Deine Lakaien
April Skies

THE REVIEW

First of all, I would like to thank my "colleague" reviewer gigi sabani for bringing to my attention Deine Lakaien, a precious suggestion that did not leave me indifferent and that I delved into, thus discovering a world of great history, capability, and depth, unfortunately but obviously unknown outside the homeland's borders and the narrow gothic circle. Alexander Veljanov, a Macedonian-born frontman with a warm and elegant crooner-like voice and the multi-instrumentalist and composer Ernst Horn have been active since 1985, so this 2005 album is a product of late mid-age, so to speak, and many artists after so much time get lost in tired repetitiveness or improbable direction changes not supported by sincere intent. "April Skies" is instead a mature album, elaborated with attention and wisdom. Being, to date, the only studio album by Deine Lakaien that I've had the opportunity to listen to, I cannot precisely say how it positions itself within their artistic trajectory, but for sure, it's not a tired and impersonal work. A truly fitting title, "April Skies": where I come from, April is a strange, unpredictable month, capable of providing both sunny days and clear skies and the last cold snaps of the winter season, storms, and gloomy rainy afternoons. This album is just like that, traversing many different sensations and moods with an equally wide and nuanced range of styles and sounds.

Call it dark; call it gothic if you want, but ultimately "April Skies" is an album with a singer-songwriter spirit and electronic sounds, not lacking in danceable moments like the epic "Over And Done," which winks at futurepop or the synth-pop sophistication of the hypnotic and intriguing "When You Lose," and even a small but delightful dose of self-irony, "Take A Chance," a caricature of the most overused gothic stereotypes on an engaging DAF-style EBM rhythm. There are also somewhat more tense and tormented episodes like "Midnight Sun," powerful and anthemic, and the more elaborate and darker "Through The Hell," with elements of balance that add further creativity and depth to the work, such as the elegant electronic music box of an imaginative "Secret Hideaway" or the highly refined synth arrangements of "Heart Made To Be Mine," which explodes in an epic and powerful chorus. Then there are the ballads, five ballads, five different shades of blue; a wonderful color, far more fascinating and multifaceted than the one-dimensional black usually associated with this genre of music. There's "Slowly Comes My Night" which recalls that romantic and twilight spleen of the marvelous 1995 live "Acoustic," even stronger in a slow and heart-wrenching "Vivre," exploring the sounds and intimacy of the French chanson, enhancing Alexander Veljanov's tenor voice; contrasted and balanced sensations by "Satellite," quiet, dreamy, and spiritual, the atmosphere of a warm summer evening, contemplating a starry sky. The urban alienation of "Supermarket (My Angel)" highlights Ernst Horn's great authorial skills, able to express the weight and discomfort of loneliness and incommunicability, self-destructive impulses that reach extreme consequences in "Dialectics," a cold and creeping murder ballad that ensures the album ends with a dramatic but austere detachment, an awareness of the weaknesses of human nature perfectly summed up in a simple and powerful verse like "And good and evil must be defined, must be denied, fall into decay."

The greatest strength of "April Skies" is undoubtedly its open-mindedness, the ability to embrace various styles and different perspectives, harmoniously integrating them into the very precise and well-codified context of intelligent and mature "adult-oriented gothic": each song actively contributes to the work by adding something unique and personal, there are no dead branches on this tree cultivated with experience and wisdom, and an elegant, expressive, and charismatic vocalist like Alexander Veljanov adds further value and interest to a consistently compelling listen. There is certainly a bit of craft and mannerism but also indisputable credibility, something that the tired clones of the 2000s and, even worse, the pre-packaged teen products can, by definition, never possess; class is innate, and Deine Lakaien are a further and obvious demonstration of this.