| Artist |
| Dekad |
| Title |
| Confidential Tears |
| Format/Cat |
| CD BDMCD09 |
| Label |
| Boredom Product |
| Style |
| Melancolic synthpop |
| Date of review |
| 11th May 2008 |
| Reviewer |
| Carl Jenkinson |
| Rating |
| 8/10 |
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Dekad are back with a follow-up to their 2005 debut 'Sin_Lab' which sees the French trio of Seb, JB & Yoyo again using the sound of the 80s as their major source of inspiration. When I say '80s synthpop' I don't mean the analogue-flavoured style that phrase usually means, although the fact that 'A Reason (To Hate Me) the one track that does go down this road is one of the album's highlights, proves that it's something they can do with ease; rather, the music has a stronger 'New Wave/New Romantic' style that leans slightly towards some goth-like moods with a strong melancolic, melodic mood running throughout in a manner that might appeal to fans of Clan of Xymox & The Frozen Autumn. The band's skills in merging emotive synths & guitar makes for a constantly rewarding listen, especially when these elements are combined with the driving punchy rhythms of 'No Regrets' while, on a similar note, the slightly minimalistic feel of 'Next Time' lends itself to a far harder, darker number & the manner in which 'Tension' builds, with the aid of some gritty guitar riffs, into the full-blooded number that it eventually becomes can only be admired. The instrumental 'Image Of You' treads a similar path with some particularly forboding sequences backing the dark melodics but the one track that really sees them stretching their stylistic wings is 'March Of The Damned' which might sound like a Leaether Strip title but is, in fact, a most stunning piece of 'mood music' as a haunting piano weaves its spell atop a slowly-unfolding, mystical backdrop of slow rhythms & understated chords in such a way that it's sure to send shivers down your spine. Overall, this sees the band improving on their debut with a stronger, more consistent follow-up so here's hoping this sees them finally gaining the credit they deserve.
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