| Artist |
| Prager Handgriff |
| Title |
| Arbeit, Sport Und Spiel |
| Format/Cat |
| CD etd 039 cd |
| Label |
| Electric Tremor Dessau |
| Style |
| Melodic EBM |
| Date of review |
| 26th September 2011 |
| Reviewer |
| Carl Jenkinson |
| Rating |
| 7/10 |
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Well, this is a welcome return for this German duo that, as far as I know, are hardly heard of in the UK but had a decent cult following in their homeland back in the 90s when all the first wave of EBM bands had had their day & it was left to bands like them to carry the electro flag, taking the older EBM styles & infusing them with a good dose of melody that contradict the gruff albeit melodic German vocals. And right from the opening moments of 'Elektrorepublik' it's evident that they've added a more melodic edge to their EBM stylings that pays off handsomely throughout here, making for an instantly infectious & enjoyable album & while it's likely that dancefloor adoration in the UK is likely to be hard to come by it does provide plenty of enjoyment away from it with muscular rhythms providing the basis for such decent tracks as 'Bis An Das Ende Der Welt' or 'Vorwahrts' which benefits from an excellent chorus, as does 'Im Western Nicht Neues' which is one of the standout pieces & the pacey, punchy 'Ich Finde Dich' while ''Die Dunkle Ewigkeit' impresses with its massed melodics that, along with the slow rhythms, make for an almost epic offering & while Stefan Schafer's vocals don't come anywhere near the same expressive qualities as the melodics his gruff style at least has more character than the modern 'harsh whispered' styles of modern electro (although a knowledge of German would no doubt help you get more out of the album!!). Once the initial premise is established the band don't move far beyond it doesn't matter as the album is full of fine tracks waiting to be discovered, proving that there's more to old skool EBM than aping DAF or Front 242 & it's the character that permeates pretty much every track that shoots Prager Handgriff light years ahead of any of their label mates, it's good to see them back
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