Title: The Eighties Are Over
Artist: Stromble Fix
Genre: Punk / Deathrock
Release Date: 25th September 2009
Label: AF-Music
Album Review
Some people are just dyed in the wool - they live, breathe and eat the music they love, and as such are able to produce decent music in return. Frank Stromble is one of these people. You can tell he is a child of the Post-Punk / New Wave scene - and after twenty-odd years of it, he has got it pretty sussed. 'The Eighties Are Over' is a collection of songs that exemplify what was good about the decade (even if the songs deal with the dark and personal demons of their writer). Taking their influences from Killing Joke, Red Lorry Yellow Lorry, The Cure, Nick Cave etc., Frank and his cohorts create a very familiar and reassuring sound, but one that should be played on an old Walkman while walking past the dole cue on a cold morning. The mix of Post-Punk / New Wave, with jarring hints of Deathrock, and the dissonance of Grunge gives these songs a broadly appealing sound. Also their lo-fi, 8-track style recording in turn gives the songs a timeless feel rather than a dated one as you'd anticipate.
The album opens with 'Dragonfly', an early Cure meets Joy Division style track that utilises a solid bass line and cutting guitars to conjure up the ghosts of the past. 'Dispirited' follows suit with a catchy slow number befitting the likes of Red Lorry Yellow Lorry with its solid toe-tapping drum beat and subtle riff before diving head long into a Grungy chorus. 'Lucille Can' goes careering straight into The Cure's well trodden mellow dark pop territory for a very catchy number. 'Stun' continues on with the “big” sound but with the vocals more subdued and almost all spoken - the rough style of the vocal work suiting the song far more this way. 'Sawdust' goes in a more Birthday Party / Bad Seeds way before instead opting for a more chugging Punk / Deathrock approach that, while being quite good, does seem a little like the easiest option. 'Couch' could be a Joy Division track if it had been covered by Killing Joke instead - the Gothic bass line coupled with the punk guitar work and rough vocals evoking the spirits of both bands effectively.
'Paltry' wanders into Grunge / Alt Rock territory for a rather interesting and versatile number that breaks up the strong eighties sound with something a little more recent (but not that much more recent). 'Cold Age' swings back by The Cure's sound once again for a groovy piece of dark indie pop with those rough vocals cutting over the smoothness of the music nicely. 'Overload' goes back to their punk roots by way of Black Flag for a gritty little number that features some great melodic group singing. 'We The Living' is another “big” sounding indie track that takes the smooth music and rough vocal approach once more and still manages to wring a good song out of it again. 'Damn' - the last propper track on the album - sounds like a strange mix of David Gilmore, Bob Dylan, and Lenoard Cohen, that creates a very relaxing song for the most part... possibly the best on the album. The album's actual closing track 'Reprise' is a reprise of something that I’m pretty sure isn't on the album - a strange little track it could have been more effective as “the hidden track”.
For a band who are only just releasing their third album since 1990 (and are probably not very well known outside of their home region of Ruhr in Germany), they make very good music. The album is a great slice of different but complimentary musical styles that come together to create something quite special. While there are points on the album where the songs feel a little too long, or that the band are maybe using the same tricks too often, over all it is a well constructed and performed album that would no doubt have received a lot of attention had it come out 25 years ago instead.
Tracklist
01. Dragonfly
02. Dispirited
03. Lucille Can
04. Stun
05. Sawdust
06. Couch
07. Paltry
08. Cold Ages
09. Overload
10. We The Living
11. Damn
12. Reprise
Line-up
Frank Stromble
Tuffy Brazil
The Axe
Websites
http://www.stromblefix.de/ / www.myspace.com/stromblefix
Cover Picture
Rating
Music: 7
Sound: 7
Extras: -
Total: 7 / 10
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