ALBUM REVIEWS : LES SIRENES DEBROUILLARDS - LENA

The most interesting, or perhaps weird release we heard in a long time, is coming from Germany.
Les Sirenes Debrouillards might be a French name but in their daily time
you can see them hanging around somewhere in Germany, Nordheim.
The little (but interesting) Plastic Frog Records-label just released their debut "Lena"
and this analog minimal synthmusic sounds like it's been made in the
early 80's by artists like A Blaze Colour and Martin Dupont.
If this release wouldn't have a datesign added, you would automatically
store this record among your releases by the likes of Crash Course In Science,
Neon Judgement or No More.
Most of the tracks tracks do have that typical 80's approach, a devil's laugh and
an erotic female voice,...and hey sometimes "Electric Salsa" by Off
(does anyone remember that song?) came to my mind.
Genius release even if we have absolute no other further
information left, but I guess you know enough....
www.myspace.com/lessirenesdebrouillards

ALBUM REVIEWS : GOTHAM OD - DISBELIEVER

It has to be said, a gothmetalband that's been named after the city
where Batman lives, isn't the most original thing men can think of.
Luckily enough for me, their "Disbeliever"-album isn't suffering from the same
lack of imagination even if I never would categorize these Finnish hardrockers
under the term goth rock, as something like heavy dark rock is
more to the point.
It's all melodic, never too hard, honestly said all a bit too American for my
taste but this definitely can compete with bands like Paradise Lost, Amorphis
or even the late Killing Joke.
I really digged the uptemposongs even if they're quite close to FM-hardrock
(sometimes like the soundtrack from those teenmovies from the 80's, John Hughes indeed)
but sadly enough I was never that keen on hardrock ballads and they're some among here.
All by all, we can recommend you this new release on Firebox to
anyone who is interested in melancholic rock with a heavy touch!
http://www.myspace.com/gothamod

ALBUM REVIEWS : LOST AREA - MEMORIA

Is there still future left for futurepop ?
After so many VNV Nation and Apoptygma Berzerk-clones, it can be a question to be asked and honestly said the drive has somewhere disappeared in this genre.
From time to time thouhg, there are releases left which try to create some new breathe into the genre.
Lost Area are a band as such and with the release of their “Memoria”-album (released on Echozone), they succeed in it partly.
“Memoria” is the following up from their 2008 release “Man Machine” (agreed, it’s not the most original thing ever) and even if it’s a good step forwards, it’s not the perfect album anyway.
Sadly enough, this already happens from the start as songs like “Memoria” (a weak opener) or “Bloodrain” are nothing more than flat And one-melodies with the needed futurepopbeats.
Once the first ten minutes of boredom are over (you can always use the skipbutton) you easily find access to songs like “Mirror”, “Lies”, “Evil eye” or “Live your dream” that reminds us of the early work from Project Pitchfork or even Angels and Agony.
The highlight is without any doubt the melancholic “Gauardian Angel” that can stand next to the best from what Clan Of Xymox did on their “Hidden Faces”-album.
Besides some beautiful synthpopsongs we also get some dreadful stuff like “Ikarus” (very much like Goethes Erben) or “Dream on” which is nothing but SPOCK but without the fun.
No, “Memoria” isn’t exactly the savior from futurepop but due to some excellent tracks, this is one of the better releases from last months even if not every reader will get used to the very strange voice from singer Jan Bertram.
Was there someone around who was mentioning a mini-album???
.
http://www.myspace.com/lostarea

ALBUMREVIEWS : LEGION - THE HEREAFTER

The most boring and useless question I can think of is if someone comes up to me and wonders why I'm still into gothic in 2010.
"Isn't that the genre from Sisters Of Mercy or The Cure?" and while asking you see that they tend to forget the other 10.000 bands from now and then.
Are they living in the past?
Yes, they do but I can't understand why that's never been said about bands who are playing like Led Zeppelin.
Why do I defend goth?
I don't know...maybe it's because of all these prejudices that a band like Legion won't get the chances they deserve, I dunno...
Legion are a new three piece-gothband with a drummachine and they're from Leeds (I know it couldn't be more original, but it's nothing but a fact) who just have released a quite genius mini-album called "The hereafter".
O yes, I love it especially as a track like "Lust" is so similar to what once Danse Society did whereas something like "Premonition" can be best described as Play Dead with Clan Of Xymox-synths.
So yes you lovely critics, nothing new or innovating here, just old school goth with class and you can start laughing, but it's better than 90% from what the so called serious press is offering us these days.
http://www.myspace.com/legionleeds

ALBUM REVIEWS : THROES OF DAWN - THE GREAT FLEET OF ECHOES

In the metalworld Throes Of Dawn need no longer introduction even if lots of reviews think they’re a bit too soft (but then again there are others who are falling for their beauty though).
Yup, in all l honesty, they might be released on the well respected Finnish metallabel Firebox Records but sometimes you wonder if you’re dealing with a metalrelease or not.
Throes Of Dawn are already around since 1994 but even with several line up changes, this band always has been the child from founders Henri Koivula and Jani Heinola.
After 6 years of silence, the Finns are back and they never sounded so melancholic as before.
Admit it : beautiful piano-interludes, a voice that sometimes sounds like ian Curtis, beautiful melancholic gothsynths…it aren’t the usual ingredients of a metalrecord.
It’s damned difficult not to be touched by the melancholic beauty of this record which lies between Anathema and the later work of Love Like Blood.
One of the better records we heard this week. Fantastic.

http://www.myspace.com/throesofdawn

ALBUMREVIEWS : ORIGINALLJUDET - ORIGINALLJUDET

We will bet for some bottle of beers that you can’t pronounce the word Originalljudet when you’re drunk (you can’t even do it sober) but before you think we need some psychical assistance, Originalljudet stands for odd/original music (as it’s Swedish ha!) and somewhere these guys from Stockholm couldn’t have found a better word to describe themselves.
It’s an impossible thing to sum up all the instruments these musicians are using, but it goes from a tuba to some accordion and their music is rather unclassifiable.
But as it’s our job to do so, I guess there’s no other way so let me say that this could be the perfect soundtrack from some unreleased movie by Jim Jarmush as indeed John Lurie isn’t that far away.
Sometimes it’s jazz (albeit never difficult), sometimes it’s avant-garde and sometimes it’s “I don’t know what” but throughout the whole cd these Swedes succeed in creating an atmosphere that is more than interesting!

http://www.myspace.com/originalljudet

CONCERTREVIEW : BEATI FULL DAWN V (SINT NIKLAAS, OJC KOMPAS, 08/05/2010)

Belgium...so much to answer for.
But we're sticking to the essence of life : music.
Yesterday here in Belgium was the Beati Full Dawn V fest which features 3 bands who are operating in the alternative dark scene.
Dark Poem, For Greater Good and Militia : that were the bands...
First ones one the bill were the female duo Dark Poem.
For them it was only their 2nd gig ever but that couldn't be seen as it seemed that these women are used to go on stage.
Every song meant a new outfit and it's a bit like Schaduwjaagster (I'm not going to translate that for you) told me some days ago : fairytale electro, but fairy tales means good and bad.
Musically it's some mixture of the ice cold electronic beats from Kirlian Camera and the more tribal stuff the later Dead Can Dance are doing.
Very, very pleasing act and you can be sure that we will follow them on these pages.
For Greater Good were next.
If you're a regular reader (but even better if you have a perfect memory, or just if you are clever and using the Google search-button) their name will be familiar.
This band is some sort of project from Sam De Vos and they describe their music as post-industrial soundscapes.
I myself always thought they were like In The Nursery even if yesterday I saw something interesting as well that reminded me of what Robert Fripp and Brian Eno, the pussyfootin' thing indeed.
Just a shame these guys had to deal with a sound engineer who didn't know his job but for the rest : one of the bands to follow over here.
Finally there was Militia on stage.
Militia are over here something of a common name in the industrial range.
Despite using samples or something like didgeridoos, it's all clear that these men (and women) took their inspiration from Test Dept., but a bit less melodic.
Everything that you normally can see at a fleamarket (and stays unsold) is used for percussion.
While hearing the dead loud drums, people could watch old images from the Spanish Civil War or footages from Eisenstein's "Potemkin".
Dead loud, but sometimes you need that in your miserable life...
Another day that we were dead tired (it ended in the middle of the night as usual), but we felt lucky afterwards.
If you are into alternative (dark) stuff check out these bands!