Various Artists - Apop We Love You

Everyone has heard the name Apoptygma Berzerk at least once in their life so long as said person is a fan of synth/futurepop or just awesome Norwegian music. I can't personally say that I've ever been a huge fan of theirs or listened to more than one or two songs of theirs, but the influence they have within the scene is outstanding and I give some respect to them for that. Our good friends over at Electrozombies have an obvious love for said Norwegian synthpop group as they have recently released a twenty track tribute album called Apop We Love You. 

You may be asking yourself, "Why the hell is this dopey prick reviewing a tribute compilation about a band that he's never really listened to before?" Well, the answer to that is quite simply that I do what I want. Also, when you have a bunch of awesome names on the compilation I'm going to flock to it and listen to it no matter what. However, being that there are twenty tracks on the album I'm only going to pick a select few that really stood out to me and talk about those ones. 

Synth/futurepop duo Fatal Aim is the first name to appear on the album with their cover version of 'Apollo (Live On Your TV)'. And, well, I hate to break it to the rest of the artists that appear on the compilation but this is one tough fucking song to beat. The gorgeous vocals fronted by Larisa as well as the energizing and 80s dance influenced electronics brought out by Tom "Tranquilizer" are absolutely astounding. It's a perfect song to introduce the album, and it's one that I cannot get enough of. 

Italian electropop duo Electrogenic came in next swinging hard  with their cover of 'In This Together'. The dual vocals and blasting but bouncy rhythm was absolutely astounding. I remember looking up the original version of this song and was quite bored with it after I listened to Electrogenic's rendition. I'll also admit that I've had this song in my personal rotation for quite some time now and I don't think it's going to be removed anytime soon. 

I was very, very enthusiastic about this compilation when I saw one of my favorite darkpop duos appear on this compilation. Corlyx brought on a dark and deconstructed version of 'Deep Red'. The wobbly electronics and moody atmospheric music helped this track allure me, and Ashley's intricate musicianship was always superb. Caitlin's vocals also perfectly captured the mood of the music. It was an all around amazing outing for them. 

Dark electro act from Italy Synapsyche somehow wound up on this compilation and made a damned good cover of 'Bitch'. The mixture of their harsh electronics and screamy vocals played well with the more harmonic and melodic sound that's usually seen from Apoptygma Berzerk. Not only that, but with so many other synthpop bands on the album it was refreshing to see them change up the course. 

So, if you do find yourself listening to this compilation I highly recommend that you listen to the above four tracks. Fatal Aim took spot as my absolute highlight of the album so if you're too lazy to listen to the above four, at least listen to that one. Electrogenic, Corlyx, and Synapsyche all did very, very well in their own rights and I don't think this compilation would have been as strong without them. 

If you still find yourself questioning the quality of this album, I bid you to check out the tracklist. Machinista, IIOIOIOII, Technolorgy, and Technomancer Feat. Angst Pop are just some of the other names that appear on the compilation. 
Jul 29 2016