Ulrich Schnauss - A Strangely Isolated Place
(Domino)
Ever wondered what would happen if someone like Marcus Popp was totally way into shoegaze? Now you don't have to. Ulrich Schnauss' A Strangely Isolated Place is a perfect marriage of shoegaze bliss and computer generated sound. From the first moments of "Gone Forever" the agenda is set—Vangelis style synths, soaring and whispery vocals, and vaguely trip hoppish electronic beats effectively mesmerize and beguile the listener. This is music to listen to while lying down and gazing at the clouds slowly taking shape. I know that sounds sort of corny or whatever, but it's just the truth.
"On My Own" kicks it up a notch with a four on the floor beat leading into some wicked backward guitar loops and a weirdo Kevin Shields type lead guitarline. The result is something both alien and awesome. Recalling the work of the Glove (Steve Severin and Robert Smith's mid 80's collaboration) right down to the sound of the singer's voice, I'd venture to say that Ulrich Schnauss does it even better than those gods of post punk! The beats are very 80s and at times bordering on corny, but they're strangely effective when balanced against the overwhelmingly rich and deep synth and guitar wash. This is a sound that is both familiar and slightly skewed in a very good way.
Some tracks don't quite live up to the greatness presented by those first two songs, such as "A Letter From Home" which is sort of a lifeless hip hopping number. All is forgiven, however, when
"Monday-Paracetamol" comes fading in with the muted drums and tryyyyped out guitars and bass pulses. So, so good. Parallels can be drawn to the sounds of both early Tangerine Dream and Slowdive—in the same song!! What a great mix.
Ulrich Schnauss has really done something so worthwhile and excellent. His mastery over the subtleties of space, textures and melody are excellent and at times overwhelmingly great. The only real criticism that I can offer would be that the songs are a bit too long. There are no songs under 6 minutes, which is fine for a band that does impressionistic soundscapes, but the verse-chorus-verse nature of these songs call for a little bit more editing. That being said, this is an absolute MUST HAVE for fans of shoegaze / spacerock / electronic type music.
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