| |
|
|
|
Originally released as a download (which payed for the CD version) this first Imatem album marks the birth of the new project from Project Pitchfork's Peter Spilles, helped by a number of vocalists, each of whom add their own distinctive styles to their respective tracks. Foremost among these is Unheilig's Der Graf (who has already worked with Spilles on last year's PP/Unheilig collaboration I Will Leben of course!), whose smooth, assertive voice compliments the dramatic melodics & bombastic rhythms that grace the opening 'Hold You', which is sure to appeal to fans of both artists' better-known bands while Milu's breathy, almost ethereal voice fits like a glove the fantasy-like mood that charcterises the early stages of 'S'. Only Lacassa Del Cid's contribution to 'Manchmal' lets the side down as, when he & Spilles sing together, it sounds as if they're rolling drunkenly down the street together although the riff is very reminiscent of Pitchfork's latest works. Luckily, the superb 'Seelenbrennen' benefits from a more successful merging of voices, with Falk Lenn this time, while the almost 'otherworldly' feel that makes the backing riff so enjoyable is certain to cause a feeling of deja vu among those who fondly remember such PP classics as IO & Alpha Omega. Spilles' own distinctive voice graces a number of tracks, including the pacey & punchy 'Holy TV' as well as 'Elegy Of Angels' where the dreamy mood is embellished by some effective soaring synthleads while the superb instrumental 'Remote Truth' stitches together a whole host of news & voice snippets (of which Dubya is inevitably the most recognisable), in both English & German, that provides an intriguing snapshot on the current world situation over a touching & effective musical backing. Another instrumental 'Metami' (do you see what he's done there?) is among the funkier numbers with some more fine soloing while 'Ganz Nah' closes the album on a brighter, rather happy note. In a way, this album is pitched perfectly with another Pitchfork references to to delight both the diehards whilst bringing in enough new ideas to perhaps extend the album's appeal to newcomers as well &, besides, there should always be room for individual-sounding albums such as this in any healthy scene. |
