Review: Various Artists – 'Apop We Love You – A Tribute To Apoptygma Berzerk'

VARIOUS ARTISTS
'Apop We Love You – A Tribute To Apoptygma Berzerk'
ELECTROZOMBIES

Electrozombies' first compilation album 'Undead and Open Minded Volume 1' was a great exhibition of up and coming as well as established electronic music talent that covered a wide variety of genres. Fast-forward a few months and the next Electrozombies compilation is an official tribute album to Norway's electronic darlings Apoptygma Berzerk. Now Tribute albums can either be really interesting or really bland. I can think of way too many “tributes” where the majority of the album sounds pretty faithful to the originals with few acts daring to make the songs their own. Thankfully 'Apop We Love You – A Tribute To Apoptygma Berzerk' doesn't fall into this trap.

As will the first compilation album, 'Apop We Love You – A Tribute To Apoptygma Berzerk' is a good blend of established acts as well as younger ones covering genres like darkwave, ebm, synthpop, industrial and more. As a result there are plenty of acts more than willing to take apart the originals and re-imagine them as Apop have done on their own covers in the past.

Artists such as Electrogenic, Vogon Poetry, Machinista, IIOIOIOII, Corlyx, Sad January, Synapsyche, and Technomancer featuring Angst Pop provide the album with just a few of its highlights giving their tracks stunningly original reinterpretations across the board. None of the 20 tracks on show here tread water or attempt to do a note-for-note cover. All of the bands and artists have dug deep and brought something interesting to the table. Some have switched genres and kept the original dance feel of the tracks, whereas others have been a little more dramatic in their offerings. But in every case it works.

In terms of production there is of course the usual compilation issue of the individual quality of the tracks due to the different genres and recording styles (and budgets). However, however the album has been arranged and mastered so that these differences are not glaringly obvious and don't detract from the album's momentum.

Love them or hate them, there is still a place for tribute albums if they are done with real conviction and not just as a cynical ploy for bands to cash in on someone else's fame. If you're a fan of Apop or just like a good compilation album featuring a great mix of talented artists then 'Apop We Love You – A Tribute To Apoptygma Berzerk' is a good choice.  

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Review: Various Artists – 'Undead & Open-Minded Volume 1'

VARIOUS ARTISTS
'Undead & Open-Minded Volume 1'
ELECTROZOMBIES

Sometimes you just can't beat a compilation album. They're good for when you want a little variety, when you're looking for new bands, and for parties. They're even better when they're free. And 'Undead & Open-Minded Volume 1' from Electrozombies is just such a compilation. Featuring a range of killer electronic acts (an impressive 27 in total) taking in genres such as ebm, darkwave and synth-pop the album is an essential a great party play list.

Acts such as Psy'Aviah, Junksista, Machinista, Atomzero, nTTx, The Sweetest Condition, and Scarlet Soho will be familiar names to Intravenous Magazine readers, and all provide some great tunes respectively. They're joined by the likes of Parralox, Sexy Suicide, Julien-K, Astari Nite, Dust Heaven, Eurotix, and Train To Spain whose contributions alone would be more than worth the price of a regular download.

Unusually for a compilation album there is very little drop in quality. The styles may vary but the strength of the song writing on display here, as well as the performances and execution of each contribution is solid across the board.

Straight synthpop flows into darkwave, with ebm dance beats and industrial malevolence aplenty as the track list evolves. The songs are catchy and show off a wide-range of sounds and talents from around the world. The album is curated really well with a nice flow to the running order, while each track sounds fresh and high quality.

If you're an electronic music fan looking for fresh sounds, a cool playlist, or you just love free music, then 'Undead & Open-Minded Volume 1' is one for you. The size and variety on offer here is great and for free, you can't turn your nose up at it.

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