Lacrimosa, Hoffnung

I’ve had a very unstable relationship with Lacrimosa until now, there were times when I saw sparkles of genius in them and I was fascinated by the beauty and complexity of their instrumentals and overwhelmed by the intensity of their emotion, and then there were times where I found them switching between too theatrical and too minimalistic. But this album changed everything, I started listening to it and liked what I was hearing. Then I listened to it again and I loved what I was hearing. Then again and again and then oh my God I was so impressed. For the first time I can say I am truly embracing one of their works. 

With Mondfeur being the only track that got me thinking “get to the point already” (considering almost half of the song is like one overly prolonged intro) and Thunder and lightning being the only other track that didn’t get me fully excited, I have to say, this is one amazing album. Switching effortlessly between classical and electronic, calm and bombastic, powerful&intense and gentle&emotional, doom and darkwave, this is truly a wondrous, complex and surprising album. 

Tilo’s eccentricity is beautifully translated into music, and I love how he doesn’t settle for roads that have been beaten. There are times when the music reminds me of Therion, Saturnus or even Rammstein (Unterwelt has Rammstein’s print all over it, from the rhythm and atmosphere and down to even the hey’s and the background ah’s), but despite of that, you can always feel the strong identity of Lacrimosa and consequently of Tilo. Speaking of Tilo, I love his voice. Or not exactly his voice, but what he does with it. I don’t consider him a very gifted singer, his voice is sometimes hollow, other times raw, he doesn’t have a large range and he’s not exactly versatile. On paper, he’s not that impressive. However, there’s such a strong display of emotion and commitment when he sings, even his almost spoken voice is intriguing because of the way he uses it and puts it into the context of the song. And then his explosions in the higher tonality are just mesmerising, there’s such an out-poor of angst and torment, I cannot remain numb. On the other side, Anne’s hypnotic and somehow otherworldly voice is a great contrast, so I love how he uses her as well. 

Another thing I find fascinating is their style of writing, there are so many little things that are out of the box and surprise me, like a weird distortion, a stray guitar, a random keyboard tune, a startling scream… there is such a strong attention to details and everything is carefully thought out. I love how they toy with our perspectives, changing things when you least expect them to. I also love their use of repetition as a creative device. Usually repetition is something to stay away from in music (or art, in general), but taking a verse and giving it new forms, adding on top of it, reversing it and just getting creative with it like they are with the “don’t make me cry” bit in Kaleidoskop is again surprising.

And still, even though the bar is set high for song structure, originality and the other more objective traits of music, the strength of this album (and probably of the band and even genre of music as well), lies in the storm of emotions it’s able to evoke. The catchier and more fast paced songs are wonderfully infectious and great for not letting the listener sink into melancholy and despair, but it’s the darker and more settled tracks that truly shine. The minimalistic beginnings, with that haunting low voice that’s made even more creepy and piercing by the use of the German language, the explosion of angst and pain and frustration that happens as the song goes by, the gradual growth between them, the way the music speaks to me and captivates and fascinates me, the intensity, the aching, the beauty… it’s such a turmoil of emotions and feelings and notes and instruments, it’s really hard to put into words. It’s a music for the soul and it’s a music you need to sink into and give yourself to in order to really understand. At heart, this is probably my favourite genre, precisely because of the abundance and profoundness of emotions it’s able to produce, but it’s a tricky task, to play with feelings and not with notes, so the occasions where its full potential and full beauty are reached are rare. This is one of those occasions and I can’t help but be blown away by it. 

The two-part Der Freie Fall – Apeiron especially is just amazing, both sentimentally and musically and even though the short simple Keine Schatten Mehr placed between the two might break the feel a bit, it also adds to the unexpectedness of the album.

Practising my objectivity (something I rarely have and even more rarely aim for when speaking about music), I have to admit I may have been a bit loose with the superlatives, but honestly I’m hooked. I actually consider it one of the best releases of this year, and having competition from some of my favourite bands, this is really an achievement. I can’t stop listening to it and every time I play it, I find something else to be fascinated with and in love with. If the excitement doesn’t wear out or at least tone down over the next few months, then I guess I can safely say it’s a remarkable record.