Customer Reviews

7

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Got your sites set on some great European electronic? Then take aim on Apoptygma Berzerk's simply titled CD "7". The elegant blend of industrial and electronic brings immediate recognition to the sound of Depeche Mode and some of Nitzer Ebb's less industrial oriented material. Catchy but not synth-pop, heavy yet not Industrial, the choruses will have you singing along while the Euro-beats will keep you jumping. The male vocals are heavy yet appealing, and every other track seems to offer a different female back-up giving the album a variance throughout.

The album is anything but ordinary, as the first track 'Love Never Dies Part 1' quickly proves. Church organs open into quick electronic glory, with a gothic choir chorus that gives goose bumps as the volume climbs into the upper decibels. The depth of the band goes beyond the music with 'Mourn'. With a dedication credit to the late Kurt Cobain of Nirvana and Kurt's guitar sample in the track, the song will immediately get in your head. The knowledge of the dedication makes the song even more relevant and allows for reflection on what's really important in light of the tragedy of the late grunge star's short life.

By far my favorite of the album, 'Non-Stop Violence' is everything you can want in an electronic beat, with all the right build and crescendos, and a chorus that's to die for. Political influences are conveyed with samples relating to the Bosnia conflict. A minute before the end of the track leads you into a great piece that sounds familiar but just can't place, but see no way any other artist could have done any better than the electronic perfection served up here. Things get a bit surreal over the next few tracks, starting with '25 Cromwell St.', a slower track with whispered vocals on the verse reminiscent of the likes of AutoVoice.

The track flows directly into 'Rebel', a dreamlike piece with elements of Kraftwerk. The song brings up the band's Christian perspective, and makes you think twice about whom Jesus Christ was. The only vocals are spoken, in an echoing interview style over this really cool electronic beat. With the statement starting with "For me it's really important to see Christ not as this sort of like mythical, Santa Clause type creature...", the band brings up a point that makes you really consider what it means to wear those little "W.W.J.D." symbols going around the wrists of teens today. The surreal sci-fi aspect continues into the first minute or so of 'Deep Red' before diving head first into a heavy KMFDM style track.

We slow back down for the beautiful and ethereal, ballad-like 'Nearer' before thumping again with the rapid BPM 'Half Asleep' which will leave you thinking of the band Front 242. One of the tracks on the album definitely deserving to be mixed to infinity is the Cobain dedicated 'Mourn', and it's given great dance-floor treatment in 'Mourn (Reprise)'. Same great chorus with the energy turned up past the red line, and the female vocals make the track absolutely beautiful.

'Electricity' is just plain catchy, leading into the dreamlike acoustic guitar number 'Love Never Dies Part 2', with its female lead vocals carrying you away.

This brings me to the only draw back to the album, an issue I have regardless of the album it's on. I'm talking about the gap of silence. For five minutes after the acoustic three-minute piece, there is nothing but silence. I don't mind this if it's on the last track, or there's nothing of interest at the end of the track. But Apoptygma Berzerk makes great music, regardless of where it's at. So more often than not, my lack of patience gets the best of me and I miss out on the great material placed at the last six minutes of track 11.

The track-11 medley starts out with a two-minute catchy mix of the chorus of 'Non-Stop Violence', which lasts just long enough to leave you wanting more. Following for the remainder of the track is a piece I can only term as heavy electronic industrial, incorporating vocal samples and electronic versions of metal pipes and rhythmic distortion over catchy synth. There's even a brief 70's polka sample under a bit of German thrown in, because we always need a bit of polka in our lives. The untitled final Track 12 wraps things up with an almost pop-like number with a fantastic chorus. It's almost like a dessert after eating a satisfying electronic 5-course meal.

You're going to be hard pressed to find better electronic music coming from a European sector that tends to define the genre.

-Chad
-The Edge On-Line

Apop is clearly one of the leaders in the international electro scene and this is the disc that forever cemented that reputation. Having built his reputation with aggressive, melodic EBM on 'Soli Deo Gloria' and some early singles, Stephan Groth (Grothesk) further developed the sound with this release bringing in much more texture and atmosphere. The harshness is greatly reduced also putting the strong melodies and vocals on display.

There are 3 clear masterpieces on '7'. The 1st is the powerful "Love Never Dies Pt 1", a slow-building Goth stomp backed by a potent vocal chorus and samples from Orff's 'Carmina Burana'... the only unfortunate thing is that Orff's work was sampled by so many other sources, including Guiness beer commercials, after Apop did it so new listeners may not be as blown away as we were 10 years ago. The next is "Mourn" dedicated to tortured artist Curt Cobain and featuring a subtle Nirvana sample. The 3rd is "Non-Stop Violence" which is the most-EBM of any track on the disc. Other standouts include the dance tracks "Deep Reed" and "Half Asleep". Both are fast and razor-sharp floor fillers.

As for the criticism that the slower songs are misses, I refute that wholeheartedly. I actually think that songs like "Rebel", a tribute to non-other than Christ himself, "Nearer" and "25 Cromwell St" are some of the most interesting on '7' and grow on you with each listen. People need to realize that it takes bravery to strip down electronic music this much allowing the lyrics, storytelling and minimal melodies to stand on their own to such great extent. APB's wonderful use of tones and percussion make even the most stripped-down song a joy. It's easier to hide behind a big beat than expose yourself the way Stephan does on these songs. "Nearer" may be the best industrial love song since Project Pitchfork's "Souls". The slow songs are a critical part of what make this an very complete album.

Fans of electro/industrial/future-pop will likely agree that '7' is one of the great albums of all time. Synth pop listeners from all walks should pick this up to appreciate its beauty and power; trust me, this one has great appeal beyond just Goth/Industrial.

Over the years, I have sold my fair share of cds for extra cash. There were a few that I later regretted selling. Apoptygma Berzerk's 7 is one of those few cds that I wished I never sold. I recently acquired a copy of last year's remastered version of 7 at a fraction of the cost that is offered here on amazon. 7 has always been my personal favorite Apop cd. The crisp synthesized melodies and throbbing dance beats is what always made me favor this album over the other Apop albums. With 7, I there are no more than two filler songs while on other albums there have been 3-5 songs that I would find myself hitting the forward button on. The only two songs that I really wasn't all that impressed with is "25 Cromwell St" and "Half-Asleep". I wish I still had the original version of 7 to compare it to the remastered version but I don't. I really like how 7 opens up with "Love Never Dies". It is a killer dance song. The operatic sample in the song gives the track an added oomph to the song. Song has a lot of energy. The next two songs continues with that same frantic energy. After not having heard 7 in 3-4 years, the cd still holds up well with me. For me it is classic futurepop. I hope that there will still be some of that in the next Apop album. I liked the most recent album but it wasn't classic Apop.

Apoptygma Berzerk is something of an enigma flourishing in sands that other bands would wilt and decay within. They've managed to craft what they've wanted to craft into their music, meshing beauty and depravity into one giant EBM stew, all the while staying strong in an industry that leaves many a vision sitting abandoned on the roadside. They've been this way since their inception and have continued to morph into something just outside the conceptual norm of the music industry, straying into mainstreamed consciousness a bit with Welcome to Earth and Harmonizer - two very meritable works as well. To me, that's an impressive feat, because so many find themselves without hits after only a few turns of the proverbial wheel. Still, for A Berzerk, this is far from the case.

Seven was an album that was closer to the front of their ascension toward the top and contains some very memorable, very worthwhile tracks that drift into both the lighter sounds of love and the darker, now mostly avoided, themes that I found interesting. The ways that these come into being are quite different, too. "Love Never Dies," for instance, brings the epic sounds of what Stephan Groth calls his version of the "alternative theme to Dracula" (as the interior notes of the album state) into the EBM realm, crafting catchy beats around a quite beautiful body of work. There are stark contrasts to this sound, too, with the machinations sounding in a slower, more melodic tempo and the lyrics becoming darker and more voxed in "25 Cromwell St" and violently-sculpted sounds within "Deep Red" as it exclaims certain things explaining feelings with the "knife cut(ting) through her skin." These suit his voice well, taking the strange vocal stylization he combines with his music and forging songs that don't seem twisted at first but do after time. There are other, more sample-laden tracts (Rebel), and there is the outro alternate theme for Dracula, the female sung "Love Never Dies 2."

Within the praise, I feel I must add a word of caution as well. This is because the album wouldn't be something I would consider telling everyone to pick up because not everyone I know that likes AB likes it. Some people find themselves severely in love with what's here and some people severely hate it, making it a difficult album to recommend. I was initially unsure of it myself but have since converted my opinion, finding the album growing a pulse of its own as I listen to it again and again. Still, its relatively simple to find out what you think. You can listen to one of the samples provided or go to Metropolis and delve further into the band. Either way, it is something I would recommend at least giving a fighting chance.

I have been on a huge VNV/Apop kick lately. I love the whole idea of fusing the aggressive industrial beats and angst-riddled lyrics with the beautiful melodies of trance music. I first discovered Apoptygma Berzerk through "Welcome to Earth". I was blown away by what I heard, especially with "Kathy's Song", "Starsign", and the cover of Metallica's "Fade to Black". I haven't heard anything like that before. I continued to pursue my interest in EBM/industrial-dance/futurepop with VNV Nation, Diary of Dreams, and Icon of Coil. Recently I had the desire to get Apop's "7" because I have been listening to a lot of "Harmonizer" and "Welcome to Earth" lately. I was ready to hear more music from one of my favorite bands. And like their recent albums, "7" I absolutely fell under its spell. It is the perfect reminder to why I love this Norwegian band. There wasn't one song on this album that didn't disappoint me. The melancholy lyrics to "Mourn" was heart-breakingly beautiful since the song was inspired by Kurt Cobain's death. "Non-Stop Violence" is one of the most perfect club tracks I have ever heard. It is definitely something I would hear at a club on a Saturday night. Normally I don't think ballads are Stephen Groth's strongest songs but "Nearer" (and "Mourn") just proved me wrong that he can do them. His lyrics just makes the listener want to weep. There is a sense of drama and emotion in Apop's music that I rarely hear nowadays, especially in the whole genre of electronic music. Most electronic music does come off cold and bleak but what I hear from Apoptygma Berzerk and VNV Nation is the exact opposite. There is warmth and feeling to their music, no matter how bleak the lyrics are. "7" is classic Apoptygma Berzerk all the way. A must have for Apop fans.

The greatest aspect of Apoptygma Berzerk's music is how it merges harsh electronic dance beats with an almost synth-pop approach. The music is reminiscent of bands of the genre like Project Pitchfork and Front 242, but what those bands lack is a pop-appeal that doesn't endanger the brute strength of the industrial components. The "Love Never Dies" parts do well to open and close the album, embracing the gothic undertones of Apoptygma's music, while "Mourn" adds a sense of melodic beauty, contrasting with the subdued violence of "Non-Stop Violence" (my favorite track on the album) and "Deep Red. The album is great for fans of industrial dance music, and fans of danceable synth pop who are in the mood for a darker or harsher edge without sounding as brutal as KMFDM or Laibach (though, there is a Laibach sample on "Deep Red"). The only flaw on this album is that the "Deep Red" B-side "Electronic Warfare" is not included. It's a great song that would've done well on the album, but...nothing's perfect. "7" comes very close to perfection though, so give it a listen if you wanna dance to dark grooves and driving industrial music.

"~Much better than "Welcome to Earth." 7 (so named because it is the seventh APB release) grabs you immediately with it's unabashed usage of the Tocata and Fugue in D minor and the Carmina Burrana (which is usually _soooo_ cliche, but this time it works) and doesn't let go."~ this album is the classic "Mourn," the single for which is their best work. There are effectively 12 songs on the album, though, as two are hidden after periods of silence on track 9, and one with it's own track after that (the final was remixed quite well on the Mourn EP)

This is the first release by Apoptygma Berserk which I have listened to, and the choice was consciously made not to start with one of the most recent albums so that I could (at a later date) get a more contextual perspective on any stylistic evolution.

There is certainly a divergence of styles between (and often within) tracks. It is perhaps helpful to view each track as capable of being represented in 2 dimensions: tone and pace. So, for example, "Rebel" is atonal and slow-paced, "Mourn" is tonal and medium-paced and "Deep Red" is sparsely tonal and fast-paced.

"Mourn" and "25 Cromwell Street" are both memorable for different reasons. The former is a very well constructed and elegant piece which moves through a number of stages seamlessly and can best be compared to Depeche Mode (especially in the aloof vocal style and bass background) although at a slightly faster pace than would be typical for that group. The latter, slow and whispered, is an example of how to effectively create an holistically-consistent atmosphere.

Overall, the work takes on an experimental nature, which is usually well done. Inevitably, however, some of the experiments are better handled than others: at its best points this is an arresting and interesting album, at its worst half-baked and tedious. It is worth listening to in its entirety at least once.

I first heard "Love Never Dies" at a night club in 1998,and as a result started trying to find out who or what it was. I went out looking for it and was completely blown away by tracks like "Non-stop Violence", the provocatively titled "25 Cromwell Street" ,and my personal favourite "Deep Red". which make the CD worth it just for these tracks alone. If you haven`t got this then you are missing out on an extremely Kickass band and if you`ve seen them live then so much the better. Go out now and buy everything they`ve done

AP is one of the best new artists on the Metropolis label and this is a brilliant album. Flawlessly produced dark electronic music with a Depeche Mode-esque pop edge. The best tracks are Love Never Dies, the cover of Electricity and Mourn.