rock classic. The unhurried track expresses a strong vocal conveyance enhanced with scorching leads and chugging guitar rhythms. It’s the last substantial track on the record just before the mellow acoustic outro of “Melancholia”.

I am very impressed with the sound and style of Apewards. They embrace the retro blues rock tones and splice in the fuzz and grunge elements expertly, creating an all around classic soundtrack of hard driving riff rock. Liminal Choices is a wonderful album that gets better with every listen.