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Harald Schoger not only runs the Intelligent Communications label but also makes up one quarter of the old-skool synthpop band Neues Kombinat (his wife & kids being the other three quarters) while recording solo under the Codename Sugar moniker.
Electroschlager is the second CS album & it's an extremely accessable & disappointingly commercial album that, in places, greatly resembles The Lightning Seeds with around 56 minutes of easy-on-the-ear guitar-led pop. This means that the most accessable tracks, such as 'Only For You', 'Surreal' & the closing title track are as forgettable as they come, not staying in the memory at all once they've finished. 'No Better Place' starts off quite promisingly with some good synthleads setting the pace it then goes far too happy & nice for comfort, sounding not unlike some ADD bands &, similarly, while 'The Fat, The Ugly And The Nice' seems to be initially aiming for a harder edge (& does manage to sound at least slightly punchy) it winds up slightly resembling Abba's Does Your Mother Know while that title is bound to cause some titters as well!
Schoger's smooth vocals resemble OMD's Andy McCluskey in places, such as on the opening 'Perfect Day' (nothing to do with the Lou Reed track of the same name!) although there's no denying their quality, something that is proven beyond doubt by their contribution to the minimalistic 'I Won't Change The World', where the more obviously synthetic feel should find greater favour among most synthpop lovers. Things continue looking up with the fine bass work & decent synth colouring that graces 'Reality Check' while the chorus of 'Change' likewise benefits from a genuine emotional kick that makes this among the standout tracks on the album.
Despite my personal reservations I can actually imagine this will have quite a wide appeal so if very commercial pop is your thing then give this a go, by all means.
RATING: 5
Artist Link: http://www.intelligent-communications.de
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