Schramm- Schramm

Last Updated on Sunday, 16 June 2013 21:10 Written by Pagan Hel

Artist: Schramm – Griefswald, Germany

CD Title: Schramm

Label: Future Fame Records

Released 2-4-12

Genre: Old School EBM/Industrial/Electro Punk/Noise

Schramm have been together since the late 90’s and combined a conglomerate of Old school EBM, Punk and Industrial. With just three members in the band you could wonder how they come up with such bizarre concepts and make a lot of noise doing it! In February 2012 Schramm released or should I say unleashed their debut album by the same name featuring twelve tracks and a 16 page booklet! And I believe the most elaborate music debut to hit the scene, garnering the band coverage in Zillo Magazine and gaining them 9^th place in the GEWC Charts for three weeks.

Review Track by Track:

Illuminati

This will get the juices flowing in more ways than one! It’s vibrant and vocally not unlike Rammstein – another German favourite of mine! The track bounces with a feverish array dark rhythms and harsh vocal and as you would expect from a German band sung in Deutsch. The menacing vibes do give the body a good work out, to the rebellious but scintillating synth sounds.

Yokozuna

Unleashing another thumping array of monotone German vocal, it winds its way through some seducing synth and energising rhythmic flurries that ignite a fierce intriguing sound – Sort of like Depeche Mode meets Rammstein!

Nonnenstudio

Bubbling rapturous and frenzied rhythms kick off as the band brew another interesting composition that is simple in sound but packs a punch none the less! Its chant like severe vocal is made harsher by the German tone it gives out and adds a really dark flavour to a great track.

Tierleibe – Animal Lover

This will send the body into shock mode! The incidental squeak from the synth amid a grim and stark vocal intermingles with a dark menacing rhythm is more than the body can stand. It pulsates in an austere surround blackness and offers a threatening stance as the tempo is notched up to a nasty level.

Hass Mich – Hate Me

Brooding bass as sparse as it is suddenly turned into a crazy array of beats and the vocal abruptly turns into a monster. The swirling ambience and whispering vocals adding in plenty of intrigue to what is already an elaborate and corrosive masterpiece.

Rattentempel

Sinister and yet light and airy at the same time, this track houses really throaty hoarse vocal that pushes its way in a commanding tone, whilst the light synth reminds us that there is light within a dark composition. In the same vein as the previous tracks the vocals chant demonically to some, body draining rhythms!

Tango

Mesmeric synth notes display themselves like tiny raindrops whilst the striking heavy beats portray themselves as thunder in a storm ridden sky. Vocally monotone and unforgiving. It contains plenty of sultry seductiveness that has niggling attributes with barbed intent.

Asbest

Having witnessed the official video to this track, I found it interesting as well as a bit tongue in cheek as the scantily clad woman entertains a mannequin whilst eating horseradish that are meant to look like strawberries and then goes on to seduce this mannequin removing its plastic limbs when it does not respond to her needs. The striking contrast of black and red were quite startling and the music vibrantly playing in the background accompanying it, was really most welcome. The Germans do not hide behind sex and are the first to say what they think and this can only be a good thing – the art of music is creativity with no restraints.

Schramm

The title track is hypnotic and swathed in melodic rhythm that captures a very angular stance of mutated and convicting beats that in turn go out their way to create the essences of Schramm with a striking quality.

Nichts

Diabolical harmonies begin and then pulsating rhythms break out and combined with the harsh male vocal is a female harmony that adds into the array some popping synth, making it an expressive track that will definitely rattle your cage!

Musclecar

Urgent and striking this pipes up with a bubbling synth tone that drives a chanting hard vocal edge. Peppered with additional sparse notes that make the urgency more appealing and reveals a very anthemic track.

Wasch Dich

Heavy muscular rhythms reach out with a female sampled voice and then Robert intervenes in harsh tone commanding ‘Wasche Dich’ (Wash yourself) to a very fearless rhythm that emerges furiously and captures another side to the already many sided Schramm.

To Sum up:

A lot of teasing seductive rhythms are housed within a vibrant and yet stark shell of clever creativity. Each track, although running in the same vein throughout, still holds plenty to savour and enjoy.

The wealth of melodic wash and fiery up tempo beats will delight the dance floor goers whilst the slower more dark and sinister attributes will delight the industrial punkers. It has something for everyone and will no doubt be a hit, if not already, with Industrial takers across the globe.

Schramm prefer to stride rather than take small steps, run when they could walk and slap you in the face when they could gently stroke you – this just about sums up Schramm in a sentence, but then again being German it is no surprise as they do not do things by half measures and always strive to be the best in their field, which Schramm have proven over and over again on each track of this formidable album.

10/10

Take a Listen: "Asbest"