music review

::: Strategy ::: "intense"

electro-synth-pop-gothic-industrial

This album is one of the first releases for Canada's Art of Fact Records as well as the debut for solo artist Strategy who is one-third of the Euro-darkwave-synth-pop group Trylok. Trylok have had several releases on the legendary Zoth Ommog label. Strategy fits perfectly alongside established dark-euro-neo-industrial-e.b.m. groups such as Dance or Die, Project Pitchfork, early X-Marks the Pedwalk and the like.

Polished soaring synth strings and melodies, bubbling sequences, quirky mechanic samples, husky and crooning (almost) gothic male vocals, make this a landmark of it's genre. My favourite track is "Confidence": melancholic dance-floor piece with techno-beats, crooning new wave gothic vocals with lyrics of substance, burbling bass synths, and gothic synth strings. A great meshing of the early 80s and late 90s. I would have put this as the first track on the CD. There's also a secret unlisted track at the end: it's a way cool slow Kraftwerk-ish electronic-body-music version of Metallica's "the unforgiven". I have to say I consider Metallica to be one of the most embarrasingly rubbishy bands in the world ever, but Strategy have made this song unique and improved it to no end. I find myself listening to this over and over. 12 tracks over 61 minutes.

Contact: ArtOfFact: 39 Coach Liteway, Toronto, Ontario, M2R 3J8, Canada. E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.artoffact.com

Strategy: po box 625 a-6905 bregenz Austria. E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.trylok.com