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Reviewed
by: Darklight
Final Selection is the German dark synth-pop duo of
Riccardo Schult and Mario Tews. What they deliver on this Antihero
CD is a blend of synth-pop and darkwave. Basically, the sound offered
here is mid-tempo gloomy electronic music with deep dreary male vocals
that speak out the lyrics in a monotone style.
The main problem I have with this CD, other than being somewhat dull,
is how typical it all sounds. There are elements of Depeche
Mode, De/Vision
and Diary of Dreams
throughout this entire recording. And while those aren’t bad bands to
borrow from, it would have been nice if more fresh and original ideas
were included. Unfortunately, this is rather generic dark synth-pop
music that you may have heard many times before.
It’s obvious that this band has the ability to produce quality music
as everything here is well done. The electronic programming is nicely
layered and textured with solid beats blended with enchanting melodies.
The vocals are deep and clear and sing rather well. The problem is that
none of the songs ever really jump out and grab your attention.
While there’s a good mix of mid-tempo tracks and slightly more energetic
tracks, they all have a haunting darkwave edge that makes them rather
dreary. And this prevents any of them from working as dance tracks.
Basically, this isn’t club music. There’s a lot of mood and atmosphere
contained in these songs making them best suited for home stereo and
headphones.
While overall this isn’t a bad debut for Final Selection,
it’s also not very exciting, either. Most of the songs sound rather
alike, and none of them really stand out as hits. But if you’re a big
fan of synth-pop music, then you might want to check this out.
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