Firemensch - Death Beat

Consisting of Fernando & Matias Alonso - (music / production / instruments) and Helder Camberos (also known for his work with Red Industrie) acting as vocalist and lyricist, Firemensch list a host of old-school acts as their influences, alongside EBM, Fetish, Beer, and Girls.

On paper, that makes them a classic old-school EBM act, alien to the usual sounds of Glory & Honour's roster. Let's see how they sound.

We start with "Dunkelheit" (Darkness). It begins with a catchy beat reminiscent of the finer moments of Autodafeh and Nitzer Ebb, and builds into an arp that quickly emphasises its presence. It then reduces its part in the song to a backing effect, but it creates a really danceable flavour. Vocally, Helder is deep and gravelly, with a half-spoken performance. It's quite low in the mix, but it works really well. Acts like Darkmen and 2nd Civilization have done similar to critical acclaim.

"Out Of Control" is excellent. For every 10 'classic' EBM bands I hear, one stands out so much that I can't stop listening to it. Firemensch is that one. This reminds me of the first release by Kant Kino, but the South American flavour is present - at times it reminds me of Brazilian duo 'Aghast View' during their apex.

"Latex & Leather" is about as EBM as a songtitle can get. It sounds very Swedish, interestingly - this is likely due to the Scandinavian dominance of the scene, but it reminds me very prominently of artists such as Astma and (very loosely) Denmark's T.W.A.T.

I could go on about this release for longer than any reasonable individuals attention span. "Sadomasoquist" is high standard 'Steel and Rhythm', "Postmodern Army" and "The Storm" are so 'Anhalt' in their style that they could have got away with claiming they're from the Saxony region, and most importantly, the album is closed with some impressive remixers. "Rebel Empire" and "Grosstracktor" are two acts I discovered recently, and their efforts add a glowing reference to an impressive release.

"People Theatre", "Memory Box" and "Orline" give me three new acts to check out, as they close off a union of friendship, hard-work and muscle.

One of the best EBM releases of 2012, and a milestone for the label.
Sep 20 2012