Staple food of industrial fans and angry young teens everywhere KMFDM have been doing their thing since 1984, with an ever evolving line-up and increasingly bizarre choice of album titles. Their newest offering is no exception. Entitled
Tohuvabohu, the line-up for this new album remains largely the same as their more recent studio releases and many fans feel that it's been a successful mix. Others however will (rather more vocally) decry the band's modern sound, and believe KMFDM have been in a slow decline for years. Personally I always find KMFDM to very hit and miss; half an album tends to be superb and other tends to be very weak filler. Except for
Nihil, which was awesome start to finish. However when you've been around as long as this band has perhaps it's unfair to expect every single track to be a tour de force.
Tohuvabohu is a word from the Old Testament roughly meaning 'wild and chaotic', which is the broad theme KMFDM have gone for with this release. An interesting direction for a group which is usually defined by steady paced pounding beats, and one which could certainly inject a little life into a dangerously predictable sound. The effect is fairly easy to identify- mixed in with the usual "ultra heavy beats" and cynical lyrics come unexpected flashes from other genres. This is apparent even from the outset, as the first 30 seconds of opener
Superpower contains a few lines of what can best be described as slap bass. Little quirks like this certainly don't signal a serious change in direction for the band, but they will help the track stand out from the frankly vast back catalogue KMFDM has built up over the years.
Title track
Tohuvabohu will seem more familiar to the KMFDM fanbase, with a pounding synth tune covered in effects-laden guitar work and the usual Sascha Konietzko ( aka Kapt'n K.) vocals. A little by-the-numbers perhaps, but then again we're talking about a sound which KMFDM pioneered largely by themselves. It's inevitably going to sound a bit samey after all these years, and you already love it or hate it.
I've always been a fan of Lucia Cifarelli's work with the band, and any track where she and Sascha trade off vocals usually floats my boat. Yes other female contributors have produced better individual efforts, but for me Lucia is consistently adequate. An odd compliment, but there you have it. Thankfully this partnership is as strong as ever on
Tohuvabohu, notably the song
Looking For Strange which has been enjoying a lot of play time at my end. However even a fan like myself is forced to wonder why she's on quite so many of songs here? Far from providing mere backing vocals, Lucia now seems to have an almost equal standing with Sascha when it comes to the microphone. Has Sascha's marriage to Lucia in 2005 had something to do with this? You decide.
KMFDM's cover of Liaisons Dangereuses’
Los Niños Del Parque is an interesting choice found midway through the album, but unfortunately they are not able to do justice to the original. Let's not forget that this track was crucial in the evolution of EBM as we know it today, and a massive underground hit in the early 1980's. This cover, while passable, just seems underwhelming when you consider the history.
Sadly I must now return to one of my initial concerns – filler. Despite what the band's PR would like you to believe,
Tohuvabohu is not top-drawer work from start to end.
Not In My Name is positively boring – we really don't need yet more political outrage set to a repetitive beat and uninspiring effects. I'm forced to concede that yet again KMFDM have produced a body of work which is going to need some sifting through to find the good bits.
Several of the tracks on this album encapsulate the chaotic theme better than others, such as
Saft Und Kraft where both the vocals and guitar work is downright frantic. This is a side of KMFDM which I personally don't like, however it's very true to their roots and I'm certain it will go down a treat with their average fan. However, despite these occasional moments of innovation, when you take a step back and consider
Tohuvabohu as a whole those moments start to fade away into the background. If you really take the time to appreciate this album you'll be rewarded by the quirks and nuances, but to a casual listener it's all going to sound very 'typical KMFDM'. This is by no means a bad thing mind you, at least you know what you're in for. And if you're anything like me you'll pick up just enough of the new shine to make you nod your head and be thankful this band is still out there, still recording, still touring for as long as I've been alive.
Fans should be aware that
Tohuvabohu does somewhat continue the bands recent slide towards a more mainstream angle, and a step away from the old days of revolving contributors. KMFDM are running a serious risk of getting more than a little stale here, and I would strongly urge them to invite some of the old faces back into the recording studio. I was able to enjoy
Tohuvabohu enough to justify it's purchase, but if I'm being brutally honest you could sit this one out and barely notice.
Overall a decent offering, but they've done better. A lot better.
Tohuvabohu is out now.
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