Johannes Gammelby seems to have given up on deconstructing the Nordic pop song. The Dane, four years on from the release of the debut album from his band The Malpractice, has abandoned the thought of writing pop songs – it’s fine Johannes, leave that to your fellow countrymen and women, there’s plenty of them – and turned his attention back to grunge, garage rock, and riffs.

On second album Mass, Gammelby and his band are channelling Mudhoney, Melvins and Faith No More. So far, so 1990s, sure…yet amid the chug and dirt and bad times The Malpractice haven’t quite cast off the cloak of melody found on 2010’s Tectonics. Having only listened to that rather messy album after hearing Mass, you’d have to wonder why Gammelby ever decided to move away from the grunge and noise he was raised on. Rather than an abrupt right-turn, Mass strikes me as the band back to where they belong; not quite a comfort zone but certainly somewhere I’d rather Gammelby was.

The opening trio of tracks here give you some idea of who really influences The Malpractice; “Seem” is classic grunge, equal parts Mudhoney and Nirvana and equal parts heaviosity and melody. It’s followed by the brief “Droop”, all garage rock swagger and reminiscent of fellow Danes and label mates Shiny Darkly, with creepily whispered vocals adding a sense of urgency to proceedings, while the final song of the trio is the percussive thud of “Lights Out”, going in full-on with Dale Crover drums, but with a surprising ambient interlude that betrays the huge Faith No More influence on Gammelby, more than just naming his band after the FNM track.

To be honest, not much changes from here on in; the chug and muscular riffing of “Lagoon” is a treat, the soloing in “The Amazon Pull” absolutely batters the senses and the bass-heavy “Autonomy” is bone-shaking to the point where you wonder if time has fractured and you are in fact watching Mike Patton’s mob in a dingy club in 1993….and yet, there’s something missing somewhere.

If we pass over the quieter missteps of “Blood Itch” and “The Big Empty” which only serve to break the rhythm of Mass, there’s one huge frustration with the album as a whole – it’s just not heavy enough, and just not loud enough. If any band, be it The Malpractice or whoever, wants to make music like this, it’s got to be with every fibre of their being. Get the guitars Albini loud; get the drums and bass battering through the speakers like you’re listening to Melvins, Isis or Deafheaven; get the vocals to be just that bit more passionate. In no way at all is Mass a bad record, it’s very, very good in places and Gammelby doesn’t half have an ear for a melody…but next time around, The Malpractice need to give each other a shake, fight for every note and then, then we’ll have a great record on our hands.