![Cover of Theatre of Tragedy ['mju:zik]](https://www.debaser.it/resize.aspx?path=%2ffiles%2f2007%2f19347.jpg)
•
Rating: To understand what drives the Stavanger combo to compose this theater of extravagance named "Musique", one must go back a full six years before its release (the summer of 2000), reaching that debut album "Theatre Of Tragedy", so fundamental for the subsequent development of a genre, the metal-based gothic, which today is nothing but a faded copy of that wonderful masterpiece.
Indeed, having abandoned the magical medieval and melancholic atmospheres of their early works, our band fiercely separates from the myriad of clones they created to embrace the futuristic sounds of the new millennium, creating a bold work, far from the romantic clichés so much in vogue, entirely devoted to experimentation among elements of rock, pop, electronics, dark, and metal (albeit in small doses). Thus presents itself this puzzle of sound madness, unpredictable but exciting, skillfully combining many genres distant from each other but, while largely disappointing many old fans, once again outlining the coordinates of a trend that will be copied (with better sales, unfortunately...) by many latecomer imitators.
The opening is of excellent quality, entrusted to "Machine", driven by enveloping keyboards towards a verse between sampled drumming and the unrecognizable timbre of a Rohonyi increasingly hypnotized by electro-dark plots. Liv's intervention in the chorus is wonderful, also launched into a new dimension akin to techno-pop, while Aspen skillfully navigates between loops and seductive melodies where the guitars nevertheless contribute, engaged in creating an impactful soundscape. Great piece.
Continuing the listening, one encounters the melancholic escapes of "Fragment"; here too, keys with futuristic tones duet with a bizarre yet emotionally charged vocal approach. The six-string leads by Claussen are brilliant, and the chorus, full of emotion and nostalgia in Espenaes' voice, is excellent. Allow me a slight comparison with the melodic choices of certain Katatonia in the riffing, albeit distantly.
Passing the electronic digressions of the title track, truly the riskiest episode of the platter, we arrive at the atmospheric "Radio". The techno-dance samplers play the leading role in the initial part, with the inspired vocal support of the singer carried away by the sweetness of the dreamy female vocals' response, supported by guitars distorted in a very original and quirky manner.
The hit song is reached with the irresistible immediacy of "Image", an effective, no-frills track supported by powerful riffing that dialogues with fast keyboards and the histrionic Liv's voice, increasingly reaching far-off shores from the soprano tones of the past. This is called talent, being able to double oneself and measure up with different approaches, truly commendable on her part when considering recent generations that, with her and Rueslåtten, are soundly outclassed.
Among the concluding pieces, I highlight the abrasive "Crash/Concrete", modern and powerful, perhaps the most aggressive piece ever composed by the band, benefiting from very seductive female vocals and going straight to the point without frills. Also, "Retrospect" is pleasing for the combination of experimental sounds and the immediacy of a chorus between metal (guitars) and pop (voice) while the closing instrumental track takes us to distant and abandoned shores, dominated by ambient sounds and suggestive sonic atmospheres where the melodic loops of the versatile Lorentz paint extravagant harmonies.
In short, an intricate album for the audience it was entrusted to, too far from the patterns of a genre they invented, full of risky choices that led the Norwegians to lose a large portion of their devoted fans. For the writer, however, after moments of bewilderment at first listening, "Musique" brought a breath of fresh air and new ideas, proving that the ability to write emotional pieces, quality songs, can be maintained regardless of what is played. I still enjoy listening to it today and recommend it to those who want to experiment with a varied and emotional work but endowed with the impact/immediacy binomial that will also characterize upcoming works.
In closing, there's a lingering bitterness for a band that could have "broken through" and is instead relegated to the role of a cult-act by most, where other artists fill store shelves and their pockets. Perhaps, though, it's better this way...
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Machine (04:14)
Look up here
Look down there
I am the new man
I'm tangled in wires
Chipset adept
Memory load
Keep your vogue code that all have
Tomorrow's world we've all seen
Keep your modern ways
And keep your bugs
The Metal Man is here to stay
Talk talk
You say I only work, all night and day
Talk talk
Do say 'Use me, I'm cheap to rent'
Computerised
Voice synthesised
Call me the mech man
In a world of machines
What can I do but to serve
Store the data and calculate
Speak and spell and operate
Engineer the rail and motorway
Automaton of yesterday
Talk talk
You say I only work, all night and day
Talk talk
Do say 'Use me, I'm cheap to rent'
02 City of Light (04:09)
High-rise buildings
Low cost apartments
Financial district
Industrial area
Rows of blue collars
Steelworkers' clink-clang
Metal rhythm left and right
This is the city, city of light
Flicker
Click on
Click off
Click on
The faceless men
The machines of the city
6 p.m. whistle
Next the inner city
Smiling grimey faces
Tea at the local pub
Low-cut dresses
High-spirited workers
Sizzling neon-lights, click on
This is the city, city of light
Flicker
Click on
Click off
Click on
The faceless men
The machines of the city
2 a.m. binge
Low-life slagheap
Used up and burnt out
Like a kick in the teeth
Ramble, shamble on home
Grime back in harness
Metal rhythm left and right
This is the city, city of light
Flicker
Click on
Click off
Click on
The faceless men
The machines of the city
03 Fragment (04:00)
Broken frames
Shattered glass
Like a monochrome film
The replaceable background
Flickers and dissolves
Out of control
There's no sense, it's all Volta, Amp�re and Ohm
Earth to Moon, it's the same as London-Rome
Out of focus, blurred image
As solid as a liquid monument
A second of life
The time-frame of '69
Technology, machinery, humanity
It's all the same
There's no sense, it's all Volta, Amp�re and Ohm
Earth to Moon, it's the same as London-Rome
Time and age, what's the difference
Based upon the same reference
Touch-and-go, who's to know the random order
Contorted, distorted it doesn't make any sense at all
A fragment, a segment - bits and pieces, bits and Hz
Angular, circular
It's all the same
There's no sense, it's all Volta, Amp�re and Ohm
Earth to Moon, it's the same as London-Rome
04 Musique (03:29)
I synthesise and press a lighted key
Turn it on, compose a melody
Redo from start, I need more rhythm
1 and 4 was for the Commodore
A catchy beat, I put it on repeat
I program more, but still it's incomplete
Start and stop, where's the perfect pitch?
I won't give up until I tap my feet.
I'm gonna make a perfect line
Gonna make it stick to your mind
I won't give up that magic rhyme
Got to hear it just one more time
Computer music is just like oxygen
Try and fail, again, again, again
I need the recipe for the perfect melody
I add more tracks, run out of DSP
Timbre and tone, I want it synthetic
Knobs and sliders, no button pushing matrix
Dadaistic, nothing too profound
Electric music resounding all around
I'm gonna make a perfect line
Gonna make it stick to your mind
I won't give up that magic rhyme
Got to hear it just one more time
05 Commute (05:25)
Mobile phones
Commuter trains
The Terminus is full of men
Crisscross network
Zigzag railway
The next stop is Waterloo
White-collar timetable
9 to 5 urban robot
Standby, I'm on a trip with you
Standby, I thought it lasted through
Standby, I'm on a trip with you
It's more fun to commute
Take the Tube
Take the M25
There's traffic jam all around
Double-decker
A fare to Chequers
To tell about my points of view
Standby, I'm on a trip with you
Standby, I thought it lasted through
Standby, I'm on a trip with you
It's more fun to commute
Public transport
No need for comfort
It's all so and so, touch-and-go
Pass a train wreck
Call the tube-tech
I'll make it to work some other day
White-collar timetable
9 to 5 urban robot
Standby, I'm on a trip with you
Standby, I thought it lasted through
Standby, I'm on a trip with you
It's more fun to commute
He pulls
She pushed
I read the papers in the transit lounge
I dial the number
Now I'm certain
I'll make it home some other day
06 Radio (03:39)
Electric broadcast
The new transmission waves
Turn the dial
Transistor radio
The deadpan voice I want to hear
Recieve the news
Recieve the tunes
We've tuned in to the ether melody
It's bright and clear and full of energy
Music won't stop
Electro pop
Commercial workshop
I want your time, I need your time to make a rhyme
On the radio now
Ether melody news
For you and me
Antennae beaming sound, news and speech
Marconi�s words
�Let it be so'
Apparatus signal it out
Information
Communication
We're in the building of the wireless voice
Static morse
Radar, television
The interference
Incoherence
Scrambled signals
I want your waves
Spectral sound
Tune in, tune out
On the radio now
Ether melody news
For you and me
Radio for you and me
The airwaves are fully free
Radio for you and me
Oscillating energy
On the radio now
Ether melody news
For you and me
07 Image (03:09)
You act a pansy, pushover
Do live your fancy, go lower
Who is that, something says your name
You seem chancy, moreover
The call is mine
I'm gonna get you up
I'm wanna get on top
(Repeat)
On the skew, you're dancing all over
You are the anti-fashion statement
In a blue suit, orange pullover
You look like my old dog Rover
The call is mine
I'm gonna get you up
I'm wanna get on top
(Repeat)
09 Retrospect (04:03)
Here we are
We stand in line
One more time today
There is no sense
The cigarette in hand
It's all gone bad
No name, privilege, no hope and fame
We've seen it all before
And it seems like a mirror of our future
We were waiting for something
We were listening to the heartbeats
It could take us
It could take our names; it's the same as no hope and fame
We've seen it all before
And it seems like a mirror of our future
This is no age for us
It seems we're out of class
We are fragile
Like statues made of sand
We've seen it all before
And it seems like a mirror of our future
10 Reverie (05:26)
Car-crash and an elevator Make you someone else Never try yourself Restore you Tick-tock clock and teddy boys Bop 'till you're fagged out Open windows shout She wore me, she wore you Walk these streets She's concrete Reverie All is free Knick-knack, flashy bric-a-brac Seesaw heartbeat, she is back Windscreen eyes are black and blue She saw you The Fleet Street scooter-boys are due They want to see you You're vogue and hip and on a rendezvous Adore you Walk these streets She's concrete Reverie All is free
Loading comments slowly
