And
One is a fairly popular EBM group whose
tunes are heard across the world on
goth/industrial club nights around the
world. It's not surprising, because
it's very difficult to listen to And
One without some part of your body wanting
to move around. Sure, being EBM some
of their stuff is a little too techno
for my liking, but they are quite good
overall.
The
first song, "Virgin Superstar",
isn't what I would call the strongest
opener. Although the vocal harmony is
great (which you'll get used to on this
disc), there's not all that much to
the music. The song "Wasted"
starts off the disc with a nice hard
danceable beat. The line: "get out of
my way because you know that I am totally
wasted" is a classic and tends to stick
in your head. "You Don't Love Me
Anymore" is a synthpoppy sort of
tune that really fails to grab me. It's
put together well, but it just doesn't
stand out, sounding a little bland to
me. The song "Goodbye Germany"
doesn't stand out too much musically,
and the vocals don't do much until the
chorus. All in all, this is a 'take
it or leave it' song, but the chorus
does tend to stick in your head if you
let it.
"GET
OUT OF MY WAY BECAUSE YOU KNOW
THAT I AM TOTALLY WASTED!"
|
|
For
this album, And One absorbed Annelie
Bertilsson from Cat
Rapes Dog and I'd bet that she
was glad to get out of that pseudo-musical
abomination. Listening to "Wet
Spot", It becomes obvious that
Annelie has more musical talent than
is deserved by Cat Rapes Dog. It starts
off with an ambient feel and then the
synthesizer line starts with an almost
a James Bond "The World Is Not Enough"
feel to it. Both vocalists sound great
on this song and the man sitting behind
the mixing console certainly earned
his paycheck.
What
can I say about the song "Panzermensch"?
Well, I can say that the synth sounds
are absolutely amazing and the vibe
of the song is intense. It hits hard
and is one of the most danceable songs
I've ever heard (and if you've ever
been to a club where most everyone knows
this song, the dance floor tends to
go completely nuts). I've never been
one to buy a disc based on hearing one
song, but in this case I would make
an exception. The lyrics are in German,
but it's my opinion that most good lyrics
are in German. There's something about
the language that just sounds much cooler
sung than if the same lines had been
done in English. It's no wonder this
song has become one of their hits.
| |
And
One absorbed Annelie Bertilsson
from Cat Rapes Dog and I'd bet
that she was glad to get out of
that pseudo-musical abomination!
|
The
tune "My Story" has a nice
string line, but there's not much to
say about it. It's not terribly interesting,
nor terribly worth my time talking about—too
techno if you ask me. I love the crystal
bell synth sound that opens "Life
to Lose", but it gives no indication
what to expect for the song itself.
Unfortunately it looks like very little
effort went into the music, but the
vocals almost make up for it.
"Not
The Only One" is yet another song
that has a bit of the "James Bond" essence
to it—in the string line at least.
This song is much more synthpop than
EBM, which seems to be the direction
And One is moving in slowly but surely.
Some would say that they might as well
be the same thing… bah, screw 'em. I'm
the one writing this review. "Don't
Need The Drugs?" I love the song.
It is a little Depeche Mode-y, though,
which seems to be the current trend
with the current Darkwave, EBM, and
Synthpop scenes. Depeche Mode is one
of my all-time favorites, but everyone
in the world doesn't need to sound like
them. Still "Don't Need The Drugs?"
is an excellent song with a great arrangement.
If
you like EBM, you'll probably like And
One, although this disc is a bit patchy
with only a few of the songs qualifying
as great (which seems to be an ongoing
habit of And One). If you don't like
EBM and/or synthpop, it'd be a good
idea to pass this disc by, because that's
exactly what this disc is.
And
One is Steve Naghavi on vocals
and "machines", Rick Schah on
keyboards, Annelie Bertilsson on
vocals, and Joke Jay on drums.
This disc was produced by Steve Naghavi
and Christer Hermodsson.
The
tracks on Virgin Superstar are:
1.)
Virgin Superstar
2.) Wasted
3.) You Don't Love Me Anymore
4.) Goodbye Germany
5.) Wet Spot
6.) Panzermensch
7.) My Story
8.) Life To Lose
9.) Not The Only One
10.) Don't Need The Drugs
11.) Mr. Jenka
review
by;
Xangis
