|
Endanger's brilliant 1998 debut, released on Hypnobeat, has long since been unavailable so this re-issue, on the band's new home on Torben Schmidt's Infacted label (with a new cover to boot) has come not a moment too soon. Now everyone can re-discover the brilliant opener "Inside" (surely one of the finest synthpop songs of recent years!) and many other top tunes that made "Motion" such a stunning debut and established Endanger as one of Germany's finest dark synthpop acts.
For me, this debut surpassed even the biggest acts such as Wolfsheim and De/Vision, demonstrating a capability for incorporating killer hooks and attention-grabbing sounds into every track that was pretty much unrivalled at that time although bands such as Mellotron were soon to take up the slack that Endanger's enforced silence made. Examples of this are most noticeable on the powerful "Erotic", the excellent synth work of "Integrity" and the Middle-East effects that characterise the criminally short instrumental "A Rabian Story" while Rouven Walterowicz's slightly gruff vocal style compliments this often spiky music, especially the German lyrics of "Die Quelle Meiner Kraft". The only time they really fail in their intent is during the attempted eroticism of "Silkskin", due to the typically European timbre it just doesn't come across although it's still a good track musically.
Added to the original 14 tracks are a number of remixes that boost the running time to an impressive 78 minutes and take the music into new areas and don't take the easier way out by appealing to synthpop fans. Foremost amongst these are ultra-dancey mixes from NamNamBulu and Diskonnected and Dioxyde's take on "Inside" where the harder edged feel of the original fitting into the EBM straitjacket with no problems at all while the mixes from The Hecq go further still, their minimalist electronica rendering both their versions of "The One" almost unrecognisable from the original.
Whilst the remixes are of variable quality and unlikely to appeal to everyone there is no denying that there is hardly a wasted moment on this album. It has stood the test of time with ease so if you didn't get it first time around then what are you waiting for? Get this now and while you're at it check out the follow-up "Eternaliser" and look out for the forthcoming single "I Come Undone" due in January 2004.
RATING: 8
Artist Link: http://www.infacted-recordings.de
|
Videos
TWEET