Terminal Choice - Übermacht(2010)

Terminal choice have been around for a while and after a break they have now released their brand new album Übermacht! Chris Pohl and Gordon had taken a break to join Miss Construction and explore creative paths but now the boys are back together.


We are back! definitely makes a statement and is a brilliant way to start the new album. It's very catchy, i love the chorus and you'll find yourself singing it for days. I don't think i can really fault this song and its one of my favorites on the album, i love the little flickers of the synths at the end of the song it works really well. The next song has a little more keys/ synths in it but keeping the guitars and everything else just how we love them, this is another song that'll stick in your head for days as well and its very enjoyable.
Yay for heavy guitar riffs! Fight the system is full of heavy guitar riffs and vocals mixed with the trademark vocal style of Chris Pohl and it works wonderfully! Also they've used an awesome sample which im not going to spoil if you havent heard this song. Im just a boy is simple but it works. 3 words for this song: simple effective, catchy. Not the best on this album but i still really quite like it. Myspace hero speaks for its self. just listen to the lyrics, brilliant. Get away has a dark feel too it which works surprisingly well for them, i also love the guitar riffs. Same can be said for Im a monster and Bitch like you.
Kommers is a fantastic song and another favorites of mine on this album. I love the little speaking bits and its super catchy. Same goes for the next track, Keine macht, with guest vocalist Nina. i cant say how much i adore the song and the video is really good too! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyZH7Wv1cmA)
The last track(unless you have the limited edition version) of Free again is seductively dark with the feel carrying on to the lyrics. It paints very strong imagery in your mind which i love about this song. Half way through the song its got strange but powerful undertones of optimism which is really effective.

There back with style!! Showing they've still got what it takes to make brilliant songs while not taking themselves too seriously and i think there more then ready to shake up the scene again.

4 1/2*'s

Track list:
1 - We are back!
2 - Bad trippin'
3 - Fight the system
4 - Im just a boy
5 - Myspace hero
6 - Kommerz
7 - Keine macht
8 - Get away
9 - Im a monster
10 - Bitch like you
11 - Free again

Culture Kultür - Spirit(2010)

Culture Kultür are from malaga and formed in 1992 and were self published until '99. They have played at many major festivals like Wave Gothic Treffen, M'era Luna, Infest and Eurorock. Spirit marks there fourth studio album(not counting EP's). Future-pop/electro is back with a bang so look out!

Sieged is a brilliant way to start this album with its uplifting synths, optimistic feel and beautiful lyrics. It has a few different synths through out the song cleverly used and this is one of my favorite songs on the album. The next track is another favorite of mine on this album, Blind man is a stunning dance track with fantastic layers using different sounds.
I've heard a few covers in the past but CK cover of 'love will tell us apart' works really well, in fact they've added there own ebm electro twist to it which i really like and wouldn't be ashamed to dance to it at all!
Dead second starts off with a kind of chilled psytrance/ambient feel to it but builds up keeping theses elements but add more layers which compliment each other fantastically.
Drum machine is my next favorite song on this release, its a stunning song with gorgeous lyrics, lovely synths, i cant get over how beautiful this song is, this song is soul music, it makes mine smile big time! Theres only one word for this next track and that is 'WOW'!
Toxic pulse is what it says on the tin... The toxic pulse of dance, this song makes me want to dance and move to never stop backed up by the style, grace and poise used to create such an amazing song. It continues in Never again, with slightly harder synths but still keeping the CK sound and feel we've grown to love with a little bit more oomph to it.
Melow, simple but stunning, ambient. thats Silence in a nutshell, i love the piano near the end of this song it just adds to its beauty of the lyrics. Next we have a bit of drama with My voice' start and i LOVE it! this song gives me goosebumps every time i listen to it.
I found you is the final trakc on the album and i wish it wasnt. Again it is stunning with beautiful violins at the start, then chilled synths join in. I dont think words can realy describe how beautiful this song/album is. and this is a very fitting end for this release.

This is a must have album! its emotive, stunning also uplifting. My new favorite album of the year and if theres an album you want to get before this year is over make it this one. I cannot recommend it enough
Definitely 5*!!!

Tracklist:
1 -  Sieged
2 - Blind Man
3 - Love Will Tear Us Apart
4 - Dead Second
5 - Drum Machine
6 - Unforgiven
7 -Toxic Pulse
8 - Never Again
9 - Silence
10 - My Voice
11 - I Found You

Mind.in.a.box - R.E.T.R.O

Mind.in.a.box. have been around for a while with their own unique electro sound that have gained them many fans over the years with releases such as Crossroads, Dreamweb and Lost alone, with R.E.T.R.O now joining it.

Unfortunately theres not much i can say about this album apart from it being thoroughly disappointing. Out of all the 11 tracks theres only 4 which are worth mentioning and even they aren't great.

'The last v8' and gorgeous vocals and that combined with the synths used give it a kind of surreal feel to this song but it felt short and just seemed to pass me by as i was listening to it. The next one is called '8bits' which has an 80's electro feel to it which i actually found quite enjoyable, despite the same 8bit synths as that is used on the rest of the album. Another track thats worth mentioning is called 'I love 64' which i can see being played in a night club on the right night. Last track thats worth mentioning is the last track on the album titled 'Whatever mattered' is a mellow song and would be a lovely chill out track and its a nice end to an other wise mediocre album.

I like Mind.in.a.box and i was thoroughly disappointed with this album as it uses the same synths in almost all the songs and the only recommendation for this album i would give would be to avoid it!

2*
Tracklist:
1 - Last Ninja 3
2 - Lightforce
3 - The Last V8
4 - Supremacy
5 - Shades
6 - 8 Bits
7 - Mindkiller
8 - The Last Ninja
9 - I Love 64
10 - We Cannot Go Back to the Past
11 - Whatever Mattered

Colony 5 - Buried Again (2008)

Colony 5 are a band thats been around for a while now releasing a number of albums and EP's. They're based in Sweden with an electric/synth-pop style which is very agreeable with a lot of people as they've pulled off this sound with style like Covenant.

1- Ghost

2 - Knives

3 - Imaginary girl

4 - Absolute religion

5 - End of depressed

6 - Fanatic

7 - Heart attack

8 - Closure

9 - Too young

10 - Commitment

11 - Get off my back

12 - There'll be time

12 - Pills

Ghosts is a brilliant start to this album and i LOVE the synths in this one. Its one that'l have you humming it for hours after listening to it and its strong beat means you will definitely be able to dance to it at a club night. I love really like the piano touches this song has and even though its got many layers they've done it very well to produce a crisp sound to it.
Knives has some interesting vocal effects being used and has hints of a dark undertones beneath the optimistic lyrics and melody. The next track carries on this darker feel to it but in a more melodic mellow way. Imaginary girl comes together really well though and its really well written(not that i expect anything different from these guys).
Absolute religion is probably one of there more controversial tracks and highlights what people are like when it comes to religious matters with lyrics like 'religious when smashed' which really stands out. This song definitely makes a statement but i really like it.
The next track End of Depression is one of my favorites on this album, it made me take notice of it's start straight away and carried on like it. I would love to hear this one on a night out and without a doubt i would definitely dance to this one!
Fanatic is probably in my eyes the worst song of this album but having said that its not actually a bad song. Its an interesting track which i do like though it could be more, something stops me saying its a brilliant track and im not too sure what it is. Closer is another interesting track on this album and adore the chorus to this song. I cant pin point exactly why i like this song nevertheless i really do. 
If you want a band that can use different synth sounds and use them well then this track proves these guys are more then capable of doing this. Heart Attack is a brilliant track with catchy lyrics and this is one you will definitely be able to listen to again and again.
Too young has beautiful piano at the start and through this song with synths cleverly and carefully overlapped again though it still could have been more then it is but it but its not bad by a long shot.
My other favorite song on this album is Commitment. the intro is good it reminds me a little bit of 80's synth pop like the human league but more upbeat which again i would love to hear it in a club, it would most definitely get me up on the dance floor dancing to my hearts content.
We hear more new synths in Get off my back and its an addictive song yet again. Its a strong song on the album. The same goes for There'll be time, its like they got the best synth sounds out of the bank and know how to use each one to their advantage. Instead of it sounding like a child's just using random synths because they can, these guys know how to select the best sounds and used them with style and grace.
Pills is a fantastic end to this release, its also another song you could more then easily dance to at a club and its leaves you wanting to hear more from these guys and i love it when bands do this.

Overall this is a fantastic album and definitely worth getting, its one i will be keeping on my ipod for a very long time.
4½*

Beati Mortui - Let the funeral begin review

Beati Mortui are a band I hadn't heard of before until the Enzeit Bunkertracks cd's where I stumbled across a song by them which I quite enjoyed. They have a sound thats like switchblade symphony bumped into reaper. After hearing their song on the Enzeit Bunkertracks album I thought Id download there album and give it a go and heres what I thought:

The intro to this album gives you a brilliant feel of what to expect on the album sound wise and made it all seem quite promising. It also leads nicely and smoothly into 'vision of hell' with its harsh vocals and dance potential. It had me tapping my my foot and would be brilliant in a club or film.
Prey starts off with piano which I really liked as well as the synth sounds that joined in as well and so far its a consistent in sound and voc style. I love the singing vocals used about half way through which to me seemed like the right time to use them to break it up a little bit.
Let the funeral begin has an old school start and good contrasting vocal styles which I liked how ever I wasn't sure about this one, it wasn't a bad song just something put me off.
Next track on the album Deathrow gives you a break from the harsh vocals with male and female vocals which i really liked as well as the piano which made this track quite enjoyable to listen to and is possibly one of my favorites on this release. After we go back to the harsh vocals with a hint of trad goth mixed in for good measure with Sanctimonious.
Soul reaper(the first song i heard by them) I really love, and is my other favorite on this album. I love the chorus to this song I love the beat, I don't think theres anything I don't like about it and I would quite happily dance to this at a club night. All is good carries on in a similar kind of way with a good strong beat and again i could probably dance to this one in at a club night.
However now it all starts to go down hill. Touch me not is starting to make everything sound the same which is a shame because i want to like this band more. Alone im not overly enamored with either as again its all sounding the same as before with the same synths used and same vocal style used etc etc. Only thing i like about the next one Musta Surma is the piano intro.
The outro is ok but over all this album after starting off so well has left me feeling a little bit let down. It would be ok listening to the tracks on there own or if your an enthusiast for harsh vocs all the time. For me how ever its not my thing.

Overall i give it 3* if only for its beginning tracks being its savoir.

Rotersand - Random is resistance

Rotersand have been around for a while now perfecting their sound and making themselves well known in the scene in the process. In 2009 they released Random is resistance and heres my thoughts on they boys work.

'Bastards screaming' is a very good way of starting this album off. Even though im not too sure about the chorus of this song i really like it and over all its a good song. 'Beneath the stars',when i first listened to it i wasn't too sure about but the more I've listened to it the more i like it. Its not one of the boys best songs but its not bad either. Same goes for the next song on the album, something just doesn't work for me on 'First name'. I like the guitar usage in this song and it does improve after the first half but i cant help but feel somethings missing or they could have used a better synth sound.
However having said that the album starts to pick up afterwards and continues very well. 'Gothic paradise' has a trad goth feel to it underneath but when it kicks in it got me tapping my feet and would make a brilliant club track. It has a strangely optimistic kind of feel to it which works really well over the trad gothic undertones and I found this a thoroughly enjoyable song. Continuing with the club tracks next is 'If you don't stop it' which has a strong start making you notice it straight away. Its very catchy i loved it, made me want to get up and dance to my hearts content and i think its definitely a floor filler.
'A million words to loose' gives you a break with their mellow and melodic track of the album but it again is one of those tracks that grows on you and you learn to love it. After a few listening's of this song i learned to really like it. After little break so to speak its back to clubbing songs! 'A number and name' has a very strong start and its catchy right from the start. In a good way it reminds of of Project Pitchfork as they've been masters of the scene for 2 decades. The more i listen to this song the more i fall in love with it and its my favorite song on this album.
The boys have a stab at darkwave/trance and it works very well for them as it grows on you as well. it would probably fit in really well at a club but maybe a club edit so its shorter as the last couple of minutes i didn't think were necessary on this track. They go back to there old school kind of the 'Merging oceans' and 'Lifelight' days with this next song of 'Waiting to be born' like the rest of the album its catchy and enjoyable and got me wanting to dance yet again! 'War on error' would fit well into a film sound like the matrix or similar films with its kind of dark futuristic feel to it which worked really well.
Missing the next track im going to go straight to the last and shortest track of the album of 'Yes we care' when they guitars come back! immediately it make me think of 'Donny Darko'and would probably fit into a number of other cult classics or maybe the end of a vampire film. I thought this was a brilliant way to end a brilliant album

I dont think i can actually fault this album and its one of those that will grow on your and you will learn to love and i would highly recomened it!
5*