Artist: X Marks the Pedwalk
Title: Secrets
Genre: Electro / Synth Pop
Release Date: 24th March 2017
Label: Meshwork Music
Album Review
When I think of X MARKS THE PEDWALK, I think of traditional EBM from the old days. The band has been founded in 1987 with their first album release, ‘Freaks’, coming out in 1992. This means that X MARKS THE PEDWALK’s new album, ‘Secrets’, also means the 25th anniversary of record release for them. It is their 9th full album. And I was expecting classic EBM. Well, I was wrong on that.
The album has only little to do with the music I associate with X MARKS THE PEDWALK. The songs are much more Synth Pop than EBM, some are even quite poppy and even include classic Pop song structures including breaks. Some songs, like ‘Photomatique’, are very much reminding of 80s Pop bands like DEPECHE MODE or CAMOUFLAGE, which is great in my opinion. It is just something I did not expect from X MARKS THE PEDWALK. ‘Masterpiece’, ‘Prisoner’ and the song ‘Secrets’, which gave the album its name, are nice Synth Pop songs with soft drums and appealing melodies. The good ones sound like 80s or bands like ROTERSAND. In general, the arrangements and construction of the songs appeal not very sophisticated. What really grinded my gears is the strong German accent of the vocalists, especially Estefania. Her voice is also not that clear in some tracks and is losing her notes more than necessary. The ballads with her voice are songs I regularly skipped during listening.
All in all, the album is not extraordinary but quite okay. It is more something to listen to in the background. ‘Photomatique’ is the best song for me, it strongly reminds of ‘Photographic’, one of the first really successful songs of DEPECHE MODE from 1981.
Tracklist
01. Masterpiece
02. Secrets
03. Ghost
04. Sacred
05. Photomatique
06. Breathe
07. Prisoner
08. One Time
09. Crankmachine
Line-up
Sevren Ni-arb - Founder, songwriter, vocalist, producer, and engineer
Raive Yarx - Concepts, structures, and electronics
Estefania - Secondary vocalist
Website
xmtp.de
Cover Picture
Rating
Music: 7
Sound: 8
Total: 7.5 / 10
Comments powered by CComment