Das gezeichnete ich (2010) - ♪♪♪
Das gezeichnete ich (Germany)
The name of this artist could be roughly translated as the 'drawn-up self‘. Which is just as mysterious as who he actually is. Speculations say that is in fact ex-Blumfeld Jochen Distelmeyer produced by Annette Humpe and Tawil from Ich und Ich. In good German that’s probably ´kwatsch‘ although the parallels between those acts and this one are sometimes obvious. The career of Das gezeichnete ich is one of sudden and stormy rise. From nothing he suddenly appeared in the past tours of the Pet Shop Boys and A-ha as support act. And now his debut album. And with the production by Herbert Grönemeyer's house producer Alex Silva it is a lush orchestrated pop album. Opening track is immediately a track that attracts your attention. DGI‘s anthem to the inner paradise is an impressive piece of Deutschpop with strings, shallow beats, chorus work and moving lyrics “Inside beats live / It's nice we met/ all is still only the heart speaks”. If only he would be able to keep up the quality he displays on this track. Alas with second track ‘Halleluja’ he quickly derails with a Guy Chambers / Robbie Williams clone. And there are more tracks that seemed that have fallen of the writing table of this British writing duo. Then again Robbie would wish he would record a strong track like ‘Nebel’, ‘High’ or ‘Unsichtbar’, because his recent output needs some of DGI’s talent. At the heart of the album the orchestra gets a time-out for the intimate piano ballad ‘Durch die Blüme‘ :“Once pale and now in full color / Your face ruled me / I carry my heart to the grave / Because yours is now dictated to me / The rhythm of the beat in me / freely and not imposed / Your name sounds in me / from now on resides“. But it is not untill the album is almost over that DGI reaches the level he displayed at the start of the album. ‘Vergangenheit’ shows that he can be subtle. “Only transience / A comet in thundering light / it lights up / the glow and glitter are gone / your traces in the snow of yesterday / are only water in the stream of time”. Eventually the closing track is a jubilee about love “We can win this world only with love / Why spend still light years in the shade ? / All you need is love and all that“ (Lightjahre). So this leaves a debut that gives in many ways a vague impression. Although the production is as homogeneous, it misses an edge and thus comes across as very smooth and sterile album. It leaves the listener with the question if this is over the top drama or a profound album. For the production it does deserve the three stars but I wonder of a second identical album would meet the same fate.
When Kent delivered the pinnacle in their guitar-driven period with ‘Du & jag döden’ (2005) they started developing themselves in a more sophisticated manor where more emphasis is on synths and keyboards and on the production. This gave the last two album ‘Tillbaka till samtiden’ (2007) and ‘Röd’ (2009) a bit of an Eighties Depeche Mode feel. Great albums but the band’s electronic explorations did not always fall well with the old fans who fancied them old guitar songs. But apparently it does work inspiring for Joakim and his gang because already six months after ‘Röd’ they release the album ‘En plats i solen’ (A Place in the Sun). And what a brilliant album it is. Teaming up again with producer Stefan Boman who worked with the band on Du & jag döden (2005) the album sees a combination of their recent albums with their old work. Opener ‘Glasäpplen’ starts with acoustic guitars, while slowly opening up with light and airy strings, and gradually turning into a driving synth driven pop song (didn’t I tell you they’d try to combine two worlds). But the album really kicks of with the song ‘Ismael’. Co-produced by Danish producer Jon " Joshua " Schumann (know from his work with Mew) it does sound like Joakim got inspired by a lost ‘Flock of seagulls’ track (remember them?) I just love it when the song reaches the chorus and the guitars and piano drive the song to a higher lever: “I see a future where / I could be something big / So blow a kiss and fill my quota / When you think loud / And scream silent / And holding your breath through the monologue / As written for your inner voice / You sounded exactly like Ismael / Do you remember Ismael / I am your Ismael”.
This could be thé summerhit for me if it wasn’t for the next track ‘Skisser för Sommaren’ (Sketches for the summer) with its catchy ‘la, la la/ Please say it again / And say it again’ chorus. You feel that Kent is on a roll here. But the album kicks back with ‘Ärlighet Respekt Kärlek’ and ‘Varje gång du möter min blick’. The band had the idea to record this album in as short a time as possible to keep the songs fresh and not over-produced. Exactly what causes these two songs to sound a bit demo-like and you miss that finesse that the start of the album does have. Luckily the band catches itself with ‘Ensam lång väg hem’ and is back on the right track with the single ‘Gamla Ullevi’ (Think of you). All Latin beats, synths flutes and good guitar riffs they show their craftsmanship: “Give me a new drug that takes me somewhere /
I need new medicine and a new country / When I said I was happy and free it was a false alarm, false advertising”. With ‘Minimal’’, starting as a simple sounding ballad , without too many frills but by 1:22 minutes turning into a electronica driven anthem, and ‘Passage Rare’, a duet with Rebecka Törnquist complete with high-flown strings, the album comes to a close. Four stars…well deserved..,super Europopmusic-album.
The days that Kombi had something to offer in Polish pop has long past (about thirty years to be exact). Since Łosowski is pursuing his own career Grzegorz Skawiński and Waldemar Tkaczyk reactivated Kombi in 2003 under the name Kombii. After ‘Ślad’ and the remix project ‘DANCE’ they now return with a third album. As said, the times when Kombi delivered their own brand of Polish synth-funk won’t be revived with this project. ‘O Miłości’ (About love) is filled with “very modern music with a clear transfer and wording that reflects the atmosphere and spirit of our times ". At least according to Skawiński . I don’t know which reality he lives in but the word modern is not what pops up in my mind on hearing the album. Indeed some tracks on the album have a modern euro-disco feel to it. On single ‘Gdzie jesteś dziś’, ‘Ciało’ and ‘Handlarze miłości’ show that they are able to make a radio friendly but attractive pop-track. With ‘Zaczaruj mnie’ and ‘Chwila’ they already on a sliding scale downwards but with ‘Uratuj’, ‘MP3’ and ‘Poker’ they reach a lowpoint with cheap synths and melodies. And please do skip the white-reggae drible called ‘Kolory tańczą w twoich oczach’ which sounds like a long last Boney M track (and I’m insulting Boney M with this one). My advice…download the three good tracks (legally of course) and forget the rest. Poland has more to offer.
Flip’s days as a rapper of the West-Flemish hiphopcrew 't Hof van Commerce are long gone and since his debut of 2001 he is more known as Flip Kowlier (pseudonym of Filip Cauwelier) the Belgian singer-songwriter that delivers small visions to everyday life. But with this new album, three years after ‘De Man van 31’, ‘Otoradio’ sees a radical musical stylechange. Because Kowlier goes reggae. White Euro-reggae that is, bringing back the days of ‘Nightclubbing’ (Grace Jones), ‘4us’ (Doe Maar) and ‘Faut plus me la faire’ (Valerie Lagrange) and ‘African Reggae’ (Nina Hagen). Yes, it’s back to the Eighties with Flip but not the electro sound that finds so much rewinding at the moment but the reggae influences that were common in Nothern Europe around 1983. Is it a tribute to that era? In a way, but most of all Flip takes the reggae rhythms into his own signature style. All sung in incomprehensible West-flemish dialect Flip continues to give his miniature insights into everyday life and love. But together with producer and keyboard player Wouter van Belle the rainy Flemish landscape is turned into a sunny soundtrack. And it works! According to Flip he first wrote all the lyrics in the usual style (a tip from friend Gabriel Rios also present on the album) and then Wouter moulds the whole thing into the well-known mellow off-beat rhythmic style from Jamaica. And to prevent it becomes tedious he picks elements from reggae sub genres like ska, dub and rocksteady to create a mixed album. One song, ‘In een boek geplakt’, apparently did not fit that mould and resembles the usual Flip singer-songwriter guitar style but by then you’re almost at the last track. My favourite tracks on the album are ‘Moestek duod hon’, ‘Mo ba nin’, ‘Raar’ and the title song. But that does not mean the rest is to be ignored. Call me a sucker for Euro-reggae but this album should be on constant replay in every summer venue in Europe. Original, fun and cool! Or to speak with Flip: “’T is ier goed / Ge kun dat eigenlijk nie verbetern” (“It’s good here / it is almost impossible to improve”).
Only seven months after the release of the fantastic album ‘Facile’, Italy’s most productive recording artists is back with a new album, ‘Caramella’ (‘Candy’). After more or less one hundred albums, Mina is definitely Italy’s leading lady for over five decades. She knows how to sing very different musical styles: jazz, pop, rock, disco, ballads, classical aria’s, folk songs from Napoli... she recorded it all. So with every new record it is a surprise what musical direction she takes this time. Well, on ‘Caramella’ she did not take just one direction, but several.
The album starts with ‘You get me’, a wonderful duet with British top selling singer Seal. The album contains two more duets, ‘Amore disperato’ (‘Hopeless love’) with old pal Lucio Dalla and ‘Poche Parole’ (‘A few words’) with Giorgia. Both duets are okay, but a bit cliché and already published on albums from these artists. Further more we hear Mina sing some ballades of which ‘Accendi questa luce’) (‘Turn the light on’) is one of the better ones.
And there is Mina doing some experimental songs from the new league of Italian musicians. This is Mina at her best. Just listen to ‘Solo sai rispondere’ (‘Only if you know the answer’), a fantastic song by Massimiliano ‘Max’ Casaccia, (guitarist, producer and one of the founders of the band Subsonica). Or ‘Io e te’ (‘Me and you’), co-written by Paolo Benvegnù (former member of the band Scisma), a beautiful dramatic rock ballad. And ‘La clessidra’ (‘The hourglass’) written by Davide DiLeo (keyboardist and founder of Subsonica), probably the stand out track of the album with Mina whispering the words to the dark and creepy melody: “And leave me here to cry alone / The white of my eyes stops my heart / The hand, the tip that sinks between us as the air / Cold fingers do not shake anymore / No longer I feel like I’m drowning, you are no longer here”
One of the lyrical high lights is ‘Il povero e il re’ (‘The poor and the king’), written by Mina’s nephew Axel Pani: “I hear your voice in this city it warms the soul / Almost nonexistent it vanishes in an instant / A portrait of serenity it's just a sound, but for me this is music / … / When the lights go out above this city, diversity disappears / And there are only shadows around me / And you cannot distinguish the poor from the king”
So ‘Caramella’ has become a very diverse album, with some great tracks, some average songs and some fillers. It is less consistent than her previous album ‘Facile’, but it has enough highlights to receive 3 notes.
Adımı Kalbine Yaz (Write my name into your heart)- ♪♪♪ Tarkan (Turkey)
The biggest news about the new Tarkan is that it sees him reunited with Sezen Aksu and Ozan Çolakoğlu. Once the trio responsible for Tarkan’s international ‘Simarik’. This time they contribute with to songs. The pumping ‘Öp’ and the more melodic ‘Sen Çoktan Gitmişsin’. But Tarkan sees him surrounded by more accomplished songwriters for his first album in three years. For his single ‘Sevdanın Son Vuruşu’ he takes a text written by the in 2008 deceased songwriter Aysel Gürel (responsible for hits from Ajda Pekkan, Nilufer, Coşkun Sabah and Sezen). Also the talented Yildiz Tilbe helps out on track ‘İşim Olmaz’. Young heartthrob Mithat Can Özer delivers the Eastern-vibed dancetrack ‘Acımayacak’. All music is written by Tarkan himself with the exception for ‘Usta-Çırak’ which is completely written by him and oddly enough sounds the most traditional of all tracks. So what to think of this display of musical friendliness? Let me start with the conclusion that none of the tracks is bad. The album is divers and Tarkan has always had a keen eye for production. And Tarkan choose to make this an Anatolian pop album where in the past he was willing to make a knee fall for a more international and less typical sound. But there is also a critical note. Because artists around him, including Tilbe and Aksu, already are one step further in the musical spectrum and listen to what the young generation comes up with. Not with Tarkan who sticks to the sound that fits his smooth voice but in doing that remains loyal to a sound that may not be completely up to date anymore. Reviews in Turkey were mixed, not in the least because after a three year wait and many hints towards a new album only eight new tracks are a bit meagre. The rest of the album is filled with remixes from the planned singles. That gives Tarkan a score for a mediocre album, nice for your car drive from Istanbul to Gebze, but not a totally convincing album for the return of a self-convinced superstar.
Never being the light of the party anyway the Danish dark ensemble take things even darker on their latest album ‘Alt er tabt’ . Translated as ‘All is lost’ they continue on the path the created on their gracious ‘Samme Stof Som Stof’. That already being an introspective search into the dark corners of the mind, with this new album the band spirals even more inward. On the first two tracks ‘8’ (actually not being more then an intro) and ‘Territorium’ they keep the instrumentation to a minimum. With the title song the menu changes to bass, toms, and that alluring voice of Henriette Sennenvaldt's. Floating on a dark rolling bass the song gets under your skin, like a thunderstorm approaching. This feeling is very well translated by visual artist Sidse Carstens who created the haunting video of an obviously emotionless woman maliciously wrecking her kitchen to shreds. But it takes to half the album before the rest of the ensemble (strings, percussion, pots & pans) gets let in for ‘Ikke latteren men øjeblikket lige efter’, a Tom Waits meets Current 93 variation. The nearly six minute ‘Unoder’ is the album's longest track, which is to say not terribly long by the band's standards, but it slowly and meticulously layers piano riffs atop spectral ambience as it leads up to a big and dramatic conclusion. It sounds, with its repetitive piano and bass-drone like a Michael Nyman soundtrack for a dark thriller movie. You feel the murderer getting close and his black glove wrenching itself around your throat. Coming to ‘Konstant’ you’ll have to conclude that bass-player Sara Saxild left a very powerful mark on this album this time. Again this song is structured around a bass-riff over which the rest of band lays lose elements of synths, vocals, strings and percussion. It’s her steady bass play that holds the rhythm and forms the backbone of all songs on ‘Alt er tabt’. Except maybe on ‘Kapital 1’ that actually is the odd one out on the album lying more closely to their previous album then this one. But with all this praise why not given it four stars? ‘Alt er tabt’ is a daring and original album, no doubt about that, but the inward journey the band takes holds the risk that they eventually disappear in their own navel oblivious of the outside world. Under Byen is brilliant in what they do, and for all the fans who loved their previous work this is an absolute must have.
In 2001 Urszula released the album ‘Udar’, composed and recorded with her husband, Stanisław Zybowski. A few months later, he passed away. Apart from some very rare public appearances and the release of a best of album, it appeared that Urszula had retired from the music business. Now, almost ten years after ‘Udar’, Urszula is back with a new album ‘Dziś już wiem’ (‘Today I know’). The title track of the album was already released in autumn 2005. It is the album’s key track, being a conversation with her late husband, helping her come to terms with his pre-timely death. The song is a beautiful pop-ballad, great mature vocals and a soft, light melody. Yet the lyrics, obviously, are very intense and personal:
“When dying is around us, in the enchanted dawn of peace / And the same... strange times... empty days... / When you take someone’s time you reach out for the stars in despair / And somewhere out there, in a strange world... an empty house... / Now I know you'll always be near me / I believe in good times, when the pain will be gone."
The entire album is quit soft, compared to Urszula’s earlier records. Her career started in the beginning of the eighties, long before the wall came down. She recorded a lot of successful rock albums and singles and became one of Poland’s most successful female artists. After the wall fell, she went to the United States, but came back to Poland to regain her place at the front league of the Polish pop scene. After her husband passing away and taking a decade of, Urszula – already in her fifties (and boy, she still looks fantastic on the promotional pictures and videos!) – chose to record a more melodic album. ‘Dziś już wiem’ still has some up and mid tempo guitar orientated songs, like opening track ‘Ten drugi’ (‘This second’) and ‘Skacze na dach’ (‘Jump on the roof’) and ‘Zostawiaj mi’ (‘Leave me’). But there is a fare share of slower songs as well, like ‘Blues mimo to’ (‘And yet – the blues’), ‘Bajka’ (‘Fairytale’) and the earlier mentioned title track.
Half of the lyrics were penned by Urszula herself, the other were written for her. Yet, every songs seems a very personal expression of Urszula herself, like in ‘Bajka’ (‘Fairytale’) by G. Walczak:
“As if I wanted to believe in fairy tales again / When the window is chasing the world somewhere / I want to be touched again, your paragraph / Which of the white fog wind sculpts / Maybe you're already a tree that can live in the stone / Maybe I look at me, one of the stars / That may return in the spring, when the snows stops / And it gets light around us.”
In the last song of the album, we learn that Urszula has found her way out of the darker period her life. ‘Wstaje nowy dzień’ (‘A new day rises’) is a great song, with uplifting lyrics by Urszula herself:
“Everyday life takes its course / The lack of experiences, a sad circle of daily affairs / The lack of time and so I want to dream and run somewhere. / … / A new day rises, I cannot stop to fix it / … / A new day comes, carries taste of success / Ends the polar night, the one string game. / Hello again warm sun, with his radiant face / I do no longer want to live at night / I want a shiny a new day, even if it will change me.”
Welcome back on the music scene Urszula! We hope to hear much more from you in the future (and hopefully we do not have to wait ten years for the next album…)
