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N.A.M.B - BMAN
CD, Monotreme, 2009 / 2010
www.namb.it



If you haven't heard of Italy's N.A.M.B yet, it's probably one of those situations where your brain is refusing to accept sensory input because what it's receiving is just too damn bizarre. That said, it's definitely worth the effort to expand your paradigm to accept the existence of this mixed-up foursome that refuse to settle on any one explanation for their acronym name. They even welcome contributions from fans ("Nicotine Affects Mind Behaviours"?) and offer prizes for the best.
"BMAN" is their second album - and an ambitious leap indeed, from their self-titled 2005 debut album. Not only do they make the jump from their mother tongue to English lyrics, they also have put together an epic tale of a small robot (BMAN) and his quest for identity. Not since Styx' "Kilroy Was Here" has a story of such proportions been put to music.
And what music it is...
While N.A.M.B's roots are undeniably in rock, rather than electronica, they still manage very convincingly to combine these disparate disciplines in an album that is sometimes psychedelic, occasionally industrial, often catchy and always three steps left of conventional. A casual listener may make favourable comparisons with the likes of Muse or Nine Inch Nails (for contemporary fans), while an older audience may pick up traces of Pink Floyd's sensitive synthesizers or even the stadium rock sensibility of Peter Frampton! Truly, a diverse album, and one that keeps you guessing at every turn. And they aren't scared of experimenting with music either: at last, a band willing to break free from the desperate trap that is common time...
Even viewing the album as separate tracks, rather than the conceptual entity it is intended as, yields goodness. My personal favourite, "Work it out", is a massive pop-rock foot-thumper, replete with repetitive, confrontational lyrics ("You lied! You lied! You lied! You lied!") and stonking great guitar riffs.
In summation: a great album, and a total change of pace. Not exactly a great selling tool, as the hordes of great unwashed will find it either a, too weird or b, too thought-provoking, but if that doesn't scare you, you're in for a treat.

-- David van der Merwe [8.5/10]


Simon Schall - Induktion der Ruhe
CD-R, Le Petit Maschiniste, 2010
www.simonschall.com



Despite this being Simon Schall's third album, the world has yet to see an upswing in the popularity of sci-fi/horror/cyber films like Shinya Tsukamoto's "Tetsuo" series. This strikes me as odd, because it would seem, upon casual listening, that Herr Schall's music project is nothing more than an attempt to recreate scores for films in the same genre as this cult classic. "Induktion der Ruhe" is no exception to this. The machine aesthetic Schall panders to becomes drab, as if it lacks additional sensory impact - exactly the niche that visuals of men becoming biomechanical killing machines would fill.
The album is obviously not designed as a club hit - more than two thirds of the record is pure mechanical ambience - but even with this fact in mind, not enough happens over the course of these eleven tracks to make it worth consideration as an ambient event.
Schall's press release for "Induktion der Ruhe" describes the album's underlying message as one of interpersonal pressures between human beings when they stop communicating, and the robotic repetitiveness of the sounds he weaves definitely support this. Sadly, the message is lost in the medium, as its non-dynamic nature does not lend itself to repeated listening.
While this review may come across as a lambasting of Simon Schall's musical efforts, that is not the intention. If anything, it is a frustrated reaction to wasted potential. His previous record, "Have a Noise Day" (available as a free download from his website) is a far superior effort: less polished, more visceral and, resultingly, far more sincere. While popular legend says Mozart's "Die Entführung aus dem Serail" held the fatal flaw, according to Emperor Joseph II, of having too many notes, Schall's "Induktion der Ruhe" is guilty of the opposite: not enough. Not enough melody, not enough emotion, not enough communication; not enough of anything, in fact, for me to recommend it.

-- David van der Merwe [4/10]