KMFDM
[symbols]

THE REVIEW

Today I decided that I wanted to delve into a German industrial band with a curious and mysterious acronym, a group I would say incredibly prolific, having churned out a myriad of albums in over thirty years of career. Since I decided to choose one for the review, I thought it was a good idea to listen to them all in a breathtaking session. After careful consideration, the choice fell on Symbols, or at least that's how their 1997 album is identified, with a really cool and indicative cover. It features a rather threatening woman slapping a poor unsuspecting guy, probably a "symbol" of a not exactly peaceful album. Before getting to the point, I'd say it adds some flavor to include a bit of unsavory context: KFDM's music is sadly associated with the Columbine School massacre of 1999, as two reckless individuals - responsible for a bloody mass murder - were avid fans of theirs. Regardless of the fact that composing rebellious-subversive music is a somewhat flimsy reason to trigger the charge of inciting the shooting, but in this deviant society, everything becomes news, so I wouldn't exclude that people's pervasive morbid interest might have increased the attention towards the group.

Returning to this Symbols, it is a nice album, not perfect but definitely well-crafted. What immediately catches the ear is the techno-electronic style with which an industrial-stamped spirit manifests itself, not the sophisticated and purposeful electronics of a Trent Reznor, but rather something more akin to dance, the kind that makes you move your eyebrow to the beat. It is more simply defined as electronic body music, and the opening track is already a hat-tip, perhaps even the best episode: Megalomaniac opens with a very nineties electronic arpeggio, while lyrics in German introduce heavy riffs and a distorted bassline. Finally, the drum machine comes in, linear and powerful, and you're off to the dance floor. The track has a truly irresistible charm, thanks to a continuously building development, various sound strategies, and the pleasant vocal inserts. It’s not very original and somewhat lacking in cultural depth, but the final effect is more than excellent. The album, however, has another notable moment to offer, Anarchy, where the atmosphere becomes more serious and the beat slows down, taking on dark connotations, but the track is still pop-tinged and culminates in a memorable refrain. It leaves you wanting to listen to it again, and that's no small compliment. Other well-executed moments are Stray Bullet, very similar to Megalomaniac, and the following Leid Und Elend, also featuring a refrain with a decidedly captivating riff. Mercy even nods to funk, and I am grateful for that.

Not everything works as it should, other tracks don't seem to possess the same driving force, sounding more like fillers, but Symbols definitely makes up for it with the phenomenal concluding Waste, the hardest track on the album, a mad rush represented by rhythmic changes, martial cadences, and hammering guitar riffs. Worth mentioning is the excellent performance by the supporting singer Lucia Cifarelli. This Symbols album is very enjoyable, certainly one of the most accessible from the German band, and if you like it, you'll have plenty of material to listen to.