| Artist |
| Leaether Strip |
| Title |
| Civil Disobedience |
| Format/Cat |
| 3CD AM-2111-TCD |
| Label |
| Alfa Matrix |
| Style |
| Dark EBM |
| Date of review |
| 6th November 2008 |
| Reviewer |
| Carl Jenkinson |
| Rating |
| 10/10 |
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Since his re-emergence with the Suicide Bombers EP a couple of years back Claus Larsen has been in prolific form, churning out several albums & EPs as both Leaether Strip & Klutae. The most amazing thing, though, is that the high quality we've come to expect from Larsen has barely dropped at all & that remains the case on this latest all-new offering, the box-set triple version of which clocks in with a whopping 34 tracks which is impressive going by anyone's reckoning, especially as there's not one single remix in that lot (the cover of Die Krupps' 'Machineries Of Joy' doesn't count, not least because it's excellent!!). As ever, Larsen's not afraid to open his heart (the homoerotic lyrics of 'Snakebite' being a case in point) & expose himself as the anti-establishment character he still clearly is; ifthe title doesn't make that clear then the lyrics to such tracks as the excellent 'A Whore For Jesus' (one of his best ever tracks, I'd say) must do & while there's a lot of hurt, fear & loathing running through the album, in the case of 'The Damaged People' & 'In The Arms Of A Demon' (the latter of which proves rather harrowing), a good many alternative types should identify with the defiant tone of 'I Wear Black on The Inside' which sticks two fingers up at those who criticise anyone who dares to be different. Throught, the incessant, piledriving style which is the Leaether Strip trademark remains true, offering a constantly engrossing listening experience that sees this electro music veteran on top form. The third disc 'One Nine Eight Two' mixes Claus' various 80s influences into his own style, from the analogue-tastic offerings that are 'Ego Generation' &, to a lesser extent, 'Lost Kidz' or the more straightforward synthpop stylings of the infectious title track (the vocodered voice of which resembles The Eurythmics 1984) & 'You Don't Look The Same To Me' while 'New Wave Fashion' resurrects the new romantic obsession of looking good (with its tongue firmly in its cheek, I'd guess!). Likewise, 'The 5 Avengers' should cause more than a pang of nostalgia for any former breakdancers with it's Kraftwerk-like rhythms although the excellent leadlines add a darker tone to the track & even if 'Neils Bohr' would have sounded more at home on either of the other two discs it's haunting leadlines make this another excellent offering on an all-round excellent album. In fact, such is the quality on this third disc alone that it could have been released as an album on its own & nobody would have complained although it does render the 2CD version almost redundant so make sure you get this version no matter what.
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