Das Ich- Lava

The great thing about Das Ich is that even when they’re playing straightforward EBM, they still manage to sound like demented chamber musicians. The band’s newest full-length is full of German stomping music, like the fast-paced “Schwartzer Stern” or the old-school analog joy of “Uterus,” but the combination of moaning horns, screeching violins, and a vocal delivery that can only be described as diabolical make this sound less like industrial night at your local club and more like an intimate concert performance in Dante’s Inferno. “Lava” and “Sehnsucht” have a slower martial feel to them, while “Vulkan” throws frenetic string samples and dramatic backing vocals over high-BPM drum patterns for an operatic industrial vibe that will have Laibach fans dancing in spite of themselves. Finishing out the disk are some bonus features, including some live video footage and a couple of remixes; power noise act Asche reworks “Sehnsucht” in a dancier direction, while Wumpscut gives us a sort of minimal vampire techno version of “Vulkan” that’s corny and cool all at the same time. If Goethe’s Faust owned a nightclub, Das Ich would be the house band, so check this out if you’re feeling a little Mephistophelean. Remember, even the devil has to dance.

Visit www.dasich.de for more information.