Customer Reviews

05:22:09:12 Off

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Front 242 warmed my body on many an otherwise cold night of listening to old house music in clubs in my college town. The oldies, mostly as featured on Front by Front, felt like the DJ acknowledging me on the dance floor amongst the fratboys. And here, we find f242 all grown up. The maturation of the music beyond use of drumbeats and a catchy synth-line is astounding. Many people have spoken about the female vocals, which I do love, but I wanted to talk about Track 5: "Serial Killers Don't Kill Their Girlfriends" -- I'm not sure what it's supposed to be about, but to me, it is an anthem of independent thought and attitude. It moves me and almost forces me to dance. EVERY time I have ever DJ'ed I've played some version of this at some point, if only mixed in as a bridge. I would buy this album just for that track -- but even if it is the high point, so much on the album overall is nearby in both heart and rhythm. (mXr=variably 3-5...some is just good for dancing, but some actually works for mXr, which is unusual for a band often considered 'industrial')

I think that Front 242 have done something fabulously different with this album and that is by having a Female Vocalist... the diversity and passion that she adds to the music is just awesome... by far their most original work in years... LOVE IT

This CD bears a resemblance to other 242 works in that it contains heavy electronic music. The sounds on this CD are much more lush and heavily orchestrated than past efforts, and this is an intentional contrast to the previous album, "Up Evil". Both albums deal with darker aspects of human emotion, but this one seems to swim in the dementia instead of standing back and analyzing it. A beautiful and terrifying work. This is art.

As far as the influence over the industrial scene is concerned, few bands can rival Front 242. This album shows the band still at its creative peak. It sounds somewhat different to what we came to expect from these guys, first of all, because there's almost no 242's trademark Jean-Luc de Meyer's singing. Instead, the female singer dominates most of the songs here. She sounds very convincing, with menacing distortion in certain tracks, and soothing melodism in others. There's a lot of techno influence on the record, and the pulsing of synth lines is entrancing. Overall feeling of the record is dark and disturbing, with hard driving rhythms, though the variety of the tracks is impressive. My favorite is perhaps "Happiness" where hard techno rhythm is mixed with operatic female singing. What's peculiar about this work, is that certain melodic themes and rhythmical structures are used throughout the record, mixed into the tracks structure here and there, as a sort of industrial conceptual record.

This album was the last in a series of studio greatness from Front 242 that continued on from their debut in 1982. "05:22:09:12 Off" is a must have for any industrial or EBM fan.

"E.V.I.L Off" is 242's last and best original album, even though it included a few remixes. Gone are their trademark eighties bodybeats; Enter breakbeats/ambient/house/industrial, and not a minute too soon either, since they are one of the most sampled and influential bands of the 80's/90's. Another surprise is 99 Kowalski's angelic and sometimes vicious vocals on the best tracks. Jean-Luc DeMeyer's participation fades compared to her. Simply put, this is without a doubt their best album (didn't I say that about others too?), the twin release to "F.*.*.* Up Evil". It opens with the "Animal" trilogy's ambient intro, then kicks into Kowalski's mesmerizing, interrupted vocals and finally Jean-Luc's familiar vocals. Then it opens with a bang on "Modern Angel", an angry, sexy, adrenalin-pumping number, followed by my favourite, "Junkdrome", with its futuristic synths and breakbeats. My other favourite is "Crushed", a sweet & sour offering from Kowalski guaranteed to get your serotonin flowing... It's sad that 242 never released any more original material for so many years after this one - they proved here they didn't need Jean-Luc (even though I'm a *great* fan of his). This is one of the best cyber albums I know.

"Off" is an album I initially had mixed feelings about, due to the addition of Christine Kowalsky, whose vocals are punky, angsty, and obnoxious, and whose lyrics are occasionally quite cliched and cheesy. She isn't the only major difference between this album and classic 242, however; "Off" is definitely a stylistic switch in many ways.

First of all, the album is basically designed to function as one big long flowing 70 minute dance mix, with few obvious breaks between songs and plenty of reprised ideas. Although 242's music was always made with the dance floor in mind, on "Off" they pull out all the stops and switch into full-on rave mode, incorporating acid and trance bass-lines and arpeggiated synth lines left and right. I wasn't expecting this, but luckily they prove themselves damn good at it.

The production on this album is amazing. The psychedelic effects and general "huge" feel of it just keep sounding better and better as you turn up the volume knob. The beats will get you dancing almost instantaneously, even if you've never been to a rave before and are enjoying the music in the solitude of your bed room. Those who complain that 2003's come back album "Pulse" is too mellow and generally lacks life are likely referring to this album as proof- and while I love "Pulse", it's true, the difference is instantly obvious.

The album is full of beautiful synth noise. It actually forms into coherent singable melody far less often than on other 242 albums, but that doesn't seem to matter with the style they're pursuing here. The perfect example is the wonderful, blinding, vibrant, shining wash of "GenEcide" (likely my favorite track).

Typical 242 maintains an almost clinical, stoic maturity, owing in no small part to the personality of vocalist Jean Luc De Meyer. This is completely gone on "Off". It is not a mature album, emotionally or lyrically, and is full of no-holds-barred intensity. I am now able to appreciate Kowalsky's violent vocals, as they compliment the rhythmic energy of the album perfectly, although I almost considered knocking off a star for her overly simple lyrics (example: "Just get away, get away from me, 'cuz I'll never be what you want me to be!"). In the end, she doesn't make this album any less enjoyable, so I can't give it any less than a 5 star rating. She is actually fairly versatile as well, and when she decides to use a cleaner, more melodic tone, she sounds lovely (like in the aforementioned "GenEcide").

In conclusion, very few if any electronic albums can match "Off" for sheer rhythmic power and atmosphere. If the cheesy lyrics don't bother you (and they no longer bother me), this album is one hell of a ride from start to finish, especially if you play it loud. There are no weak tracks, and every song has something valuable to contribute to the whole. Oh yeah, and the version of "Melt" (from "Up Evil") on here is even better than the original, which was great.

Highly recommended for fans of Front 242 or any dance-oriented electronica, although the things that make this enjoyable are different than in other Front 242 material. 5 stars.

09t 100% Industrial, and definitely not 100% Techno, this is an amazing recording. I have always loved NIN, early Front 242, Ministry, some Skinny Puppy, and a bit of Front Line Assembly, but THIS work takes the cake... amazing... I remember buying this when it was first released and expecting the same old Front 242 attack... wow, was I surprised.... female vocals for starters, but also a new sense of continuity and VERY cool synth/sample work... it will ALWAYS be one of my required listening CD's... Highlight: GenEcide... just listen to it.

UPDATE: More than 4 years later since my original review, and the song I most turn to now is "Serial Killers Don't Kill Their Girlfriend". I'm starting to think it is the best Front 242 song ever. Dark. Scary. Twisted. Jean-Luc De Meyer is still the main vocal focus. I still love "Genecide", but "SKDKTG" is sounding more and more as the quintessential Front 242 opus.

UPDATE: 11/04/09 The best songs on this CD are the Front 242 traditional song "Serial Killers Don't Kill Their Girlfriend" and the less traditional 242 song, "Genecide". Brilliant songs, brilliant CD. Wow... can I still call this a CD?

The first song I ever heard from this group was the Modern Angel song. I loved it and thought it was great. Since then I have bought this cd and the Headhunter cd. I wish I had heard of them before now. Great electronics.

Many fans of Front 242 were surprised by this disc, primarily becauses it is the first to feature female vocals on a 242 project. Originally designed to be released with UPEVIL as a two-disc set, it was delayed at least in America until after the Lollapalooza tour. Many of the tracks are variations on the UPEVIL cd: Melt(again), Junkdrome (remix of Crapage), etc. Highlights include the aforementioned Melt(again), the Animal mixes, and Modern Angel, which was later remixed by KMFDM. Overall, style and production are above average, but it is not necessarily the best disc to serve as an introduction to the group!

I purchased this cd after hearing 242 in a club in Germany. This group is one of the best in Techno/Industrial. Hard to top.