Blutengel – Erlösung / The Victory Of Light (Album – Out Of Line)
Genre/Influences: Dark-Wave, Dark-Pop.
Format: Digital, CD, 2CD, Box, Vinyl, Double Vinyl, Cassette.
Background/Info: Chris Pohl remains pretty prolific during the ongoing pandemic. While he last year unleashed the debut album of his new side-project She Hates Emotions, he this year took off with a special Blutengel album featuring 80s covers “Fountain Of Destiny” and now strikes back with the brand new album “Erlösung – The Victory Of Light”. The regular album features fourteen songs, but the double album features an extra disc (cf. Erlösung – In The Shadows”) with seven more songs. Last, but not least there also is a Box-set featuring one more bonus disc (cf. “Erlösung – A World Beyond”) with six extra songs. Notice by the way it also is the very first time there’ll be a Blutengel-album released on cassette.
Content: Blutengel didn’t really change its familiar sound formula. The songs remain driven by a Dark/Wave-Electro-Pop style mixing hard kicking bass drums and melodic choruses. The songs are still sung in German and English featuring Chris Pohl and Ulrike Goldmann. Some tracks have been empowered and achieved with guitar riffs. I now and then noticed some good-old 80s aspects. The softer tracks have this melancholic touch on top. The album features the already familiar singles “The Victory Of Light”, “Wir Sind Das Licht” and “Wie Sand”.
+ + + : Chris Pohl never stops to take me by surprise. Considering the impressive Blutengel discography featuring the same-old influences you might expect an artist who’s repeating himself. I should say the music style hasn’t changed, but he each time again finds the trick to create great melody lines resulting in elevating choruses. Next to the aforementioned singles, this album reveals a few more potential singles. “We Are Not Dead”, “I Am The Darkness”, “Erlöse Mich” and “Darkness Awaits Us” all are potential hits mixing power and melody, charismatic vocals by Chris Pohl and vocals that express both sensuality and grace by Ulrike Goldmann. I like this work for its menacing bass lines and dreamy atmospheres, but it also is one more totally accomplished opus by Blutengel.
– – – : When you get a regular album featuring 14 songs and you get the feeling nearly half of the tracklist could be potential singles and dancefloor hits, you can’t complain. I’m however less convinced by some of the very few softer –and even ballad-like tracks.
Conclusion: The Blutengel fans will all have their favorite albums and songs, but I’m sure this new opus will quickly become one of their favorites.
Best songs: “We Are Not Dead”, “Darkness Awaits Us”, “I Am The Darkness”, “Erlöse Mich”, “Illuminate My Soul”, “The Victory Of Light”, “Wir Sind Das Licht”.
Rate: 9.
Artist: www.facebook.com/BlutengelOfficial
Label: www.outofline.de / www.facebook.com/outoflinelabel
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