Desdemona - Endorphins

Last Updated on Wednesday, 28 November 2012 20:39 Written by EvaLantsoght

Artist: Desdemona

Album: Endorphins

Label: Danse Macabre Records

Genre: industrial, electro

Desdemona, advertised as one of the most popular bands of the dark scene in Poland, have released their 3^rd CD Endorphins. Recording for the album took 2 years in the private studio of the band.

Over the past years, this band, which mostly plays in Poland, has shared the stage with Tiamat, Type O Negative, Katatonia, VNV Nation, Pain and some more big shots. The experience of this quartet can be heard in their newest release.

While the earlier work of Desdemona was mostly gothic and metal-oriented, their latest artifact is served with an electronic gravy and distinct industrial stuffing. The result is Endorphins, an album that mostly aims at club hits and some deeper and more haunting gothic side dishes.

One of the steady shores in this wild sea of electronic sounds is the great vocal work by Agnieszka Lesna, who masters a wide range of emotions and styles. Comparisons with Zombie Girl and Ayria are not far off regarding the vocal work on Endorphins.

“Bring in All”, the opening track of the album invites all listeners to a party, and its chorus ends with a witty reference to Ray Charles' “Hit the Road, Jack!”. The next track, “desDREAM” keeps the tempo up and the party on. “Poison” brings an interesting turn in the album: while the previous tracks kept the listener on the dancefloor in a bright lighting show, this track brings you to shady bathrooms or a forgotten ally behind the club. The atmosphere is threatening and the soundscape could be taken from a horror computer game.

“Jealous Sky” is a trance-infused club-hit in the making, with some goa sounds. “Devil's Game” sets fire to the party. The lyrics are a little hard to understand, and I keep (mis?)hearing “the ashes of my dog”. The 6^th track “Sorrow” is Desdemona's reply to a ballad – a slowly creeping intensely dark track that could be considered as one of the most interesting of the album.

“Lets Play Love” adds futurepop sounds to the party-ready arsenal and is followed by the industrial “In Flames”. The penultimate track “Euphoria” gives me a stoned, after-party like version of a euphoric dance anthem. The gaming references are in full swing: I keep hearing the sounds of Mario crawling into a tube as played on the early Nintendo systems. The album ends as it began, with a booming party on the track “XXX”.

To conclude: if you are looking for a danceable, yet versatile album with rock-steady vocals, you should check out these Polish musicians. Also, the Alice in Wonderland gone wrong in the videoclip below is worth the watch.