Devolution

De/Vision

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 30, 2003)
• Original Release Date: January 30, 2003
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: A Different Drum
• ASIN: B000083JXY
• Also Available in: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #272,672 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
De/Vision has been one of the leading edge synthpop bands since 1992, with several albums released in Germany and many underground industrial / synthpop hits worldwide. "Devolution" shows the band at the top of their game with great songs and top-notch programing.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars devolving in reverse, May 24, 2003

By	Link Winter (Mishawaka, IN USA) - See all my reviews

There's an interesting phenomenon that exists in Germany whereby a small handful of synthpop and EBM bands who would barely show up on the radar in the US, manage to attain major label status in Europe. De/vision is one such band, being signed to Drakkar Entertainment, a subsidiary of BMG.

Yes, yes, YES. This is what synthpop should sound like. A truly superb offering from leading German act De/vision that builds on the momentum established with the last few releases. What we have here are 10 electronic pop songs, beautifully composed and executed. Wonderful melodies and infectious choruses abound throughout, and I promise that if you give it just one listen, you'll come away with a song stuck in your head. The really great thing about this release, in my mind, is that there's a really effective combination of strong songwriting and the band's love of experimenting with new sounds. Listen to the vocal processing on "When the World Disappeared" and you'll understand what I'm talking about. Also, a particular tip of the hat has to go to producer Josef Bach, who took this album and made it shine. If you're a production junkie, you'll appreciate the deftness of his skill.

Favourites on devolution include "When the World Disappeared," with its beautiful, almost aquatic refrain; "Miss You More" with its theme of longing; "You Say...", a simple love song that utilises an electric guitar riff for the melody; and the fantastic capper to the whole album, "The Day's Not Done," which seems to hint at things to come. Only one of the songs present, "Mary Jane," didn't quite do it for me. It seemed a bit pointless compared to the rest of the album. One of the nicer touches on this album is the carefully mixed electric and acoustic guitar found on many of the tracks. It can be a difficult element to add to electronically-based music, but in this instance it's carried well, and serves to heighten the atmosphere throughout.

As a note: when I bought this album, I managed to snag one of the limited editions that came with a second disc of four remixes. The T.O.Y. remix sounds like you would expect it to: dance-floor synth-EBM that, in this case, isn't worth that much attention. The Mesh remix is interesting, and a worthy addition. The remix of "Sadness" by John Fryer is heavier than the original, which was heavy for the album in the first place. I really like Telekommander's remix of "The Day's Not Done." It's a very creative interpretation of the original, and it makes for good listening. All in all, these added remixes aren't really essential, so if you can't find the limited edition, don't freak out about it.

In the final analysis, if you enjoy superbly crafted synthpop, devolution is definitely for you.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not depressing enough? Good!, March 26, 2003

By	Stephen T. Durrant "tdurrant" (Smithfield, UT United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I just had to comment on the review that rated this album two stars because it is too embrassing to play for their "dark music" friends. Well, that's one thing I've loved about both De/Vision and synthpop in general. It has NOT always been about depression, darkness, death, and angst. Those are only a few of the wide range of emotions in our lives, and it would be silly (in my opinion) to expect an entire genre to revolve around such a narrow vision. When a band like De/Vision puts out an album like "Devolution", or "Two" which are much more mellow, happen to include songs about love, hope, and other emotions, then it shows much more diversity, talent, and vision. Indeed, a person may have become a fan through the "gothic" or "industrial" scene...this album still has some of those more melancholy, edgy moments (like with the opening track "Sadness")...but it also takes on a lot of other emotions, which is a welcome endeavor for any artist.

I tend to love a lot of different kinds of music, and I don't personally consider it a weakness if a talented band puts out a well produced album that indeed COULD get played on mainstream radio. Unfortunately, I doubt that would happen with De/Vision simply because commercial radio is not about talent, but about money. Purhaps De/Vision has found a way to increase their audience, related artistically to more people, and share their talents more broadly. It would indeed be sad if a band cornered themselves into a position where they only appealed to the dressed-in-black crowd, singing only about depressing subjects.

I think this album is one of De/Vision's best-- it's an album with popular appeal, creative structure, excellent production, diverse stylistic approaches, and maturity. If you just want something dark and dreary that you can stomp around to, I guess there's still the latest Wumpscut album. Five stars to a quality veteran release that reaches new levels of excellence.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Two words: Drifting Sideways, February 14, 2003

By	R O C K E T (The Twin Cities, MN) - See all my reviews

I'm still a little bit iffy on this album. Compared to any of the junk we get on the radio here in the US, this album is ridiculously amazing. However, De/Vision is one of my favorite bands ever, so my expectations were extremely high. "Drifting Sideways" is one of the best (if not THE best) songs the band has ever made. It was a wonderful return to their classics like "Dinner Without Grace," "Sweet Life," etc. But unfortunately it's the only fast-paced synthpoppy song on the album. After their previous two albums, I wasn't expecting a bunch of bouncy synthpop, but I feel sort've teased by "Drifting Sideways." It shows that they can still do it! They just choose not to for some reason. Don't get me wrong - I LOVE the album Two, and there are some really good progressive pop songs on Devolution - I just kind've miss the bouncy stuff. "Miss You More," "Digital Dream," "You Say," "Mary Jane," and "The Day's Not Done" are great for what they are. Unfortunately, there are a few songs I don't particularly like much at all: "Sadness," "When the World Disappeared," and "Far Too Deep." "Sadness," the album opener, is just annoyingly chaotic. Overall, this is a worthy album, but not as good on the whole as World Without End, Fairyland, Monosex, or Two (my favorites). And even if all the other songs did completely [not please], it'd still be worth it for "Drifting Sideways," a true De/Vision classic.