Kalt- Sip the Entity

Artist: Kalt

Album: “Sip the Entity E.P.”

Date: 8/30/09

Reviewer: Robert Eaton

Kalt’s Sip the Entity EP is eight tracks of slickly produced vocals and synths with lush pianos. Kalt pairs male and female vocal duo Alexander Krupp and Alice and hails from Minsk, Belarus. There’s some lovely melancholy music to be had here for the fans of Goth when Goth was all about tombstones and vampires rather than dance beats. Kalt’s album recalls some of the older Cleopatra-era Goth-rock bands, but with much better production values.

The thing that really carries the album is Alice’s plaintive vocals. Likely, fans of crossover mainstream acts like Evanescence and Lacuna Coil will find something to like here. Kalt occasionally comes close to masters of the genre: Black Tape for a Blue Girl, on some of the lusher arrangements such as “Sweet Suicide,” in which female vocals dominate.  The album’s compositions make great use of the pair’s well-developed pop sensibility and vocal harmonies.  In “Nameless Tomb” Kalt’s two vocalists weave around each other and their harmonies blend beautifully. The chorus counts as one of the truly fantastic moments of the album. The album also includes a slightly more floor-oriented version of “Nameless Tomb” which was a brilliant re-mix choice for this E.P. as its last track.

Despite the very clean production on the pianos and vocals, some of the programming leaves a little sonically to be desired. The album heard lacks a lot of low-end; it’s mixed to be very strong on treble and mid-range. More balanced programming might have driven the songs and made the over-all experience of the E.P. more enjoyable.  However, if the listener has a tendency towards vocal-driven Goth-rock, this E.P has many worthwhile moments. The band mixes a modern edge on music that will be familiar those that have been in the Goth scene for a long time. 

website: https://www.myspace.com/kaltproject