Title: Frei
Artist: Polarkreis 18
Genre: Electronic / Classical / Pop
Release Date: 26th November 2010
Label: Vertigo Berlin (Universal)
Album Review
Back in the day, when the first POLATRKREIS 18 record came out, reception was anything but negative. With the second album ‘The Colour Of Snow’ emerging, some raised their voices saying there’s an audible shift into ordinary pop music…and there was one. But still the reactions were largely positive. Just recently the latest record ‘Frei’ saw the lights of day, preceded by the single ‘Unendliche Sinfonie’ (Neverending Symphony). Here the critical reception, I came across, was mostly negative and reading through fan opinions gave the impression that you either love or hate that new album.
The first track to hear on that new album is the title track, opening with an orchestral prelude, leading into thumping drums and a mix of subtle electronics and acoustic flourishes while the orchestral parts have been pushed back significantly. The lyrics jump back and forth between German and English and while that admittedly is something that takes some getting used to, it is not as unnerving as it is proclaimed. It takes a little fine tuning though. ‘Unendliche Sinfonie’ (Neverending Symphony) bears some obvious resemblances to the previous album’s hit ‘Allein Allein’ in structure and arrangement. It makes sense to release an update of something people are familiar with and liked already as an appetizer to a new album. However, it’s not militating for great originality. The previous two were still solid pieces of music, but ‘Deine Liebe’ is the scariest piece of music on the album. It’s not that it’s particularly abysmal; however the shrieked, kitsch-bathed chorus ruins it completely for me.
‘Letting Go’ on the other hand is a greatly discreet piece of music and that feature makes it so lovely. The elegy of the fragile arrangement and the mostly calm vocal delivery on the propulsive drums make this piece stand-out. Calmness is also the credo of ‘Small Space Between’ that builds a magical atmosphere, only utilizing piano, orchestral layers and vocals. Simple but huge in its effect on the listener! ‘Sleep Rocket’ starts a melancholy march through a wintry night, bringing one individual to his imaginary means of transportation that can take him away from all the hurting attachments here on Earth. Not the most ambitious lyrical theme ever heard, but surely one heart-rending many of us can connect to. The closing ‘Elegie’ glides through the ether as an orchestrated expression of the loneliness and uncertainty one can feel inside them. Minor sounds dominate the composition ending the album in a different way than everyone might have expected after all the poppy endeavours.
Yep, that’s how you can pretty much sum up the album with: Poppy! In fact, much more poppy than ‘The Colour Of Snow’ ever was. Over a long distance it seems like POLARKREIS 18 have reduced themselves to a mainstream formula, but on the album there are also these great moments flaring up. So, my summary is that the album is much more mainstream affine than its predecessor and lacks its special atmosphere; on the other hand that doesn’t make ‘Frei’ a particularly bad record, regardless of the pop formatting done here and the simplified lyrics. Here’s hoping that the guys will regain their courage for experimentation again somewhere along the road, because regardless of what I think of the album I know they can do a lot better than that.
Tracklist
01. Frei - 3:27
02. Unendliche Sinfonie - 3:52
03. All That I Love - 3:25
04. Deine Liebe - 3:18
05. Evergreen - 3:07
06. Letting Go - 3:39
07. Small Space Between - 2:01
08. Sleep Rocket - 3:48
09. Dark and Grey - 3:37
10. Elegie - 5:06
Line-Up
Felix Räuber
Uwe Pasora
Christian Grochau
Philipp Makolies
Silvester Wenzel
Ludwig Bauer
Website
http://www.polarkreis18.de/ / http://www.myspace.com/polarkreis18
Cover Picture
Rating
Music: 6
Sound: 8
Extras: -
Total: 7 / 10
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