Album: "Electrocution"
Label: Interbeat Records
Style: Electro industrial
Songs: 11

Reviewed by: Darklight

The German trio known as E-Craft return with this follow-up to their rather impressive debut “Forge The Steel”. With this release comes a slightly new sound for the band. There is overall less melody this time with more of a noisy heavy electro-industrial crunch similar to that of Funker Vogt.

After the annoying opening experimental instrumental “Electrodes” is over, the album really kicks into gear with the club smasher “Electrocution”. This song is energy driven with excellent programming, driving beats and a memorable sing-along chorus. This album basically never lets up. Each and every track here is fast paced and frantic with chaotic electronic sounds, frantic bass beats and deep thick German accented vocals that growl out the lyrics with power.

The problem that I have with this album is the lack of variety. All of the songs basically stick to the same formula of hard and heavy electro-industrial. There are quite a few that do stand out with memorable hooks and choruses, but there are also a lot that are a bit basic and straight forward without a lot happening in them.

There is a good balance between songs with English lyrics and songs with German lyrics. I was quite pleased to see most of the songs feature English lyrics since their previous release offered mainly songs with German lyrics.

Other than the opening and ending instrumentals, there is an instrumental placed in the middle of the album as well. While it is a bit repetitive, it’s still somewhat good for the most part bringing in a break from the songs with vocals. It just would have been nice if it was shorter as it does tend to drag on longer than it needs to.

The bottom line is that this is a good solid electro-industrial album with music similar to that of Funker Vogt. While it won’t win any awards for originality, it does offer well done hard driving German EBM from start to finish.

Album: "Forge The Steel" (1997)
Label: Maschinenwelt Records
Style: Electro industrial
Songs: 11

Reviewed by: Darklight

This is an electro industrial band with a touch of synth-pop elements included that give their sound an edge. There is some sampled guitar as well in some of the songs that is very well placed. The electronic programming is amazing and the synth harmonies are equally as impressive. These guys know what they are doing. Each and every song found here is just as catchy as the next and do stand out on their own with unique elements. Right when the songs begin you are hooked. This music is very interesting and of a high quality without the typical sound to it. The vocals are the most synth-pop sounding element here. They are very clean and sing with harmony. They're not just the usual angry shouting and growling. The energy of the songs range between medium and fast paced. I do feel that every song could work well on the dance floor. They have a catchy groove that will make you want to get up move. My only complaint is that most of the lyrics are sung in German. I personally like to relate to what is being said in a song. However, this singer is so good that I can enjoy his vocals without knowing what he's saying half the time. He sings with so much passion and emotion that it makes up for it. To top this all off there are no instrumentals or remixes to be found here. This album is packed with ten original songs that all include singing. As an added bonus you can put this CD into your computer and watch a video for one of the band's songs. No electro industrial fan should be without this album in their collection.