T-Ho: Fit to Mold

A feathery touch of modern nostalgia

In a world where the ease and safety of ephemeral standards imposes a more and more alarming uniformity in artistic expression, inspiration drawn from purer, time-resisting sources can make a notable difference. South Korea based singer/songwriter Tim Haagenson (T-Ho) from Minneapolis proves that when stylistic "loans" and influences from the past are dexterously molded into a modern perspective, they can play a crucial part in the creation of a personal signature.

Der tollwuetige Kasper: Manchmal kommen sie wieder

God lives nowhere

The new album by Der Tollwuetige Kasper (Arne Pahlke's side project) "welcomes us into our lives" - in a life that we shouldn't feel too happy or privileged to be living... I will not refer to the technicalities concerning this particular musical style - others have done that much better than I ever could - but I will approach this work subjectively and emotionally, based on my impressions after repeated listens of Manchmal kommen sie wieder.

fresh body shop: orgamilk

Fragile beauty

A pretty but somewhat disturbing cover, a mysterious title... and twelve beautiful acoustic ballads, with very nice lyrics and a voice that caresses the ears. The fragility of the fallen doll on the cover is reflected in the sensitive melodiousness of the songs.

DIXIT: Morsure de la nuit

The heart of the beast, or the beast in the heart?

Maybe because of the initial cover that had to be replaced by the (very nice) current one, the title of this album always makes me think of The Beast Within - second episode of the Gabriel Knight game trilogy, which tells the story of a forbidden passion and of a fight for life and principles. The hero's internal conflict is as powerful as the struggle against the enemy; and when the enemy also exerts a fatal attraction on his rival, the fight becomes a lot more than a matter of life and death.

deathstar: starlight

Sweetness...

Anyone who liked deathstar's previous album will not be let down by this one - there is a continuity in the style and themes, even references to song titles of hope themselves (another Blue Rose here), but with a somewhat more prominent element of cosmic atmosphere.

starfirefive: All Lyrics Are Lies

Songs never lie...

And how can they, since they are born from the deepest, purest darkness of the soul and the mind, from the very essence of feelings and experiences... This album is rather raw material (with distinct references to Depeche Mode), but I wonder whether some more elaboration would actually do it any good.

Equals Conquest: Manifest Destiny

Ambitious, with beautiful vocals

A very well-made work whose cover art concept predisposes for the dominant atmosphere. I liked the lyrics in most of the songs; the melodies are pleasant to the ear in spite of the somewhat dark themes, while the voice is beautiful and expressive. It's the kind of music you can listen to again and again, and always discover something new.

LES2VAINS: Just stand on the light

Soul-cleansing

Beautiful melodies sung by interesting voices, honouring their influences (The Beatles, Belle and Sebastian, Simon and Garfunkel, R.E.M. and others, as also noted in their profile) but also contributing their own element of originality.

deathstar: hope

A rose is a rose

Nice, moody melodies and interesting titles - the only problem is that the (English) lyrics aren't heard very clearly and, my usual complaint, aren't published on Jam either.

Samuel: Once Upon Eternity

Bittersweet...

Interesting melodies with a bittersweet edge. The voice has a pleasantly dark feel to it. All tracks are beautiful in a rather singular way - although I prefer the ones with the simpler arrangements (like Feelings or Scared, for example).