indie / alternative / pop / singer-songwriter
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Well, I guess it's time to get this review online. In the past month or so, I've spent several hours listening to the album and rewriting the whole article, only to have it end up in the drafts, waiting to be published. Why so? Well, this simply is a difficult album to describe. For starters, the album reminds me a lot of one particular act but I can't remember which one and that is bloody frustrating. Second, this takes a dig into my entire non-metal musical knowledge, especially the alternative corners of the pop music industry.
First things first, Klein is German multi-instrumentalist Lutz Nikolaus Kratzer. According to the biography, he loves all the instruments in the world, except panpipes. 'Bengal Sparks' is his third album under this moniker, one on which he surely comes up with a heap of instrumentation and electronics. He throws all of those instruments into nifty pop songs, here and there aided by either Mr Vast or Kuoko.
Throughout this album, an massive load of bands come to mind, from Massive Attack over Ween to Sonic Youth. There are elements from shoegaze, from noise, from trip-hop and even some grunge licks. Yet, all of those elements have been blend into uplifting songs. It's not hard to start shaking your ass to 'Lowride', 'Parking Lot' or 'Nicotine Princess'. Speaking about 'Lowrider', this song is the indie rock version of an electro clash song. You know, Ween plays Goldfrapp, or something like that.
Come to think of it, I'm starting to believe that my little problem is solved. The band I couldn't remember, which is described in the opening paragraph, is probably Ween. The blatant disregard towards genre boundaries, the cheek-in-tongue approach, the joyful yet often gritty sound, this might have well been a Ween album. That also explains why I wasn't very fond of the album at first but love it now. It's the same with everything recorded by Dean & Gene, it needs to grow and gradually show its true brilliance.
So yes, I've grown quite fond of this one. It has become an excellent companion for my daily chores. The trippy 'Silly You' is one of my favorites and 'Ghosttown' definitely deserves a mention because both Massive Attack and Tricky completely forgot to write this beauty. Or how about 'Neon Fog', an americana tune, interlaced with soundscapes and shoegaze and I don't know what else. This is too good to be ignored, this whole album is.
​Serge
First things first, Klein is German multi-instrumentalist Lutz Nikolaus Kratzer. According to the biography, he loves all the instruments in the world, except panpipes. 'Bengal Sparks' is his third album under this moniker, one on which he surely comes up with a heap of instrumentation and electronics. He throws all of those instruments into nifty pop songs, here and there aided by either Mr Vast or Kuoko.
Throughout this album, an massive load of bands come to mind, from Massive Attack over Ween to Sonic Youth. There are elements from shoegaze, from noise, from trip-hop and even some grunge licks. Yet, all of those elements have been blend into uplifting songs. It's not hard to start shaking your ass to 'Lowride', 'Parking Lot' or 'Nicotine Princess'. Speaking about 'Lowrider', this song is the indie rock version of an electro clash song. You know, Ween plays Goldfrapp, or something like that.
Come to think of it, I'm starting to believe that my little problem is solved. The band I couldn't remember, which is described in the opening paragraph, is probably Ween. The blatant disregard towards genre boundaries, the cheek-in-tongue approach, the joyful yet often gritty sound, this might have well been a Ween album. That also explains why I wasn't very fond of the album at first but love it now. It's the same with everything recorded by Dean & Gene, it needs to grow and gradually show its true brilliance.
So yes, I've grown quite fond of this one. It has become an excellent companion for my daily chores. The trippy 'Silly You' is one of my favorites and 'Ghosttown' definitely deserves a mention because both Massive Attack and Tricky completely forgot to write this beauty. Or how about 'Neon Fog', an americana tune, interlaced with soundscapes and shoegaze and I don't know what else. This is too good to be ignored, this whole album is.
​Serge