EHP 0.38: Danse Macabre synkopenleben, nein danke CD [ purchase cd ] Pressing Information: 1000 CDs The Electric Human Project is very proud to present the debut full length from Germany's epic powerhouse DANSE MACABRE. Twelve tracks of fiery and forceful hardcore played with intelligence, ire, and passion. This full length is a huge step up for DANSE MACABRE - fans of their previous 7" and comp tracks will be blown away. DANSE MACABRE deliver a sound much akin to bands like ENVY and YAGE. They blend both the chaotic and the grim elements of heavy music to create something familiar to the scene, yet all of their own at the same time. A beautiful layout with English translations of song descriptions. TRACK LISTING: 1. Zeitbombe 2. Synkopenleben, Nein Danke 3. Phoenix, Part 2 4. Ein Schwalbe Macht Noch Keinen Sommer 5. Keine Atempause 6. Eine Frage Der Opportunitatskosten 7. Syntax Error 8. Da Kann Noch Einiges Optimiert Werden 9. Life Is A Pralinenschachtel 10. Vier-Und-Sechzig, Neun, Ein-Und-Zwanzig 11. Tanzt Das Brot 12. Es Ging Mir Schonmal Besser REVIEWS: Centerfuse (joethebone) If I still kept up with more screamo bands, I'd probably be really into this. Danse Macabre is a German group that sounds a decent amount like Yage, another German screamo band. It's done pretty well, with a fair mix of rock and punk thrown in, even some metal riffs here and there. They mix it up just enough to stay interesting and don't ever lose the intensity that the album starts out with. The liner notes are all in German with English translations, so I guess if I read German I'd appreciate that more. The translations lead me to believe they have some good ideas floating through their songs. Like I said, not the kind of thing I listen to much anymore, but they do it right. Delusions Of Adequacy (Dan Sorrells) Clocking in at 20 minutes, Synkopenleben, Nein Danke stands like a giant exclamation point. It’s a largely violent experience, dashed with the bombast of Envy, the ardor of City of Caterpillar, and maybe even the reckless disregard of Converge, roiling and bubbling until it’s burned itself off in a fit of hissing steam. What is lacks is the epic swagger of those bands, choosing to make its point with aggressive under-two-minute blasts that somehow manage to pack the punch of a decade’s worth of post-hardcore raucousness with brief post-rock interludes of clean guitar and spoken-word vocals. It all whips by at such a blinding speed it’s hard to know how to feel – all that one is sure of at its conclusion is an aching sense of breathlessness. Synkopenleben, Nein Danke has a very non-American feel, and the first comparisons that come to mind are of Danse Macabre’s foreign brethren: Envy, Amanda Woodward, Mihai Edrisch, etc., and rightfully so, as the band hails from Germany. While many hardcore bands in the States tend to be foolishly caught up in tough-guy testosterone-filled pissing contests or prefer to mix elements of metal into their songwriting, it seems that many Eurasian bands are striving for some greater aesthetic, producing albums with all the rage of badass dude-filled bands like Biohazard or Hatebreed, but with a level of sophistication and intelligence unthinkable in the ranks of bro-core and metalcore. Though relentlessly noisy at first listen, Synkopenleben, Nein Danke is rife with complex riffs and stellar interplay between guitarists. It’s unfortunate that much of it is lost in the violent presentation, as it is doubtful that many adrenaline-pumped listeners are going to don the critic’s ear and really attempt to sieve through the squall to mentally tabulate the guitar work. Each song starts with the same full-on assault, at times approaching a speed and intensity that recalls grindcore more than hardcore, and after five or six tracks, they can become hard to differentiate. And though the band’s breaks into clean guitars in the middle of such raging tempests can work amazingly (see the title track and “Eine Shwalbe Macht Noch Keinen Sommer”), by the end of the album, the trick begins to sound a bit trite. These rough patches can easily be forgiven, however, especially if one is a fan of Envy-style post-hardcore, and also considering this is the band’s first attempt at a “full length” album, having previously only released several 7” records. Because of the nature of hardcore vocals, it’s hardly noticeable that all the lyrics on Synkopenleben, Nein Danke are delivered in German, though for the sake of interest it would be nice to know what the lyrics said, even in rough translation. The band takes a step in the right direction with the liner notes, but confusingly only includes descriptions of what the songs are about in English, not the actual lyrics. While it’s all certainly interesting enough, one can’t help but wonder: why not just print the lyrics with the descriptions, too? Though German can be notoriously difficult to translate properly, a part of me doubts that Danse Macabre’s lyrics are on par with the literature of Goethe or Nietzsche. I will give them props for the track titled “Life is a Pralinenschachtel,” however, a silly homage to that famous Forrest Gump line. Brutal as hell and classy like few other hardcore albums, Synkopenleben, Nein Danke is a worthy entry point into the world of post-hardcore for Danse Macabre. Though the band has a few minor releases under its belt, Synkopenleben finds the band born anew, with a startlingly fresh sound and an unbridled, fanatical fervor. If you enjoy any of the bands used for comparison thus far, take it upon yourself to check out Danse Macabre. Though they’ve just stepped into the big ring of contenders, they’ve got their gloves strapped on tight and their mouth guards firmly in place. Punk News dot org (Brian) To many, screamo may as well be a foreign language (you know, the type pioneered by Gravity and fostered by Level Plane). Its angular rhythms, brutal intensity, strange mismatch of beautifully moving chords and messy distortion and commanding drums and general chaos about are just blindly confusing to some. But what happens when a band playing this style really is singing in a foreign language? Is overkill in the works? Well, not for those who already love the genre, I suppose. Danse Macabre are a German-based act of this style drawing from bands like Envy and Saetia, though the band's style here is much more raw and unrelenting, with all their lyrics in German, but Synkopenleben, Nein Danke is no less enjoyable. They do everything as described above, often pummelling through its 20 minutes with sheer intensity and little looking back, save for some pretty octaves used in appropriate amounts. Standouts would be likely to include the title track, which has a wonderfully grand opening, rolling in with solidering guitars and drums to introduce the track. "Eine Schwalbe Macht Noch Keinen Sommer" makes superb use of distorted spoken word and abrupt flange effects, while the condensed Billy Werner channeling in "Keine Atempause" is downright eerie. "Eine Frage der Opportunitatskosten" makes the best use of the vocalist's frenzy, while "Syntax Error" shows some more normal song structure that the band apparently executes well. Recorded way back in June 2004, Synkopenleben, Nein Danke has taken quite some time to see the light of day. Regardless, this is a blinding 20-minute attack worth the fight, translation or not.